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Wedding venue (the aptly named Chandelier Barn)
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To paraphrase one of the bridesmaids' toasts, "We just flew in from Denver, and boy! are our arms tired." There was, obviously, a wedding to attend and quite lovely it was too. Scott declared the exchange of vows to be totes adorbs, what with the bride getting a bit choked up and all. It was a lovely--and blessedly brief--ceremony. Scott also reminds me that we learned, during the reception, that a flannel is a versatile garment. So an educational as well as a moving experience all in all.
Since I'd never been to Denver before, the whole trip was educational for me. I learned that Colorado can be hella-hot the first week of May and that even my most comfortable pair of Fluevogs will have me cursing after a few hours of walking on city streets.
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Shoes bad. Water nice.
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I learned that squirrels in Denver are quite cute,
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Cute, but look at the size of those claws.
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and that the bus-riding population of Denver longs to be helpful and kind. I can now assure the imaginary reader that Lafayette is hell and gone from Denver Proper and that one cannot travel more than three blocks on Colfax Avenue without encountering another liquor store. I discovered, as we were walking through Pioneer Square in Seattle on the way home, that I truly
am a Seattle coffee snob because, as we approached
Zeitgeist I sighed with relief and suggested we could stop to have a
decent coffee. (We did not, however, stop. I will add that the
Einstein Bros Bagels at Denver International is perhaps one of the
worst places in the country to get a latte.)
Tattered Cover is a pretty nice bookstore whose staff is darned helpful and likeable. The croissants at
La Fillette (located in a very unprepossessing strip mall in Denver's eastside neighborhood) really
are as excellent as people say and it's well worth the effort (which, after all, is just catching a 15) to get them. As I had already sort of learned from working on
Discovering Denver's Parks, Denver has a lot of nice parks, including my favorite of the visit, City Park, where many of the following photos were taken.
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MLK monument at City Park
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We were particularly intrigued by this commemorative plaque that commemorated Starbucks giving of the plaque:
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"This plaque is presented to the citizens of Denver . . . "
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But perhaps the most striking discovery was that, apparently, cormorants go to Denver to nest and raise their young. Can that be right?
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Island of cormorant nests (City Park by the zoo)
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Keeping a fairly prudent distance from Cormorant Island was this charming little
snowy egret, here keeping its remarkable feet discreetly hidden in the water:
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(All photos courtesy of the cell phone that periodically suggests the lens needs cleaning)
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The airbnb that Scott found was tres charmant, but I'm limiting myself to just one (or maybe two . . .) photos from there:
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Bathroom reflections
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As I've said, the wedding venue (in Lafayette) was some distance from Denver's Capitol Hill district so we Lyfted there (with the world's most chatty driver; I do hope she and her sister work things out), allowing me the opportunity to take this charming photo of Scott holding our gift for the happy couple as we waited for our ride:
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Our rental is the wee house behind this house
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And now, just tossing a handful of shots up as I hear the sound of the shaker calling to me:
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Denver airport from its (very convenient) light rail station
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Night-time shadows of some fencing
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Daytime shadows of some window art
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| Fencing that would cast a lovely shadow but it overlooks water |
| and there were no shadows being cast
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| The fox caught my eye, but it's the creature dreaming of pie that I'm now noticing |
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The bride with her handler, pre-event
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