I just got back from Denver and I absolutely LOVED it! I have this amazing girlfriend who has been planning on moving there for about 6 - 8 months. Well, this past weekend, she made the official decision; I am so proud of her! A few months ago, bored and uninspired, we booked this trip in the hopes that she would fall in love with the city and be able to start a new adventure in her life. That is exactly what happened; she is pretty much super woman.
Cheesman Park
The first day in Denver we did SO MUCH. We saw 3 different apartments (and neighborhoods), went to cute cafes, ate some of the famous green chili and a bit of local beer for dinner. I just have to mention the places we ate at were SO GREAT. For dinner the first night we went to Jonsey's Eat Bar; AMAZING. I had the Breckenridge Agave Wheat (nectar of the beer gods) with my meal, oh SO delicious! Apparently, they have the best fries in the U.S. of A. and I actually cannot think of any fries I have had that were much better to be honest! We split the "Green Chili" fries, because that is what you do in Colorado. You eat Green Chili and have some local beer.
Another bonus of Denver is that it is so cheap (compared to California)!!! I also loved that it was easy to eat healthy, fresh, and local. At the Wynkoop Brewery in LoDo, we got a flight of 3 beers for $4.50!! That is insanely affordable and the bonus was that they were delicious. I particularly liked their Chili Beer and am now slightly obsessed.
beer tasting at Wynkoop
Everyone in Denver was really nice, always referring us to the next amazing local cafe, giving us directions, and recommending great places to eat. My favorite place we ate at was in Uptown, called Olive & Finch. We had our first lunch and cappuccinos there while enjoying the cold. Alexa, aka superwoman, had her first business meeting of the trip there as well. We loved the place so much, we ended the trip there as well, watching the snow fall sipping on our umpteenth cappuccino. The bonus was that it had SUCH great food (vegan, vegetarian, & gluten free options), coffee, desserts, and they also had a great selection of beer and wine. It was super cute; I sort of loved it.
Highland in Denver
There are so many great neighborhoods in Denver: LoDo, Uptown, RiNo, Lo Hi, Cap Hill, Wash Park.... it literally took forever to learn the lingo, but we eventually got it. Each neighborhood was unique, with some sort of outdoor park or activites. The city also has a TON of bike paths and also a cycle system called B-cycle, where you can rent a bike for the day. They had stations everywhere, so it seemed that you could use this system quite easily instead of driving around.
Larimer Square
The highlight for me, as I am an avid basketball fan, was that we went to a Denver Nuggets game! It was the Nuggets vs. The Pacers and the Nuggets won ! Whoop Whoop! Denver is a city in love with their sports teams, that is for sure! We were able to walk to the Pepsi Stadium from uptown and everyone also seemed to walk from the bars of Larimer Square to the game. Denver was entirely decked out in Bronco's gear, every statue had a jersey on. They were very proud of the fact that they made it to the Super Bowl.
View from our seats, go Nuggets!
The Pepsi Stadium hosts the Nuggets (basketball) and the Avalanche (hockey). Coors stadium is not a far walk to see the Rockies play (baseball), and also not far from the Pepsi Stadium is the Sports Authority Field, where the Broncos play. The four main sports are all centrally located and easily accessible for the people of Denver. I truly was jealous. San Diego is great, but we do not have a basketball or hockey team. Denver is a city for the lover of sports!
After spending three full days in Denver we decided to make the trip to Boulder. It was a gorgeous drive and such a cute college city. We spent the day on Pearl Street Mall, enjoying Irish Coffees and wandering into book stores. It was pretty great. Boulder is extremely adorable and only a 45 minute drive from the city in order to enjoy a relaxing change of pace.
driving to Boulder
Colorado Sunset, driving back from Boulder
The last day was FREEZING, so Alexa drove to another business meeting and I stayed in bed. The high was 18 degrees Fahrenheit and it was snowing. I gladly stayed in bed until Alexa came back to drive us to Olive & Finch. It was again delicious.... after that we went to the airport to make our way back to Sunny California. I loved Colorado so much that I am already looking to book my flights to go visit my friend in October (that is when the international beer festival is meant to happen in Denver)! She hasn't even physically moved there yet; that is how much fun we had! The city is so amazing and I am so happy for my dear friend and the adventures ahead of her. I may even be slightly more excited for myself; I now have more excuses to go back and visit ;)
it was seriously this cold out, my glasses fogged up!
Las Vegas, the city of sin.... depending on what you want to
do, right? Las Vegas can be as tame as you want or as wild as you want; it's
entirely up to you. That is why Vegas is so great! I've been to Vegas a few
times and each time I have had a completely different experience. I have been to
Vegas with my dad and step-mom, my mom and her friends, my in-laws, many
reunions with friends from all around the world, an intimate weekend with my
husband, and a couple’s weekend as well. Every time Vegas has been slightly
different.
When I went with my dad, we went to Hoover Dam, which was
pretty awesome. It is not a far drive outside of the city and its size really
does take your breath away. Further, but not too far away is the Grand Canyon
as well, so if you do get bored of the casinos there are some nice outdoor
activities waiting for you.
Hoover Dam with my friends and Dad-2009
Vegas, in my opinion really *shouldn't* be for kids, but
there are plenty of family friendly activities: Coca Cola Store, M&Ms
store, Aquarium at Mandalay Bay, roller coasters of Circus Circus, New York New
York, & The Stratosphere. However, let’s be honest..... Nothing is worse
than milking off a hangover by the pool and some loud, noisy, irritating
children are splashing and shouting near you. I do have friends who go on
family holidays to Las Vegas and they have a great time. However, most people
go to Vegas to let loose… so not only do they not want to be around kids, the
things they are doing aren’t really kid friendly. However, I don’t have kids,
so one thing that I think Vegas needs more of, are adult only hotels (again,
just my opinion) so that people like myself can have a stress free trip.
Bellagio Water Show-2012
The key to Vegas is to plan ahead and get a decent hotel. I
always find that I spend more time in my temporary residence than always
originally planned. If you pay that little extra for the comfort of a nice
hotel, you spend less money on taxis. If you get a nice hotel, you tend to stay
on its premises; especially if there is a casino and pool. Even though I am not
much of a gambler, I love the sound of the casino when you walk in.
Nothing really gets you ready to "go out all night" like the
sounds of those slot machines! Plus, if you’re gambling you get free booze! My
favorite hotel (thus far) is Planet Hollywood. Planet
Hollywood has an amazing pool that sits beneath the "Paris" Eiffel
Tower, and most rooms also face the Bellagio water fountain. Planet Hollywood
has great restaurants, is connected to the Miracle Mile for shopping, has a
great fun casino with dancing girls on the card tables, a relaxing spa, fun
in-house entertainment, an AMAZING pool, and to top it off it is centrally
located across from the amazing Bellagio water fountain display. The extra
bonus of Planet Hollywood is that there is a no kids section at the pool :)
ahhhhhhhhhhhh !
the pool at Planet Hollywood (view from my chair)
There are also some AMAZING restaurants in Vegas, owned by
some of the most famous chefs in the world. My new particular favorite is, "Twist"
by Pierre Gagnaire which is located in the Mandarin Oriental. The Mandarin
Oriental is a secret gem in Las Vegas. It is tucked away and does not have a
casino, but the Mandarin
Bar has some of the best cocktails in Las Vegas with, hands down, the
best views of the strip. It is very romantic in this bar, so it is a great way
to start a fun romantic night for a couple. My husband and I started here before heading
to our Matt Goss show
in Caesars Palace. (a great, fun, show by the way!).
Now back to Twist, ummmm AMAZING and one of the best food
experiences I have ever had. I probably will not be able to afford such an
amazing culinary experience like this in a long time, so I truly did cherish
it. Plus the sommelier is amazing and even called my husband a few times prior
to our visit to ensure we were picking the correct bottle of champagne to
accompany our meal. The service, food, and view in Twist are amazing.
Obviously, I cannot stop talking about it! So, as you can see, Vegas is great
for a romantic weekend getaway as well.
What Vegas is probably known best for is the debauchery that
goes on. In order to have the best and most fun time with your friends, you do
need to plan ahead. You need to see which club and or clubs you want to go to
and get your names on the guest list. Sad, but true, girls never have a problem
so if you're going with boys you really, really, need to plan ahead.
what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas- amazing reunion 2010
In my opinion, the best and most amazing "new-ish"
fun thing to do is to attend one of the many pool parties. I went to Encore Beach Club at
the Wynn, and it was SO MUCH FUN! I saw Steve Angelo and he was phenomenal.
Some of the best DJs come to these pool parties, which makes for great dancing.
It may be because I am now getting older, but pool parties are really the way
forward! You get there early, around 11 am, you drink and dance all day. It is
sunny and hot so you're sweating out most of the toxins you're putting in your
body, you dance to one of your favorite DJs, and once it is all over you go
back to your hotel. At this point you're probably starving, so you eat and then
(in my case) most likely go to sleep after watching some random TV marathon in
bed. These courses of events lead to little or no hangover the next day! That nonexistent
hangover allowed for my mid-twenty to early-thirty year old friends and I to do
two days of partying in a row!! That is now unheard of for us, but doing the
pool party first, meant that we could do a club (at night) the next day! So as
you can see, pool parties are definitely the way forward... in my opinion;
especially if you just cannot recover like you used to.
the pool party at Encore Beach Club-Summer 2013
Vegas can be anything you want it to be, as long as you're
going with great people to make it fun. The entertainment options are limitless:
Cirque de Soleil, comedy shows, concerts, gambling, theatre, plays, etc., but
if you just want to relax, there are many options just for that as well. Vegas
does have its flaws.... we already know about my biased child flaw, but I also
particularly find myself disgusted by the amount of buffets. It is like
watching people stuffing their faces like pigs to a troth. With all the great
options for food, I just don't understand eating as much as you can for as
little as you can, but then again that is just me… and YES, I have been to the
buffets that are accredited, like the ones in the Rio, Caesars Palace and the
Bellagio. I still don’t get it. For how much I paid for the buffet, I could
have eaten for A LOT LESS money at one of the many abundant subways and not
stare at people stuffing their faces all around me. Alternatively, for slightly
more (sometimes less as the buffets do get expensive) enjoy a nice relaxing
meal at a GREAT restaurant.
For the most part, I love Vegas. However, I have a little biased
sentimental piece of my heart saved for Vegas. I married the man of my life in
this city, so how could I not love it? Don't be fooled, you cannot just show up
to a drive through church and expect to get married! You have to go to the
court house first to get your marriage license, so the whole "how did I
get married" thing can't really happen; myth busted!
Las Vegas is great, but to be honest, you probably don't
need more than three days there. Three days of pushing your body through
extreme outdoor heat, indoor cold air conditioning, smoke filled casinos,
alcohol, food comas, and lack of sleep kind of wears you down. The first 48
hours in Vegas are always the best, don't ruin it. Go home and recover so you
can plan your next "sinful" (or relaxing) adventure.
My wonderful husband turned 30 in November and we celebrated the only way we know how, by going on another trip! As we've been in the States now for almost two years, we decided to go somewhere on this side of the world; Costa Rica. The trip started out great for the big 3-0! On our flight over we told the steward that it was my husband's birthday. So the pilot, over the intercom, wished the "man in seat 19A a wonderful birthday"... the steward proceeded to allow everyone to clap and cheer. As my husband is an AIRPLANE NERD, this couldn't be more exciting for him. If you want to read about our flight, please read his blog: When I Travel the World. (if you're into flight reports)
let the road trip begin!
traffic jam !
Any who.... this trip started off great for my husband's 30th. My husband planned the trip as it was his birthday, however, lets just say "google maps" doesn't get everything right! Once we landed in hot, humid, Costa Rica we needed to get our rental car. Well, after about 30-45 minutes of us walking up and down a street and me trying to talk to the locals in my very broken Spanish, we discovered that the Alamo rental car that google maps said was there, had moved over a year ago! Way to Google!..... Normally, something like this would irritate us, but we were on vacation and to be honest, it was pretty fun using my "spanglish" again. We eventually picked up our beast of a mini-jeep and started the 2 hour drive to Manuel Antonio National Park.
the "Beast" !
I have never seen it rain so hard in my life. We were driving along this tiny two way road, lightning everywhere, and it was pouring down rain. I knew Manuel Antonio was a rain forest, but I didn't imagine it would actually rain this much! We got to our hotel, The Falls Resort, and it was absolutely a wonderful stay. We had an adorable cottage in the back of the property equipped with a hammock!
attempting to drive in the storm
our cottage
As it had stopped raining for the afternoon, we walked down the road to a bar to have some local Costa Rican beer: Imperial & Pilsen. We also thought it would be a good idea to order some fresh mahi-mahi. Our first full day and we were rewarded with a gorgeous sunset. In retrospect, I am extremely happy we really soaked in the beauty of the sun setting over the pacific ocean, because at the time we had no idea that would be the only sunset we would see during our entire trip. By the time we headed back to the hotel, it was pouring rain....again. We attempted to sleep, but it was just soooo loud due to the storm!
our first and only sunset in Manuel Antonio
well deserved after driving in the rain
Relaxing :)
We woke up early to another 100% humid day, but we had a kayaking trip planned through the mangroves, which we were pretty excited about! UMMMM..... kayaking did not happen. The guide proceeded to tell us how the other day a 16 foot crocodile was eating a calf! We opted to proceed with the tour, but in his boat instead of kayaking on our own through the murky waters. We ended up seeing a ton of snakes, lizards, birds, crocodiles... and MONKEYS!
where the sea meets the murky river
I absolutely hate monkeys! The guide got too close to the trees so the monkeys decided they would come on board. I screamed and freaked out and jumped to the other side of the boat; which I guess is what you're not supposed to do. Jayda, on the other hand, sat still like you're supposed to and he ended up having monkeys crawl all over him; gross! ..... this so called professional 'guide' told us the monkey's were safe. Come to find out when we get back to our hotel, the staff advised us that they are not safe and can be aggressive; way to go guide, way to go. Luckily everything was fine, but I sure was ready to get away from the monkeys. Another night of pouring down rain & lightning storms kept us awake, but it was pretty awesome at the same time.
hey dude, you got a banana?
We were up early again at 6 am the next day to get our hiking on in the Manuel Antonio National Rain Forest. We hiked for 3 hours on our own in order to make our way to one of the secluded beaches. We saw a ton of monkeys, iguanas, a deer, butterflies, birds (including toucans!), howling monkeys, raccoon's, and a SLOTH! Seeing a sloth in its natural habitat was my main goal of Manuel Antonio, so this hike and trip already was a success in my eyes.
Mr. (or Mrs?) Sloth
Iguana on the coast of Manuel Antonio
The forest of Manuel Antonio is so thick and full of nature. I have been to many rain forests before, but none like this. It truly was a fun experience. When we made it to the secluded beach, the water was so green and beautiful. I did not go into the sea as the waves are quite large on the Pacific side, but it was gorgeous. We were hiking for hours and to come out onto a small sandy/rocky patch of green ocean beach was just perfect. It was definitely an adventure, being stuck in the thick jungle, then all of a sudden you can hear waves crashing in the distance. Within a few minutes you step out onto the sand and see the ocean. It was breath taking.
our jungle path in Manuel Antonio
the green pacific ocean after hiking in the jungle
The area of Manuel Antonio is truly gorgeous, but ensure that you get up early every day to do your adventures and site seeing. Once it starts raining, it does not stop until late the next morning. The National Park was great, but a bit of advise would be to not pay for a guide. You get to see just as much or probably more being on your own schedule. Plus, if you see a large group looking up at something the guide shows them.... you can easily look up and see what they see. We didn't get a guide and saw a ton of wildlife, plus we were able to get off the beaten path and do our own thing as well, which was nice. During the day in Manuel Antonio, you get humid sunshine which is great for outdoor activities, but be prepared for incredible lightning and thunder storms at night. Get a beer and just watch mother nature work.
we made it!
Manuel Antonio
Our next stop was the Arenal Volcano area. That was about a 4.5 hour drive through beautiful winding mountain roads. I loved the drive out of Manuel Antonio and up to the inland north part of Costa Rica. We of course had rain, but we also saw some sunshine and amazing clouds driving through the cloud forest. Our destination was a Tree House, where we stayed at for the remainder of our trip. Waking up each morning to a thermos of coffee waiting for us on the porch and sun shining through the trees was phenomenal. I have never seen so many beautifully colored birds in my life.... just eating and flying past us in the tree house. That was one of my favorite parts of the trip.....
one of the many morning views in our Tree House
driving through the cloud forest
our tree house aka home in Costa Rica
We then decided that we must go zip lining! When you go to Costa Rica, you HAVE to go zip lining! It was pretty freaking awesome. We did 18 zip lines, including the superman zip line! The farthest was 552 meters and about 200 feet over the river. We also did the Tarzan swing, which was terrifying. Zip lining was great, but the Tarzan swing was scary! They hook you onto a rope and then throw you off a cliff. You need to pay attention and lift your legs up on the swing back, otherwise your legs would get crushed. What an adrenaline rush! Seriously, after the Tarzan swing my legs were shaking uncontrollably due to the adrenaline rushing through my body. I am not over exaggerating! It may have been the funnest/scariest thing I have done in a while. Here is Jayda doing the Superman Zip Line, and I come right after him. Pretty awesome, right?!:
After the excitement of zip lining, we headed back to our tree house to get ready for our Arenal Volcano hike and natural hot springs evening relaxation. Well, we're sitting on the balcony and we notice some howling monkeys. As previously mentioned, I am afraid of monkeys so I decide to go inside. Well, the "macho male" sees us and decides that we are a threat. No joke, he comes over to our balcony, walks up to each window and puts his hands over his eyes to peer inside! Like a creepy little man! He starts to rub his ginormous balls on our door and balcony handles! To top if off, he proceeds to put his feces in front of our door. Whilst he is taunting us, he is laughing the ENTIRE time. Well, we are now inside and have 2 hours to kill before we have to go anywhere, so we think that we can wait him out.
UMMMMMM SCARY!
Well, an hour later we were still being stared down so we begin opening the door to see if we can get out. As soon as we open the door, he starts hissing/howling/whatever you want to call it and showing his huge teeth! Well, we're still stuck and he remained sitting on the ledge staring us down.... now 2 hours later we're afraid we're going to miss getting picked up for the Arenal Volcano hike. I made the decision to go to the bathroom shower (it was mesh netting so you were "one with nature" when you showered) any who... I started calling for help hoping that some distant tree house neighbor would hear us. Thankfully someone did!!!! The lovely owner ran down to our tree house and scared the monkeys away. They assured us they were not violent, but this family of monkeys have tormented previous guests before; particularly guests staying in our tree house. Great! They started cleaning our balcony for us and assured us they would not attack, just throw poop at us. HOWEVER, side note: if they were not violent, why did they have Rolando waiting for us upon our late evening return from the hike/hot water springs? He was waiting with a machete to escort us back to our tree house and also look around to ensure our safety prior to leaving. I say it is pretty suspect.
do you see those things? On our balcony!
I must emphasize that the people who work and run the Tree Houses are amazing and I have nothing but great things to say. If you go to Costa Rica, you must go see the Arenal Volcano and stay at the Tree Houses Hotel. It is safe to say that we were eventually rescued and made the pick up to the Arenal Volcano for our hike. Of course, it started to rain on us, but it was still fun.
A man named Juan was our guide. If you stay at the Tree Houses Hotel, they will hook you up with Juan. He is a local and he showed us all the local brush, trees, and plants that were indigenous to Costa Rica and also their tasty health benefits while on our hike. Due to the Arenal Volcano's 1968 major eruption, there was nutrient volcanic rock that provided for the lush growth. We hiked to the peak and could see Lake Arenal, but the clouds prevented us from seeing the top of the volcano. As (of course) it started to down pour, we had Juan guide us back and drop us off at the natural hot springs. That was very relaxing.
Arenal Volcano
There were many different springs, all with different temperatures. We challenged ourselves and managed to get up to our knees in the hottest spring! There was also a water slide, which Jayda partook in, but not I. We spent most of our time relaxing in the 46 Celsius pool as it was the largest and most peaceful.
an Arenal Natural Hot Spring
Eventually, we had Juan take us back to our Tree House. That is when Rolando was waiting with his large machete to escort us back to our tree! Rolando knew little English so him and I spent the little 10 minute walk talking to each other in my broken Spanish. He was such a nice man and (again) you must stay at the Tree Houses Hotel! Rolando takes people on night walks through the jungle that the tree houses are located in. He teaches everyone so much and points out things we wouldn't see on our own. Plus, he makes you feel safe with that machete!
vamanos !
just another winding road trip
We ended our trip the same as we arrived; a long road trip through a lightning and rain storm. It seemed fitting. Costa Rica was great! Normally Jayda and I are so "go go go" on our trips to ensure we see all the sites, but in Costa Rica you're forced to relax. The people here are so kind and fun. It is truly a country to go to if you want an adventure. Kayaking, snorkeling, surfing, hiking, zip lining, the list is endless! However, due to the weather, you're also forced to sit back and relax and just be "one" with the rain forest. It was nice to get away from technology, modernity, and just be. Costa Rica is an exciting country and the perfect place for the adventurous traveler.
