February 5, 2014

south beach

after a day to recover from the embarrassing Bronco performance i'm ready for the next adventure which is a trip to Miami's South Beach.  Marti, my closest childhood friend picks me up around 8AM.  it's early for me but i'm so excited i'm dressed and sitting on the front step ready to go ten minutes early.

Marti is the perfect friend to go to South Beach with -  she's a phenomenal artist and adds to the already colorful culture plus she knows all the great spots.  if you've been, you know that South Beach is really like no other place in the US and if you haven't been, well you should go.

we drive around and soak up the color and relax into a South Beach attitude.  it's daytime and traffic moves at a crawl everywhere.  the beaches, the streets, the cafes and shops are filled with people.  it gets even more crowded after dark when the nightclubs open and party spills out onto the streets.

we end up at the Delano, a fabulous Philipe Starck, hotel for lunch.  there are nooks that surprise and delight and are inviting to sit and relax.  i could sit in that lobby for hours but Lincoln Road and shopping and the gallleries are next on the list.  Just a walk down the road which has been turned into a pedestrian mall is filled with color and music and plenty of entertainment options.  it would be easy to spend a week here but i have only one day.


we end the day on Lincoln Road with a stop at Dylan's Candy Bar where there is sugar available in more shapes and sizes than i ever imagined.

we head back to the west coast of Florida and i can't wait for the next adventure with Marti.



February 2, 2014

off to florida

huge day for Denver with the Broncos playing at the Super Bowl.  i'm at the airport and it is blanketed in orange.  even the gate agents are cheerful.  i am not headed to the Super Bowl, i am going to Florida for a week of work/play/escape the cold.  i did go to both the superbowls when the Broncos played and won so i remember all so well the excitement of being at the game.  if the Broncos win i will be sorry to miss the energy of a city celebrating a victory that belongs as much to the fans as the players.  clearly, this woman has invested a large part of her paycheck in orange.

when i left the house this morning it was crisp and cold.  a picture perfect winter morning with a blanket of snow on the ground and a collection of snow on every exposed spot.  magical.  it was also really, really cold.


we are spoilt to have such a great international airport.  sure it's big but it has by far the best food choices of any US airport i've been in.  root down is my favorite but there are others that offer a taste of Colorado including sit downs at Elways, Boulder Beer, Belgium Beer House and the Chophouse.  the airport is clean and there's never a line to use the ladies rest room.  also, i've noticed Denver International Airport has put in filtered water stations inside the security line.  wish more places would do this.  thanks DIA!

3.5 hours is the time it takes to go from 12 degrees in Colorado to 85 degrees in Florida.