Rising in Phoenix

I reached Phoenix, Arizona at around 6.40 PM. I headed straight to the baggage claim section, and before I even got to the carousel I saw Cheryl and her husband Doug. Of course, I've only seen a picture of Cheryl and have spoken with her over the phones a few times during out tele-conferencing, but I recognized her almost immediately. Apparently she did too as she got up and walked towards me with a big smile.

Doug and Cheryl are two of the nicest people a person could ever meet. They were warm, and friendly and absolutely charming. After getting the luggage, we walked towards their car and were discussing on where to go for dinner. Having already "google-earthed" the area, I knew a few interesting places to eat around Mariott's Residence Inn where I'll be staying. One of them (which one of my colleague back home strongly suggested as well) was the Mexican food restaurant called Abuelo's. Cheryl's jaw dropped when I suggested we go there, she was extremely surprised that I even knew of Abuelo's.

We drove through the town of Phoenix, it was a sight to behold. We reached Abuelo's and just as Cheryl had been worried of, the place was packed. However Doug did say that it wouldn't be too long of a wait so we went in anyway - and sure enough we got a table within 10 minutes. When I had the menu in my hand, I felt as is I was reading a Mexican newspaper. I didn't know any of the items in the menu...but then I had a second look. Of course, I know what a fajita is...and then there was a buritto...and enchiladas. But that was about as far as I got. Taking into consideration my food restrictions, Doug suggested I try the Fajita Chimichanga. I thought the name had a nice ring to it. He was right, I loved it!

So what a Chimichanga is, is basically a deep fried burrito (chicken / turkey fillings) with some salad, refried beans and some Mexican rice. However, what I really enjoyed in Abuelo's wasn't the main course...instead it was the salsa and the tortilla chips which they served as the appetizer. I was immediately hooked on them!

After dinner, I checked in to the hotel which was right across of the Chandler Fashion Mall. Quite a nice area, for someone who is not familiar with the left hand side driving to be able to explore on foot!