Photos & Stories from our trip in Utah & Colorado.

Hi All-

For those who have no access to facebook. Here's some (selected) photos from our trip in Utah & Colorado last week. Why Utah & Colorado? well.. A few years ago. I stumble into a PBS special about Lewis & Clark by Ken Burns and after seeing the show. I got so fascinated with their journey, specifically crossing the GREAT CONTINENTAL DIVIDE and meeting all the Native Americans living in the territory that Thomas Jefferson have recently purchased (or robbed~whatever you like?) Also in 2002- I saw an IMAX movie at Boston Science Museum called Lewis & Clark : Great Journey West and I was just fascinated with the landscape featured in that movie and I promised myself that someday I would want to experience a part of their great journey and see the GREAT CONTINENTAL DIVIDE, THE ROCKIES and THE SPECTACULAR WEST!


Day 1- Salt Lake City/ Arches National Park

Day 2- Glenwood Springs, CO. / I70 to the Continental Divide

Day 3- Denver, CO. (Denver Performing Arts Center, Denver Historical Museum and Denver Art Museum)

Day 4- Colorado State Capitol and The Rocky Mountain National Park.




Our trip was originally 5 days, which were supposed to spend a full day in Salt Lake City, visit touristy place but after The Proposition 8 was passed in California. I had a change of heart and decided NOT to visit ANY place in Salt Lake City. Though we arrived at Salt Lake City airport, we just stayed in our hotel and drove to Arches National park the next day. I did not even had a chance to see anything in Salt Lake City.. I felt like I really never been there.. which is EXACTLY what I want after November 4.

Day 1

Driving to Arches...near Moab, Utah.


Just outside Provo, Utah.


ARCHES NATIONAL PARK:


Somehow I had the impression that after the Visitor Center. All the Arches are there right next to one another..but its all spreadout and you have to drive...












Balanced Rock




Some of the Arches are not DRIVABLE. You have to hike. We hike the Delicate Arch which is the symbol of Utah (as seen in their state license plate) Its about 3 miles round trip of unmarked trails (just stone cairn-which is easily to miss) About 2-3 hours to get there with elevation change of 480 feet and yeah- you can easily fall to your death! You have to be really careful!

but here's the spectacular view when you reach DELICATE ARCH:


Side view of the arch-we got to this angle bec. we follow a different trail. its not something you can just cross to the other side, its very steep and you can easily injure yourself.


There a bowl like dpression at the bottom of the arch, its very steep





here's a front shot from the internet.


Driving back - its almost dusk (4;00 pm in Utah- the sun goes down by 430)


The Arches and Towers are more beautiful at DUSK.


There's a VERY DISTURBING news Ive learned after I visited Arches National Park..that the Federal Government wants to drill oil near the National Park..
https://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D94G82JO0&show_article=1


SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - The view of Delicate Arch natural bridge—an unspoiled landmark so iconic it's on Utah's license plates—could one day include a drilling platform under a proposal that environmentalists call a Bush administration "fire sale" for the oil and gas industry.

Late on Election Day, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management announced a Dec. 19 auction of more than 50,000 acres of oil and gas parcels alongside or within view of Arches National Park and two other redrock national parks in Utah: Dinosaur and Canyonlands.

The National Park Service's top official in the state calls it "shocking and disturbing" and says his agency wasn't properly notified. Environmentalists call it a "fire sale" for the oil and gas industry by a departing administration. (Date: Nov. 16)

Probably few things that Bush wants to do before leaving his office. Shame on you, Mr. Bush!

TO BE CONTINUED!

Updated On: 12/20/08 at 01:56 PM

Day 2
Day Spa at Glenwood Springs, CO.

Actually after we left Moab, Utah- we drove to Colorado by i70 to Glenwood Springs. It was such a shame because we hit some of the most spectacular scene by night already (around 530pm) we can see that the view are pretty..towering mountains with snow even at night. But it probably would be better during the daylight-Like Lewis & Clark.. this is something that we never seen before..these mountains are tall and steep, unlike the ones we have here in New England ( New Hampshire and Vermont) and even in Pennsylvania (the Appalachian) and also in Virginia.

We arrived our destination- Glenwood Springs at around 930 pm. We got a package deal that includes room and spa for a whole day at the internet.

Imagine waking up with this view...This was the 1st thing I saw when I opened the window in our hotel room. Remember when we arrived its at night time-so we did not see this beautiful view...







Glenwood Springs has natural hot springs that was discovered by the Utes (native americans indigenous to Colorado) they believe that this hot spring has natural healing power..

















If you dont stay at the hotel lodge. you can pay $18.00 for a full day. its really worth it. The water is 104 degrees (fahrenheit) imagine yourself dipping in a pool where youre surrounded by snow covered mountains at the background. its very SERENE! Its very hard to describe the feeling specially I got so used with the Northeast way of life-where you RUSH and RUSH...

1915 photo of the spa


I only lasted about 20 mins in the pool, its very hot..I was actualy sweating even though the temperature outside is 30 degrees. The other pool is 98 degrees.
Its very tricky to take photos - I was so afraid to drop the camera plus the steam is something else. My camera has all these salts when it dried from the minerals in the water.

The hotel is next to i70 and Colorado River

here you can see the river is still small as compared to the same river in Arizona that sculpted the Grand Canyon.

The Hotel Colorado- actually we are supposed to stay at this historic hotel. Its very historic hotel- Pres. Teddy Roosevelt once stayed here for a long time. It was also
said that the 'teddy bear' was invented in this hotel (well Vermont claimed the same!) though its also been known that this hotel is one of the MOST HAUNTED hotels in US.







Old photo of Hotel Colorado (1893)


just look at this photo- looks like this is where Teddy Roosevelt had his afternoon coffee while looking at the hotsprings:


The 2nd floor- it was thought that this hallway is haunted too...


Here's some spooky stories about the hotel:
https://www.legendsofamerica.com/CO-HotelColorado.html

Well.. I am not superstitious or anything...you know I just dont want to wake up at the middle of the night with a lady dressed in early 1990's clothes sitting or standing at the foot of my bed or hear children playing at those corridors at the middle of the night (from 2 am to 4 am) The hallways have 12 feet ceilings and most of the furnishing are still the same. Oh did I mentioned that some of the rooms are LOCKED! I asked the tour lady- she told me its because...NO ONE Dares to stay at those rooms!

Driving at i70 to Denver






Basically these mountain range is the CONTINENTAL DIVIDE but if you really wanna be specific- it pertains to the RIDGE or POINT of the mountain peak, where water that goes down either goes to the EAST side (to Missouri River- Mississippi River- then to New Orleans- then to Gulf of Mexico then to the Atlantic Ocean OR to the WEST side of the mountain that would run down to the Mighty Colorado River then out to the Pacific Ocean. Lewis & Clark did not realize that there is this HUGE MOUNTAIN and they thought that there is a river that would connect the Atlantic to the Pacific Oceans. Oh Boy! They were in for a suprised to see these towering mountains...BUT if you wanna be specific - the only way to pass that Continental Divide (the Ridge) is to pass i70 thru the Eisenhower Tunnel which was the last part of i70 to be finished just recently ( I think its- 1994)

The Eisenhower Tunnel at i70:


Inside the tunnel


We hit Eisenhower tunnel at night, so the picture is not really good quality. here's a picture from the internet.. this is from the EAST BOUND- unlike us we came from the WEST BOUND lane (from Utah) You drive underneath the Continental Divide:


To give you an idea:


That whole i70 from Glenwood Springs to Denver- you will pass Vail, CO. is the most breathe taking scenery ive seen in my lifetime. SPECTACULAR is the perfect word to describe it. BUT also the most curviest, steepest and treacherous highway... we were so scared passing thru this highway. We can certainly drive to NYC streets but would NOT wanna drive back to Colorado!

Actually I was telling Chris that Vail, CO. and all those towns by i70 look like a small christmas village from Macy's department store.. Its really very scenic YET he vowed NOT...EVER to drive at that highway in his lifetime!

TO BE CONTINUED!

Updated On: 12/15/08 at 04:29 PM

Yeah- we hit it at the right time. It was 30-40 degrees when we were there. I left Boston Monday and it was 0 degrees with the windshield! grrrrr......

J*

Updated On: 12/20/08 at 04:46 PM

Great photos!

I need a spa vacation at the moment.

I worked at that theatre and those sculptures out back seemed like a huge waste. WTF are they doing?


And I was hoping to see pictures of you trying to get into the Mormon temple in SLC...

---

J* - when you took the pics at the tunnel leaving Glenwood Springs and entering Glenwood Canyon, you were about 100 yards from my family's home property. It's 3 acres right on the river over the embankment after the tunnel - in No Name

And I used to be the Banquet Manager at the Hotel Colorado.

This pic is from the end of our driveway, looking west.

Hey! I saw Sweeney there!

Glad you had a good trip, I'm going to view everything over on facebook later.

Part 2.. of Day 3

COLORADO CONVENTION CENTER:

It was exciting to see this venue, where some of the events from the 2008 Democratic National Convention took place. Though most of the events that was televised happened at PEPSI CENTER .





This blue bear was a recent addition to the Colorado Convention Center. (40 feet tall
and lapiz lazuli blue in color)





Denver loves scupltures~which is basically everywhere. Its kinda fun to look at them and education at the same time!



Remnants of the OBAMA-MANIA in Denver.


I was lucky to get the last remaining DNC 2008 t-shirt (blue)

CIVIC CENTER

This is the scuplture by the CIVIC CENTER...A tribute to the Early Pioneers of the California Gold Rush that stop and permanently settled in the city of Denver.




This is probably one of the most recognizable sculpture of Denver-

"The Bronco Buster " by A. Phimister Proctor (1920)

One of the most famous sculpture associated with Denver, CO.- THE BRONCO BUSTER by A. Phimister Proctor (1920)

In the mid-1910s, at the request of Major Robert Speer (who was also Denver Mayor from 1904-1912 and 1916-1918 , two large bronzes in Civic Center park were given to the city by two civic-minded Denver residents who wanted to leave lasting memorials of beauty to the city. Bronco Buster and On the War Trail, both approximately 15 feet high, were created in 1920 by A. Phimister Proctor (1862-1951), who as a boy lived in Denver and later became one of the important sculptors in the nation. Bronco Buster, portraying a cowboy on his bucking bronco, was given by J.K. Mullen in 1920, an early Colorado settler.

While Proctor was sculpting the composition, his cowboy model was arrested on a charge of murder. Proctor appealed to the sheriff, who allowed the accused murderer to continue to pose until the sculpture was finished. The cost for The Bronco Buster was $16,500 in 1920 dollars; the city paid $4,000 for the granite pedestal upon which it sits.


****************

COLORADO HISTORY MUSEUM : One of my passion aside from theater and arts is American History. I was very fascinated by it. United States of America being my adopted country. I guess I love this country more than anything in this world! People usually ask me ..where are you from? I will always reply to them... from the Philippines, but I am an American! and my home is America. When I was in college.. I always get an A or A+ in History. Up to now..I still love history~one of my favorite show on TV is History Channel's THE STATES (and also..all of Ken Burns' documentary about America) and its always a treat for me to visit historical places and to experience it. (considering America is only 200+ plus yrs old!)



for anyone who knows Spanish... you can figure out where the name of the state came from w/o going to the Colorado History Museum.

Colorado -is a spanish (musculine fr.) adjective for "colored" as in....

colored river - el rio colorado
colored house - la casa colorada

and if you look at the geography of Colorado- most of the southern towns are spanish in names, hence the proximity to New Mexico.

( I am assuming Utah came from the word "utes" the native american indian indigenous to Colorado & Utah)



actual wagon used by the Pioneers.


Timeline of the State of Colorado

Colorado is the CENTENNIAL STATE because they joined the Union in 1876, the 100 yrs anniversary of this country and they are the only state that joined that year!

like Playbills..I have a thing for dioramas.. I think its so cute! and by looking at these
you can easily figure out the history of the state.

The Puebloans- early Native Americans settlers (mostly in the southern part)


The Utes Indians


The Arrival of the Early Pioneers


The Homesteaders




Denver in Early 1900s



TO BE CONTINUED....

Updated On: 12/20/08 at 10:22 AM

DENVER ART MUSEUM

This museum is definitely one of the highlights of our trip. This building which is called Frederic Hamilton Building which just opened in 2006 and this is an addition to the existing Denver Museum across the street. I want to take your attention at the architecture of this building for now. We wont go inside yet. It was designed by Daniel Libenski and its a modern art by itself. I think Ive spent about 30 mins just looking at the architecture of this building and you'll know why?























The model of the building:


about Daniel Libenski...when asked about his architectural design...

"I was inspired by the light and the geology of the Rockies, but most of all the wide-open faces of the people of Denver"

The shape came to me as I flew over the Rockies. I copied the shapes outside my airplane window" by Daniel Libenski

*******

I'll just show the lobby for now...look at this very modern looking chairs.. this will set the mood for the ARTS inside the museum!



TO BE CONTINUED....

Updated On: 12/16/08 at 11:36 AM

Oh thanks for the correction. I specifically ask the lady who works at that theater..as to where THE LITTLE MERMAID played and she told me at the Buell. Oh my!

I should have retrieved my message in time. You could have given us a private tour of the Denver Performing Arts! I just got a new Verizon phone ( a day before my trip) and it does NOT register my voicemail messages. I was soo upset when I got your message ~Monday. I hate having new phones.. My old phone will have an icon, if I have a new message. this one.. I still cant figure it out! I was hoping that you would have emailed me back.. its easy to reach me by e-mail, facebook or even here! I rarely use my phone~just as an alarm clock in the morning! LOL!

I'll catch you next time when youre in NYC!

****
btw- Speaking of DENVER PERFORMING ARTS. I discovered that there shows at their Regional Theaters on weekdays starts at 6:30 pm ( as opposed to 8 pm) but the JERSEY BOYS on tour starts at 8 pm. I thought I'd mention that!

J*

One of the pleasures of living in Boston are the museums here. We have the Isabella Stewart Museum for Italian Renaissance Art, The Boston Museum of Fine Arts (known as MFA) has a huge collection of French Impressionism Paintings and The Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, MA. which is known for its extensive collections of Asian Art which even include a 1,000 yrs old Chinese House that was shipped from China and installed here brick by brick. These museums have been nurturing me for the past 12 years and if I feel the need for more art..there's always the MET Museum in NYC. This year 2008~ I really made an effort to educate myself and exposed myself to different style of paintings/art. In Jan 2008 ~we went to High Museum in Atlanta which we saw an exhibit about the Louvre Museum's certain art pieces~but mostly Greek & Roman Arts, and of course the Frida Kahlo exhibit at San Francisco Museum of Modern Art that I posted here at OT last June. I was suprised at DENVER ART MUSEUM for its extensive collections of Modern Arts, Indian Arts, Pre- Columbian Arts, Spanish Colonial Arts (that include pieces from Peru, Colombia and Argentina) African Arts, Western American Art and even Oceanic Arts as a part f their permanent collections. But the most I was really impressed are the.....


Contemporary Arts
( I was fortunate that they let me take photos of their permanent collections, of course w/o the use of my camera flash, as long as not the exhibit~which is the DANIEL RITCHER exhibit) here are the paintings or art installations that left a deep and personal impressions on me...

Decisions, Decisions by Hugh Steers (American, 1962-1995)



Flag by Hugh Steers (American, 1962-1995)

(painted 1990)

While just in his mid-tweenties, Hugh Steers discovered he was HIV-Positive. Much of his work deal with his personal experience living with the disease. Like Most of his paintings, FLAG doesn't give answers, but dares gives bits of information- 1. Exposed yet Anonymous 2. Bad Omens- a black cat lurks and the flag has no stars!

***********

Max, Raven and the Scissors by Pia Stadtbaumer (German, born in 1951)


Stuffed Animal by Pia Stadbaumer (German, born in 1951)


*********

Deadly Storms by Bjorn Melhus (Norwegien, born in 1980)

(2000)

********

Priss by Kim Dingle (American, born 1951)

(1995)

"She's not a doll. She's Shirley temple as pyscho pit bull, She's tough, She's got steel wool hair.. little fist, a fierce expression, yet she's made of porcelain. Always vulnerable, very vulnerable!" is how artist Kim Dingle describes Priss.

*****


The Fatherhood by Wes Hempel

(1997)

-It was actually pointed to me by artscallion (thru facebook) that this painting is a take from La Charite (Charity) by one of his favorite painters, William Bouguereau.
https://tinyurl.com/6zh5q7

*******

Quantum Cloud XIII by Antony Gormley


********

Hayagriva mandala by monk-artists of Seraje.


It was my first time seeing a real sand mandala. I am also fascinated with the Tibetan Culture> I always tell people that I was probably a Tiberan monk in my past life (as I would like to think? or would like to be reborn as- if there's such a thing!)

here's more info...

One of the most exquisite Tibetan art forms, sand mandalas are intricate “paintings” that symbolize the universe and its powers. A mandala typically represents a particular deity’s palace and grounds and illuminates a guiding spiritual principle.

This mandala was made at the Denver Art Museum by three Tibetan monks over a two-week period in September 1996. Normally, sand mandalas are ritually dismantled after completion, but the museum was given permission to preserve and display this mandala. It is one of very few Tibetan sand mandalas ever preserved for permanent viewing.

*************

Fox Games (which is my favorite!)
by Sandy Skoglund (American, born in Quincy, MA.)

Love it so much because it combines a full range of disciplines: theater to set the stage and cast of characters, sculpture to define the space, paint to create color, and photography to fuse the elements together.











****

After the museum.. We went back to the hotel.. I was soo tired. I fell asleep at 5 pm and did not wake up till 9pm. I was supposed to see a show at Denver Center for Arts at 6;30 pm. I was thinking of going there at 6;15 to buy 1/2 price ticket. But I fell asleep to the entire show- until uncage told me that it must be the high altitude sickness that affected me. I have no idea! That's why I missed my one chance to see a Regional Production Play from Tony award winning Regional Company in Denver, CO. Its good I did not buy a ticket yet! After our dinner- we went back to bed at 11;30 pm (mountain time) we were soo tired! but in actuality that's really 1:30 our time. Wayyy past my bedtime! LOL!

TO BE CONTINUED!

Updated On: 12/16/08 at 03:50 PM