Denver, 2nd Anniversary: Sunday & Monday

After CS’s wedding, BK spent the night so he could take me to the airport early Sunday morning. We got there in pretty much record time, which was strange considering we weren’t speeding… I guess we just caught every green light and had no traffic. Check-in was quick and easy, and my luggage came in ½ pound under the limit once again (really funny, since I keep moving things around between bags but it’s weighed the exact same three times now). Security took a little time, and I grabbed a ham-and-cheese croissant before heading to the gate. We were a little late boarding, but I had an aisle seat, and nobody was next to me so I slept pretty well.

Jonathan picked me up from the airport, and we headed back to a Marriott for a quick rest. Jeremy, Jim, and Eilbroun got ready, and we all headed to get some surprise Qdoba for lunch. Then we went to a Rockies game, which I was really excited about. They won against the Marlins, and I sent my brother some pics from the game. I actually got a ton of great shots, so definitely consider heading over to Facebook to take a look at those.

Jonathan, Jeremy, Jim, and Eilbroun

After the game we wandered downtown Denver a bit, eventually taking the tram up and down 16^th Street, looking at a couple malls, and stopping at Peet’s for a few people to grab some coffee. Then we stopped to eat at the ESPNZone. We caught the Magic/Celtics game while we ate. I had a bacon cheeseburger that was decent, but great fries.

Monday was our anniversary, and we started out by touring the US Mint. I tried to do this when I was in Denver last July/August, but didn’t realize I needed a months-in-advance reservation. It’s not nearly as exciting as it used to be (Jonathan went once, like 15 years ago), but I enjoyed it for the most part. You couldn’t bring anything in but keys and a wallet (not even a pen!), so obviously I have no pictures. It’s a short tour, only about half an hour, but chockfull of information. It actually got both Jonathan and myself interested in numismatics (coin collecting), so we are going to re-start the “state quarter collection” that was so popular five years ago, and a few other things as well. The most interesting thing: they HAVE to change the design on the back of a coin every 50 years. The gift shop was very boring, as they didn’t have shredded money, waffled coins, or uncut bills like they used to.

From the Mint we headed to the Capitol Building, which was really neat. There were several school groups there at the time, so we weren’t able to get a tour. We led ourselves around for about an hour, and were able to see pretty much everything. We saw the House and Senate chambers, part of the Dome, and tons of other things. The architecture is REALLY awesome, and I wish I had my camera (they encourage photos), but since we came straight from the Mint, we still had very empty pockets. I would definitely recommend walking around it if you’re in Denver. Two tidbits: First, they have portraits of all the US Presidents, and they have a typo in Harry S. Truman (I spelled it with the typo right there so you could see), which Jonathan and I brought to the attention of the tour center, but they didn’t seem to care much. Second, on the west steps, they have the “mile high step” measured out in three different locations, since the exactness of the tools has changed through the years!

For lunch we were originally going to do Pizza Hut, for the lunch buffet. We both really love their buffet. Unfortunately, the one near us didn’t have that option. So we decided that we’d be bold and exciting and head to the local Texas de Brazil (it’s a Brazilian steakhouse, and we’ve been to the one in Orlando a few times, and they sent us an email coupon for our anniversary). We get there and it turns out they only serve lunch on FRIDAYS. How bizarre! Since this was near a shopping center, we walked around a bit and stumbled upon another Qdoba. But, we ultimately chose to go to Jim & Nick’s Bar-B-Q, which was next door. They had a good sweet tea, and FANTASTIC nachos. They were out of chicken, so we had pork on ours. They had sour cream, cheese, queso, peppers, tomatoes, salsa, lettuce, and probably more I can’t remember now. It was a steal for $8. Jonathan had the sliced beef sandwich with macaroni and cheese, and I had pulled pork with fries. The fries were so-so, as was the macaroni. The sauces weren’t that exciting (a regular and a hot), and the waiter thought I was crazy for not getting the second half of my sandwich to-go (it was only average and we’re on vacation so fridges aren’t prevalent).

For dinner, we tried out Del Taco, since we keep hearing how much better than Taco Bell it is. NOPE. It was one of the worst meals I’ve EVER eaten, and Jonathan didn’t care much for it, either. I had the classic chicken burrito, which was only lukewarm in a crappy tortilla. The fries were cold and rather soggy, plus they weren’t that well-done anyway. Jonathan had a beef burrito and a chicken soft taco… the taco was gross but the burrito was halfway-decent. Neither of us ever plans on going there again, LoL.

More Denver pics: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2646069&id=5201298&l=bbdfecbdce