Copper Country Antique Mall and Tucson Antiquing

Buffalo Bistro and Amelia Grey's Tea Garden is a long name for a small space.

Good sandwich and they carry Pepsi Throwback. Nobody carries Pepsi Throwback.

It is deep into winter break and I just got back from a week in Illinois, where I got a cold. I'm sort of miserable, but also suffering from cabin fever so I go out-- alone and moody-- into the gray afternoon, embarking on a voyage: a search to find the magical teapot that will brew my cold away. I'm driving a sun burnt, dirty beast: a '97 Crown Vic who in a past life was an Iowa City Cop Car. I can't get rid of this car because Andrew was driving it when I fell in love with him, nearly a decade ago.

First I sail my boat into the harbors of the romantic, cottage, chic Paris Flea Market, and notice its same-veined neighbor is out of business. I walk a few doors down to the tiny, cluttered Pink Elephant. Then I hop back on my boat and head to the Goodwill on 1st or the Goodwill on Speedway (where my sister and I were recently flashed. Peek-a-boo eighties shorts, you know who you are.) I then cross the street to the Elegant Junque Shop, and finally, its sister store: Christine's Curiosity Shop. Together they carry a surprising array. I find a vintage copper tea pot, clean enough inside to safely heat water. It comes with a matching copper stand. Its handle is white porcelain with blue flowers; a nice touch. The kindly couple who own the store give me a deal on the teapot and on a cigar box.

Just a little down the road, Copper Country Antique Mall does not only carry an impressive variety of goods, including objects d'art, but holds a secret in its heart: Buffalo Bistro and Amelia Grey's Tea Garden (owned by Annette Hartman.) Being there felt a little like being in one of the quaint shops and cafes that have lived brief lives in my grandmother's Iowa town of 1,000 people...

Have other favorite Tucson antique and thrift stores? Please comment!