There are very few other states that are as beautiful as Colorado in my opinion. No matter what season I visit in, the natural beauty of this state amazes me every time. There is just so much to take in and always something new to see. Whether it’s the soaring Rocky Mountains, the Great Sand Dunes or the cultural influence from some of the different indigenous groups that once lived here, there is something for everyone. I always look forward to anytime I get the chance to explore this state as I know it will be incredible.
This past weekend I was in Denver and surrounding areas visiting my dear friend Serena and her family. Serena and I met going into our freshman year of college and were roommates for a good amount of those four years. She is currently teaching over in Spain and was only home for a few months before she had to be back so I knew I had to get over to Denver, even for just a quick weekend getaway, to see her before she left for another year. (Side not Serena has a blog that is all about her time in Europe especially all the different small cities she visits throughout Spain. If you need any Europe recommendations definitely check out her page serenaandhersuitcase.wixsite.com/website).
Serena lives in a suburb of Denver so we spent most of our time exploring surrounding small towns and going into Boulder. Unfortunately, the weather was not really on our side this weekend with incredibly hot temperatures and due to the wildfires going on in California and Oregon currently, all the smoke is going east making air quality horrible and unsafe to breathe in for long periods of time, so we tried to limit our outside exposure. Serena’s house is right near the mountains and there were parts of the weekend when we couldn’t even see them due to the amount of smoke and haze in the air. But we managed to entertain ourselves despite the few setbacks.
Saturday morning we decided to head over to Golden, CO which is a small little town near Colorado School of Mines. We didn’t spend a super long time there just did some wandering through the different stores and farmers market. We found ourselves in this small tea store and I am going to try my best to become a tea person. Bought a tea steeper so I’m pretty legit now. After Golden we ventured over to a small neighborhood right on the outskirts of main Denver that if I were to ever move to Denver, this would be the neighborhood. The main catch for me, other than the very cute shops and restaurants, is probably one of my favorite bookstores in the entire world and a place I have to visit anytime I come into Denver called BookBar. An independent book store where you can not only get your next book to read but also enjoy a glass of wine while reading in one of their comfy reading corners. What my dreams are made of pretty much. After spending way too much time there, we decided to have a game night with the rest of the family especially with all the smoke.
Sunday found us exploring the college town of Boulder, CO. Though it’s not super easy to get to unless you have a car, Boulder is a great small city in the outskirts of Denver with a beautiful college campus and lots of cool things to check out. Pearl Street is the main street that runs through Boulder and it is predominately a pedestrian only street. Filled with boutiques, restaurants, name brand stores, cafes, etc. it’s a place you can easily spend a full day walking around. From Boulder we went over to the Olde Town neighborhood in Arvada and grabbed some delicious brussels sprouts at a local pub style restaurant before the time came for me to head back to the airport.
If you have never flown into the Denver Airport it can be a lot. As the largest airport in the United States it can be really intimating even for those who travel often. With over 100+ gates spread out between 3 terminals and the only way to get from each terminal is the underground tram, it gets a little overwhelming sometimes. Then when you leave the airport you are greeted with a 32 ft tall blue horse statue with beading red eyes that glow. Freaky! But don’t let the airport or the scary horse statue intimated you from visiting this great state. Already trying to figure out the next time when I can visit.
Until Next Time, The Library Abroad
The Library Abroad 
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