Denver (July 16th - 21st)

The highlight of our time in Denver was the visit from the Sharkeys, who came for a little sightseeing of their own and to celebrate Kevin's birthday. We had a wonderful time together--even though we almost needed wheelchairs to wheel us out of the restaurants due to how much we had stuffed ourselves with rich foods, drinks, and desserts. We loved eating at various restaurants which had tables on the sidewalks of the 16th Street Mall.

On Wednesday, we took a four-hour tour of some of the foothills of Denver. One of our tour stops was the Red Rocks Amphitheatre, which was spectacular to see (and it would be even more spectacular to see a concert there).

It was at Red Rocks that we noticed, for the first time, the effect of the altitude on us. We had a hard time breathing after only a few of the many steps! Still, we enjoyed seeing it and will have to make it back for a concert or two in the future.

Red Rocks Amphitheatre

Buffalo Bill's Museum

Day one of Denver had been good to us. After so many weeks of seeing mostly hotels, Wal-Marts, and highways, we were able to get out and see the city and its surroundings. The last stop on our four-hour tour was a visit to the Buffalo Bill Museum. The museum had some wonderful exhibits that documented Buffalo Bill's travels, relationships, exploits.... but by this time, we were tired and cranky and stuffed from the buffalo burger we split as a late-afternoon "snack." I dealt poorly with my stress by trying to shoot Kevin, who was too caught up in strutting around with the lasso and gun provided by the museum.....

Rocky Mountain National Park

On day two, I took a "mental health day" (as my former students used to call it) from work and accompanied the Sharkeys on a 10-hour tour of Rocky Mountain National Park. I enjoyed every single second of the tour....seeing the views and the wildlife of this beautiful Park made us feel extremely lucky. Mrs. Sharkey and I agreed that we wanted to see all of the U.S. National Parks at some point in the future. Throughout the day, I kept thinking that we Americans should be exceedingly grateful for our beautiful country.