Arizona Chapter One - Camelback

After rising at 4am to clean up, grab our bags, and go, we made it to the airport for our 7am flight.  After checking in at Alaska Airlines (and putting out $20 each for our checked luggage) we obtained our boarding passes fairly quickly; however, the security line was endless!  By the time we made it to our gate, the boarding door was closed.  Thankfully, they let us in and we were the last ones to enter the flight.  I could see the disappointment on our row mate when he realized he would not have the three seats to himself!

The flight itself was uneventful, although we learned that meals are no longer provided non gratis to travelers.  We purchased a fruit plate, waffle and sausage to share for our breakfast.  Landing in Phoenix, we grabbed our bags then made our way on to the shuttle bus to the car rental building.

Michael had reserved a $9 per day vehicle from Fox Rentals; however, we learned they required a $400 deposit - WTH?  That wasn't going to happen so we inquired at a few other rental facilities before settling on Budget for $13 a day and no huge deposit.  Convertibles and BMW's danced in our heads but in the end we were happy with our Ford Focus, also known as the gutless wonder.

Due to Michael's Phoenix expertise, we easily found the JW Marriott Camelback Resort, our Arizona accommodation.  It is a beautiful estate, offering clay abodes, large pool, restaurants, golf course, and camera-worthy scenery. 

We checked in, met my boss's hotel contact, and were given a map to our room.  Based upon my boss's information, we expected a large suite with private pool.  Unfortunately, as it was with the Ford Focus, our fantasy and reality did not meet.  Our room, although very nice, was not a suite nor included a private  pool, although it was right across the path from the pool.  We called the front desk and learned no suite with pool was available to us, at which point I contacted my boss, who ended up verifying a last minute group had reserved the pool rooms.  I was disappointed but understood the reasoning behind selling a high-end room at full price rather than at a discounted friend and family rate. 

Room issue settled, we unpacked, cleaned up, then made our way over to Michael's aunt's house to begin celebrating the family reunion.