Denver Holidays Day 8 7th April 2009

Denver Holidays Day 8

If you are looking for fun things to do in Denver for your Denver holidays, do go up to the Rocky Mountain area. Here, you will find lots of things to do with kids in Denver like hiking, wildlife viewing, fishing, swimming, horseback riding, rock climing, biking, back country skiing, ice skating, snowshoeing, etc... You will be able to create an exciting Denver adventure especially for the kids. The best time to go up to the Rocky Mountains tourist attraction area is from June to September.



Wildlife viewing






Swimming















Horseback riding











Hiking





Cycling

Back country skiing





Fun Things To Do With Kids In Denver

We managed to snap some photographs of the beautiful Denver attraction before leaving Estes Park Centre at 1430 hrs and were back to Denver International Airport at 1600 hrs.

Rocky Mountains

We had a Chinese lunch at Panda Express which was pretty good.

Fried rice, char siew, egg roll and sweet and sour chicken

Noodles with chiken and vegetables

Took the free hotel shuttle and checked in to La Quinta Inn & Suites Hotel Denver Airport DIA.

At USD67.77 nett, we had a huge room with a nice big double bed. There was a refrigerator, microwave and coffee maker provided as well in the room with complimentary internet access. You could also order food from Room Service or order from Ruby Tuesday’s delivery service. A heated indoor swimming pool and Jacuzzi were also available and there was also a room with guest laundry where you could use the service for USD1.50 per load for the wash, USD1.50.load for the dryer and USD0.75 for the detergent. Or you can make use of the gym for some exercise. Breakfast of waffles, muffins, yoghurt and bread was also provided.

Lobby cum breakfast area

Spacious room

Huge beds

If you are looking for a Denver Suite Hotel, this is something you can check out as the rooms are very spacious.

Denver Holidays Day 4 – 3rd Apr

Denver Holidays Day 4

Castle Marne Bed & Breakfast Inn, Denver

We were ready to experience more of the various Denver sights, yet not get too caught up in a rush for what we wanted to be a lovely and memorable Denver holiday.

As the custom at Castle Marne Denver, it is usual to have a great breakfast before you start off your Denver holidays. Today’s breakfast came with warm cranberry and almond muffins as well as home baked bread served with Swiss cheese omelette.


Breakfast at Castle Marne Denver

We had a slow and leisurely breakfast enjoying the warm hospitality of the Peiker family who owns the Castle Marne B&B inn as well as chatting with some of the other guests. Most of the guests like the setting of Castle Marne and the cozy ambience it provided although one preferred to be in a ‘busier’ place.

With the Peiker family, owners of Castle Marne



After breakfast we took another walk around the area to enjoy more Denver sights. This time we decided to experience some of the beautiful parks since Denver is reputed to have more than 200 of such city and mountain parks. We made our way to a small park, Cheesman Park, which is less than 10 minutes away.

We were greeted with little squirrels in their natural surroundings happily running all over looking for food and having some fun. The birds kept us entertained as well with their antics and cooing. We also came across quite a few dogs having their morning exercise here in the park. A loving pair of geese also added to our enjoyment of the park. This is real Denver nature adventure in natural surroundings.

Cheesman Park

As we were taking a slow walk back to Castle Marne Denver, we had time to admire the various houses and architecture.

Admiring The Beautiful Architecture

It was with sadness that we checked out of Castle Marne at 1200 hrs.

Flowers in the garden of Castle Marne

Our airport shuttle picked us up at 1300 hrs in time for us to experience lunch at Panda Express before catching a chartered bus to Estes Park Centre in the Rocky Mountains for “The Opening”, a 5-days residential awakening enlightenment meditation.

Panda Express Lunch

Sweet and Sour Chicken with mixed vegetables

Spicy Beef and mixed vegetables

The Opening is for those who wish to discover who you really are. This is unlike the usual meditation retreats. Instead you will discover your true self and experience a pure, direct realization of the deep Truth of who you are in this amazingly simple and yet deeply mysterious mindfulness retreat.

For more information on “The Opening”, fill in the form below:-

Feel That You Have More To Give In Life?
Name:
Email:
Are You Ready To Find Your True Self?

Denver Holidays Day 3 - 2nd Apr

Castle Marne Denver

Denver Holidays Day 3

Our Denver holidays was proving to be very interesting and exciting with the various Denver sights and Denver tourist attractions that we had seen so far. At the same time, we were basking in the luxury of our accommodation that seems to be more than just a Denver suite hotel and ready to take in more Denver adventure.

Castle Marne Bed & Breakfast Denver is located on Race Street. You do not have to look for a luxury hotel. Denver provides you with Castle Marne B&B which in our opinion is more than a luxury hotel and can be considered a Denver suite hotel as each room is furnished differently making it very unique.

Today’s breakfast consisted of warm homemade muffins which were simply delicious with an aroma you simply could not resist. The blueberry pancakes were cooked to perfection and we couldn’t help but ask for more and we were more than satisfied with the full and delicious breakfast we had.



mmmmm..... yummy muffins






and oh so delicious blueberry pancakes

After breakfast, we took a slow walk around the area viewing the beautiful houses and buildings around the area. Just a few blocks away, we passed by a building that was previously a Jewish synagogue and which has been very recently converted into “Church in The City’.

Church In The City

Inner Sanctuary

We also passed by the Denver East High School as well as the monuments to the pioneers of the city.

Denver East High School

Monument to pioneers


The fountain opposite The Tattered Covers







After walking, we ended up at Tattered Covers, a bookstore that in located in a building that was previously a theatre and now declared a ‘Historic Building’. A huge place with a wide range of books to suit everyone, we spent some time here browsing through the books before going back to Castle Marne B&B to wait for our pick-up for the Mountain Tours at 1245 hrs.

The "Historic Building" where Tattered Covers is

More Denver tourist attractions.

Mountain Tours cost $40 per person and included visits to Denver tourist attractions such as Red Rocks, Dinosaur Ridge as well as Buffalo Bill’s Grave and Museum.

Red Rocks Park & Amphitheatre - It took 300 million years for Mother Nature to create Denver's most scenic attraction, also known as the jewel of Denver's mountain parks. Towered by two 400-foot sandstone monoliths, the amphitheater is a near-perfect setting with natural acoustics where groups such as The Beatles and Bruce Springsteen have performed. Here you can get a panoramic view of Denver and the plains.

Red Rocks Park & Amphitheatre

Dinosaur Ridge - This is one of Colorado's most unusual museums. Dinosaur Ridge is a geologically famous National Natural Landmark and is located along the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. Whether you explore the area on a self-guided hike, bike or drive tour, you will be able to learn about the history and ecology of the area that is rich in fossil evidence. Guided tours are also available. Look out for dinosaur tracks, footprints, bones and fossils which are etched by nature into the scraped rock walls.

Dinosaur Ridge

Buffalo Bill’s Museum & Grave - Located on Lookout Mountain is the final resting place of Buffalo Bill Cody who was born in 1846. His skill as a buffalo hunter gained him the nickname "Buffalo Bill". The museum honours the exploits of the frontier scout and showman who started Buffalo Bill's Wild West Shows. Here you are also able to view exhibits of Buffalo Bill's life and the Wild West shows, Indian artifacts, Western art and firearms. At the foot of the Rocky Mountaints' snowcapped peaks, this idyllic spot offers many great views of the Great Plains to the east and majestic peaks to the west.

Buffalo Bill's Museum & Grave

Along the way, we saw buffaloes and deer although we did not get to see any elks. We enjoyed the beautiful scenery and learned quite a lot about the area as well from our tour guide cum driver. It was truly a great Denver adventure for us not only seeing the various tourist attractions here in Denver but learning about the history behind them and how the various natural tourist attractions were formed.

Scenery along the way

By the time we were dropped off at Castle Marne Denver, it was already 1830 hrs. Although tea is normally served from 1500 hrs to 1700 hrs, as the owners knew we were yearning to try their afternoon tea, they had left it out for us to help ourselves. Today they had a variety of petit fours on selection and each of them tasted so good that we couldn’t help gorging on them.

Lovely petit fours

In the evening, we walked to Colfax Ave and decided to try the Grand China, a Chinese restaurant, close by. The portion was huge and the food quite authentic. Reasonable prices too. A nice experience and we were glad to be able to try out some Chinese food during our Denver holidays.

Dinner at Grand China Restaurant

US & Japan 31 Mar - 18 Apr 2009

Denver Holidays Day 1

The cute little post box at Singapore Changi International Airport



Our first time as a Denver visitor, we were truly excited about our coming holiday in Denver and could not wait to visit the various Denver tourist attractions which would lead us to an unforgettable Denver adventure. Although we had not booked a Denver suite hotel or a luxury hotel in Denver, we came quite close to that as you will see.

We used our NWA mileage points to book our flight to Denver via Tokyo (Narita Japan Airport) and Detroit. Flight NW20 departure time was at 0600 hrs. This meant that we had to leave for Singapore Changi International Airport Terminal 1 at an unearthly hour of 0330 hrs. It was just after 0400 hrs when we completed our check-in and immigration. We popped over to the 24 hour eatery and had some iced milo and soft-boiled eggs. Boarding commenced at 0505 hrs and flight left on schedule.


The 24 hour eatery at Singapore Changi International Airport





The Movie Lounge where you can catch a movie before your flight





Expected arrival in Tokyo Narita Japan Airport was 1400 hrs (1300 hrs Singapore time) but we were early and touched down at 1315 hrs. We cleared through security and since our next boarding time was at 1755 hrs, we had lots of time to spare, so we ended up exploring Narita Japan Airport Tokyo.

Facilities at Narita International Airport Tokyo include restaurants, cafes, bookshops, convenience stores, souvenir shops, currency exchange counters as well as internet access, reflexology, massage, oxygen bar, children’s playroom, pharmaceuticals, dayrooms and shower rooms amongst others. Duty free shops abound as well.



Narita International Airport in Tokyo Japan

If you are looking for something familiar, McDonalds and Starbucks will serve you well. International travelers need not be concerned about language problems as almost every outlet and counter staff are able to speak English.

Boarding time for our next flight to Detroit on NW12 was at 1755 hrs and flight departed on schedule at 1850 hrs. We arrived at Detroit Airport at 1715 hrs on 31st mar (SIN 1st Apr 0515 hrs). We managed to clear immigration, customs and security within one hour and had a little time left to spare before our next boarding on NW1225 at 1855 hrs to Denver. NW1225 left on schedule at 1925 hrs.

After a short flight, arrived Denver International Airport at 2045 hrs, still on 31st Mar. We had now gained 14 hours. It took awhile before we finally managed to get our luggage. We took the hotel shuttle to Quality Inn & Suites near DIA Denver to spend the night before starting our real Denver holidays the next day and expecting some real Denver adventure.