A Mile-High Day

Okay, so Day One. And it's been a long one at that. Our flight to Denver and our arrival were precisely on time. I can't ask for much more than that. Unfortunately, the other aspects of that venture were not so smooth. Claiming our luggage delayed us a bit. In the process of retrieving the rental car, we probably waited 45 minutes. There were maybe only 6-7 people in front of us as well. It was a classic example of two few incompetent employees dealing with its customers.

So, we landed at 7:30am. By about 9:15, we had our car and headed towards our friends' condo (Beth and Brandon). It was a little slow going since we hit the tail end of the morning rush, but it was definitely not Chicago or LA.

After arriving at Beth and Brandon's, we freshened up and headed towards the light rail, about 8 blocks away, to go to downtown Denver. As far as I am aware, this mass transit system has only been in existence for a few years. But, it was extremely convenient, and I hope that Cincinnati will one day have something similar.

The first thing I wanted to do once we got downtown was to have some lunch. I had been hungry since I woke up at 4am this morning, but I didn't eat because I truly wanted to tough it out. We went to a restaurant in Larimer Sqaure called Osteria Marco for lunch, and it was fantastic. I didn't entirely enjoy my Italian panini, which unfortunately had roasted red pepper (which was also not detailed on the menu). However, the house-made mozzarella and imported prosciutto was delicious. Justin's prosciutto panini was also very tasty...I often like his meals more than mine even though I stick with what could be considered a "safe" option.

After lunch, we headed west towards the Denver Museum of Comtemporary Art. Surprisingly, the museum was maybe a quarter of the size of Cincinnati's Contemporaray Arts Museum, and it took us about 45 minutes to work our way through the 3 exhibits. Despite the somewhat unsuccessful attempt at experiencing a downtown tourist attraction, I still had a great time experiencing the downtown atmosphere.

At about 1:30, when we were done with the museum, I was about exhausted as could be. So, we took the light rail back to Beth and Brandon's, and I proceeded to take a much-needed nap. I woke up fairly refreshed around 4pm, and Justin and I decided to run to the store to pick up lunch items and snacks for the next several days.

For dinner tonight, we went to Izakaya Den (a sushi and tapas restaurant) about 6 blocks from from Beth and Brandon's. We had Kobe Beef Medallions with Watermelon and Edamame, Saffron Halibut, a Spider Roll, Diver Scallops, Duck Hoison Crostini, Haricot Verts, Pork Short Ribs (all were tapas style), and a bottle of Klincker Brick Zinfandel from Lodi. For dessert, we had Green Tea Mochi, a form of Japanese ice cream, which was fabulous.

The first day had its ups and downs, but overall it was a success, because I am totally enjoying myself. I did not have any issues transitioning into vacation-mode.

Off to bed here very shortly (after finishing my 3rd or so glass of wine...Beth and I have had a really great time catching up). More to come!