here it is.
really.
what i did on my summer vacation. by me.
(ps, photos which match most of these events are located in my flickr album if you would like an illustrated tour)
jason came in from england on thursday. he was tired from the flight but i thought he needed to meet some of my friends right away because i am mad like that. so off we went to visit krisa and kristin.
after returning home and getting some sleep, we headed out to see batman begins. because when you fly 6000 miles or whatever, the one thing you really want to do is go to a local theater. i am not joking, it is what jason wanted to do! so dad, jason and i rambled over to flatirons mall and took a peek at the newest incarnation of batman. by far the best in my opinion. christian bale did an excellent job without going overboard.
on saturday we had a full day! first we headed over to the boulder farmer’s market and picked up some fresh cherries and strawberries. then off we went to krisa’s and hung out with a bunch of people in the sun by the pool. there were paddle boats so we all decided to be adventurous on the lake and took turns paddling about and scaring the ducks.
later on, after showers and a small rest, we headed over to my aunt’s house for my cousin sante’s rehearsal dinner. yes, yes. heard it all before: why do you need to rehearse eating supper? shut up.
so i was able to see lots of family and play with my cousins’ children. i have learned that i am really going to need to brush up on my spanish, but think i have been doing a good job so far…
on sunday was the most beautiful wedding. my cousin married his long-time girlfriend, cathy at the city park pavilions in denver. they included her son (sante’s new stepson) in the ceremony, which i though was a very interesting and well-thought out thing to do.
after the ceremony we headed over to opal lounge
for the reception. again, i was able to play with my cousins’ children and i love them both to pieces.
except when they cry, smell, whine or feel squishy.
my cousin djs in denver and had a few of his friends djing at the reception. it was quite a different scene than the one i had been around for so long in kansas. culture shock seems to be wearing off though, thank god!
monday, monday…
ah, my very most favorite place in the people’s republic. okay…one of my most favorite places in boulder: dushanbe. then off for a quiet walk down pearl street
colorado springs!
tuesday we first went to the garden of the gods (a must for anyone who has not seen it!). then off to the manitou cliff dwellings where we saw where the anasazi indians lived, worked and played. we ate at some random place in downtown manitou springs and i saw a very pretty blue house that i adored.
ah, to round out the day we headed up to pikes peak. in the car. a very scary adventure. i think i might have lost years off my life with that little drive. not to mention additional brain cells due to lack of oxygen from being at 14,000 feet.
after recovering from (for me) mild altitude heebie jeebies and (for jason) rather more than mild altitude sickness we headed down to solo’s restaurant for supper. because my father is obsessed with planes.
it is true.
we are thinking about getting him into therapy for it.
really.
the rest of the weeks seems as if a blur. wednesday we went and saw anne frank at chautauqua. thursday we went to red rocks amphitheatre, central city,lunched in blackhawk, the cabin in eldora and ate dinner in nederland. *whew*
just for the record, when i was growing up here central city and blackhawk were not the trashy gambling havens they have now become. it made me very sad to see what gambling has done to these formerly beautiful mining towns.
friday we went on a hike up the fourth of july trailhead in the middle boulder creek watershed. we hiked up to the fourth of july mine and i realized just how out of shape i truly am. kaya had a blast. well, until we got higher up and she became a bit cold from the water she was traipsing through. she soon recovered and pulled me all the way back down the trail…
safely back in boulder we took a rest then dad headed back to nederland to watch a movie and jason and i headed back to chautauqua for dinner. after a relaxing sup on the veranda we drove home and watched father ted for a few hours. i am easily amused…
saturday was a quiet day. jason packed and then we headed for one last walk down pearl street and to the farmer’s market. we then headed into denver and cheeseman park where my cousin and his friends were djing denver pridefest. we then headed over to racines for brunch with my dad, aunt and uncle.
jason’s flight was at 8pm so we had to be at dia by 4pm. after an endless amount of time in the british airways line we settled down at pour la france for a final toast before jason had to leave.
so jason is now safely back in the u.k.
dad is safely back at the cabin.
and i, you ask? ah, well i am here. doing what i do best…mucking about.
