Denver, Colorado

Saying good bye was hard... Will miss these beautiful people who came to say farewell at the airport... 

We arrived... Eventually... As we missed our connecting flight from LA to Denver... It was so lovely to be reunited with our mates again, Amy, Anthony and Benny! We enjoyed a wonderful meal, hot shower and comfy bed. 

On just our second day Amy and Anthony took us up into the mountains. We stayed at Keystone Resort, which was amazing and took a horse sleigh ride at nearby Breckenridge. The altitude took its toll on Wade and I, as we had only flew in from Adelaide, which is incredibly flat to approximately 2926m (9,600ft). Once we got used to the breathlessness, nose bleeds and insomnia, it was all good. It really wasn't that bad! It was totally worth it, absolutely stunning part of the world.

It was not only our first experience with snow, but also the temperature dropping below zero. It was around minus 6, which isn't really that cold but again, having experienced mid 30 degree temperatures just days before, it was a bit of a shock. It was so cold on the sleigh I couldn't physically speak. I know, it was a surprise to me too. It was loads of fun though with Amy, Anthony and little Benny. 

The next day we got to experience snow falling!!! It was one of the most amazing things I've ever seen. So beautiful. As you can see below, I was quite excited by it all!

I made a snow angel for gorgeous Keeley back home. 

Wade and I took a day trip to Boulder and went exploring into the nearby town of Nederland. Wade doesn't feel the cold, it was a minus 8 day, however shorts were the go. He got a few weird looks from the locals. Just absolutely loved the terrain, the snow-covered trees and the crisp fresh air. Amazing!

Explored the boutiques and restaurants in Boulder....

We decided to make an early start on Christmas Eve and head up in to the mountains for a day of snow boarding at Loveland ski area. It was our first time, so thought it would be a good idea to hire an instructor to get the basics. After some confidence on the smaller hills, we took a couple of the longer runs...the last pic was taken by Wade who was waiting for me at the bottom, as he (of course) picked it up a lot quicker than I did. It probably doesn't need to be said, I was less than impressed with his efforts. It was such a beautiful day and although we weren't pros, we fell in love with snowboarding. 

We were so excited for Christmas Day with Amy, Anthony and Benny! Oh and our first white Christmas of course. The morning was full of present opening (by Benny), strong coffee and a cooked breakfast. We spent the day with Anthony and Amy's friends... Although it was a little sad not to be home with our family, we had such a fun day full of laughs and good times. A Christmas we will never forget...and we got our 'white' Christmas that evening when the snow fell for hours! Amazing!!

We were meant to wear an ugly Xmas jumper, however everywhere was sold out so we improvised and decided to dress up in Xmas pyjamas, never been so comfortable at a Christmas lunch. 

The Denver zoo lights were really cool...not too many photos were taken as we lost feeling in our hands. It was freezing, around -15 degrees.  

Although the sun was shining it was another cold, yet beautiful day in Denver, perfect for an NFL Game at Mile High Stadium to watch Denver Broncos v Oakland Raiders. It was awesome to see Manning in the flesh, although he wasn't near his best, the atmosphere was amazing and we had a ball. 

    

   

Till next time .... 

Walshy xx