Your best "Summary of Albany" itinerary

My husband and I are going to be in the area checking it out to decide if we want to move. We plan to check out the local grocery stores, restaurants, and surrounding suburbs (even Troy and Schenectady). If you had to make up an itinerary of all the things that would give us a good "summary" of the area, where/what would you say we should see? I support both good and bad things, as seeing only the best parts would not be realistic. What are the best are worst areas? Parks, drives, activities, things locals tend to do, etc. We will only be there about 3 days, but are doing a lot of research up front on things in addition to the visit. Mostly planning to drive around and see a lot of things more than play tourist. Thank you in advance for any ideas!