The Wonderful and Weird Bisbee
In a Nutshell:
History, Shopping, and Entertainment in quirky Bisbee
Refreshing town with hidden gems and things-to-do: unique shopping, mining tours, etc.
Saguaro Sam:
Bisbee prides itself on being weird and quirky. As you wander in and out of the stores that line Main Street you'll see t-shirts that say things like "Keepin it Weird in Bisbee" and "Bisbee, It's like Mayberry on Acid."
I have always appreciated this vibe… Bisbee, a small, mining town is now a super fun getaway for Southern Arizona residents and out of town guests.
Lucy, my daughter Callie and I arrived in Bisbee around lunch time and began our adventure by getting lunch at Bisbee's Table. It's located in an old building that also houses a coffee shop and other small shops. Lucy and I shared a basket of truffle fries and a San Ramon salad, both of which were delectable.
After lunch the three of us walked down Main Street for some shopping. We bought perfume and lip balm at Bisbee Soap and Sundry, checked out cool clothing at Classic Rock Couture, and admired quirky art and brightly painted furniture at Art Home.
Before arriving in Bisbee we had decided we were going to get a psychic reading (we figured it was the perfect Bisbee trip activity). Unfortunately we were never able to find a psychic. We tried calling one woman who had left her number on the door of her business only to learn she was out for the day due to a small car accident. (Which did make us ponder how good of a psychic she really is to begin with).
After unsuccessfully searching the streets of Bisbee for a psychic we had worked up a sweat (it was sweltering outside). So we decided to cool off with a scoop of gelato from Pussy Cat Gelato. We ate our gelato on a leather couch, in a 70's themed space (with AC), while watching Hanna Barbera cartoons.
Next we visited a Bisbee favorite of mine, Bisbee Olive Oil. This place sells all kinds of goodies. My favorites are the flavored olive oils and balsamic vinegars. You even get to sample them in the store. I'm a sucker for fruity balsamics, I drizzle them over fruit/fruit salad. This time around I got a white coconut lime balsamic, it was great over cut up peaches and berries.
While at Bisbee Olive Oil we got to meet a famous local, Magic Kenny Bang Bang. He performs paranormal themed magic shows at the Bisbee Seance Room (across the street from Bisbee Olive Oil). Magic Kenny was very amiable, he even performed a couple quick tricks for us. When he went to pay for his olive oil he opened his wallet and it caught on fire! Whoah! Lucy and I are DEFINITELY planning a trip back to Bisbee so we can see his show (which is performed Thursday-Saturday nights).
Before leaving Bisbee for the day we decided we were going to take fate into our own hands and we weren't going to give up on our psychic plans for the day. We purchased a set of palm reading cards from a local store and settled into the coffee shop we'd seen earlier to begin our readings.
So what did we learn about ourselves from our palm readings? Everything (and kind of nothing). By the time we got through the entire deck just about every word that could be used to describe a person was used to describe each of us. It might not have been very enlightening, but it was a fun and fitting way to end our trip to the weirdest little town in Southern Arizona.
Lucy’s Notes:
This was my third trip down to Bisbee and I have to say the shopping is usually my favorite part. The cutest nifty-gifties are everywhere and often I find myself buying something amazing that I had no intention of buying when I arrived (here's looking at you Bisbee Olive Oil! That stuff is great).
Sam and I desperately wanted to do the mining tour on this particular visit but we were both wearing sandals and they don't allow you to participate in the mining tour with open-toed shoes. As mildly disappointing as that was, it does make me realize something great about Bisbee --there's really always something new to try out! I think you could spend an active weekend there and still feel like you might have missed something great and need to come back.... a sentiment Sam and I shared multiple times!
Bisbee prides itself on various annual events including a garden tour, the great stair climb, a munster masquerade, and (the one event I'm personally looking forward to...) a "Pirates of the High Desert" three-day event where residents and guests dress like pirates! For a detailed list of some of these events click HERE. I guess Bisbee isn't exactly the place you'd peg to have a night-life but (as with many things in Bisbee) visit and prepare to be delightfully surprised.
