Yes, it is true. This was the best 4th of July in the history of my life. You might be wondering why. Or maybe not - but I'm going to tell you anyway. Let's start with Thursday morning. Mike and I got up early, jumped in the car and hit the road. The trip was off to a tiny bit of disappointment, since the burrito stand we like wasn't open. We figured we'd just get breakfast on the road. This turned out to be a crazy disappointment for two reasons. First, we held our bladders for WAY too long and had to stop in some random town to pee. Second, the place we ended up stopping had a crappy breakfast. But, the sun was out, the roads were curvy, and the music had us singing along. Oh and did I mention we passed an Amish cart being pulled by a horse. First time for me. Once we hit Walsenburg Mike stopped the car at a yarn store I've been wanted to stop at for years. It was fantastic. A great selection of yarns I'd never seen before. Next we stopped in Pueblo at a Barns and Nobel. Icy lemon drinks, potty break, and books. Before our final destination we went to a motorcycle shop for Mike to ogle new bikes. Of course we didn't buy one, but he is thinking about it.
We made our way to Denver in good time. It was around 90 degrees and bright sun. We checked into our hotel and dumped the car. Who wants to drive in a city like Denver? We stopped at the restaurant down stairs to get drinks and snacks. Beer for Mike. Whisky sour for me. Our next stop was the REI flagship store. This was a 4 block walk through parks and over a river. The river area was amazing. People playing in the water, sunbathers and dogs jumping everywhere. REI flagship is better than Seattle. Very impressive! Everything we needed and a bit more. We dropped our bags back at the hotel and hoofed it uptown with the crowds. There was live music and a vibrate atmosphere since there was a baseball game. We made our way to a theater and watched Hancock (a perfect 4th of July movie). After the film we were too tired to do much.
Friday started with Sam's #3. A diner that caters to me. The breakfast menu is 4 pages long and is something to be revered. A cinnamon roll (fresh), home fries and ham. Breakfast of champions. After eating a hearty breakfast we realized that the laptop was almost dead (the screen wont stay on). We tried to figure out how to take the public transportation out of the down town area ... but this turned out to be too difficult. We went back to the hotel, got the car and drove the 4 miles to the Cherry Creek Mall. At the mall we visited with Alicia, went to an outdoor craft fair and got a new computer. The car was short lived though. We took it straight back to the hotel and put our walking flip-flops on. We wanted to make our way back to the river for a little relaxation. First we stopped at the Railyard brew pub. A mojito for me and pint for Mike. We read The Onion and sipped our drinks. Next we stopped at a gelato stand for an ice cream. Coconut and lemon were our flavors of choice. With our ice cool treats we hit the water and just sat. Sat for a very long time. Watching everyone playing. Listening to the water. And cooling our feet off in the fast moving river.
We looked up what time it is possible to enter the ballpark. Turns out an hour and a half before the game you can enter to watch batting practice. We made our way back to the hotel. Reapplied sunblock. I donned my liberty sun glasses and we walked the 2 blocks to the park. The ball park is amazing. Not a bad seat in the house. We got hot dogs, beer, peanuts and took our seats. We were along the third baseline, just after third base. The game was electric. Or should I say a slug fest! I've never seen so many home runs and we were there for a grand slam. After the game finished (which the Rockies won) everyone took position for the 4th of July fireworks. These were by far the best fireworks I've ever seen. They were loud, bright, in great order, fast coming, and the final blast was so overwhelming that the crowd was going wild. My face hurts this morning from smiling SO much yesterday.
Every vacation should be this splendid.
