Black American West Museum: AAA virtual trade show tidbit

by Jamie Rhein on

Along with passing on information about the Denver Botanic Garden when I was in the lounge at the virtual AAA trade show, “Europe is Closer than You Think,” I put in a plug for the Black American West Museum in Denver. When ever I land in a new town, I look for a place to learn something I didn’t know before. The Black American West Museum was exactly that kind of place.

Started by Paul W. Stewart, a man with a passion to promote the heritage of “Blacks in the West,” the museum is in the former home of Dr. Justina Ford, Colorado’s first female Black doctor. If you want to learn about the Buffalo Soldiers, miners, homesteaders, cowboys, and how African Americans founded the town of Deerfield, Colorado, it’s all here. This was a good place to go with kids since it’s small, but filled with actual artifacts that can hold their interest. My son was four-years-old and, unless I’m totally blocking out a miserable time, all I remember is being fascinated and had fun pointing out details to him. He liked the movies in the basement also. For people who want to know more, there are detailed descriptions and wonderful vintage photographs.

Considering such history rarely makes it into mainstream American history books, perhaps a sidebar at best, I was happy to have the chance to share these remarkable details about the African American West to my middle-school- aged daughter. I don’t remember eye rolls, unless I wasn’t looking.

What to do in Denver: AAA virtual travel show tidbit

by Jamie Rhein on

In the chat room lounge at the AAA virtual travel show, “Europe is Closer Than You Think,” someone asked a question about what to do in Denver in April. I had two suggestions and before the show ended I typed in my responses. The advantage of having a virtual show is that one is on-line and can verify details and can provide links to back up advice.

One of my suggestions was to go to the Denver Botanic Gardens. Granted, I was at these gardens two summers ago in July, but April is also a fine time. I know because, I checked before I sent someone astray. The gardens are huge and exquisite. Beginning April 19 there’s an exhibit called Urban Nature, an art show of street murals that represent ideas of how to bring nature into the lives of urban dwellers. The murals were created on large panels by a mix of artists. A mix of artist is always fun, I think. I love those projects where people are given parameters and you see what comes out in the various styles and techniques.

Also, even though spring has yet to come, there is always something blooming at the gardens. Here’s the page that tells you what to look for. The calendar lists events including days where there isn’t admission. Two of the inside things I enjoyed were the Tropical Conservatory and the gift shop. In the conservatory you can see the Cloud Tree Forest which is unique to here.

Hotel deals for Leap Year birthday folks and their pals, goldfish included

by Jamie Rhein on

If you’ve looked ahead to February’s calendar page, you may have noticed the extra day tacked on. Yep, this is Leap Year. When I was talking about it with people earlier today, we wondered if that meant one extra day of work. It’s on a Friday this year.

For those folks who happen to have been born on February 29th and have identification to prove it, head to a Kimpton Hotel. There’s a deal with your name on it. Plus, this is the hotel company that provides you with a gold fish for your room. This goldie was hashcOde’s last September when he stayed at the Hotel Monaco in Seattle.

To those of us without this auspicious birthday date, we need to cozy up to someone who has it so we can get the discounts at one of these boutique hotels too. Maybe you’re one of those people whose dearest friend was born on February 29th. I don’t know anyone who was.

Even so, here is an overview of some of the cleverly packaged deals:

The Muse Hotel and 70 park avenue hotel are offering the “Forever Young” package. This includes a $229 per night rate, champagne and birthday cake.

At the Hotel Burnham and Hotel Monaco in Chicago, your February 29th birthday will get you 29% off on a two night minimum stay. (Thurs.-Sat.)

Leap Year folks can check into the Hotel Monaco and Hotel Vintage Plaza in Portland for a $29 for the night room rate on the night of February 29th. (I’m not sure what else this involves.)

For one free night stay, head to Washington D.C. There, at the all seven of the Kimpton Hotels, if you book two nights (Feb. 28 and March. 1) the 29th is free.

And, if someone is planning to propose to someone, the 29th is the day when there’s a deal for this too. In Denver at the Hotel Monaco, there’s the “Dare to Propose” package that includes a Leap Year themed cocktail.

All of the 29 Kimpton Hotels will have some Leap Year special. Here’s the link at the Kimpton Hotels Web site that lists all the properties and links to each one. As of now, I didn’t see all of the the deals I’ve mentioned, but we were tipped off by the company. There are other specials that are offered year ’round no matter what your birthday date. Perusing the Kimpton Web site is one way to imagine living the high-life. There are other deals for other occasions. I have an eye on the Dreams of a Muse at The Muse.

Flu shots at the airport: It only takes a minute

by Jamie Rhein on

Here’s news I found out about through Intelligent Traveler who got the heads up from the Winging It blog at the denverpost.com. who got their info from the Associated Press. If you happen to be passing through several U.S. airports, right before you hit the gate, you can get a flu shot. Airports in Denver, Chicago, Atlanta, San Francisco and Newark, N.J are participating so far.

This has turned out to be the biggest success for business types–frequent fliers who have no time to hit the doctor’s office between business meetings and traversing the globe. In the future, according to the AP article, cholesterol tests and blood pressure screening may be added to the list of things to do that you have no time for. Get your shoes shined and a little health fix. In the future, you also might be able to get other shots. A bit fuzzy on just how long ago that tetanus shot was? Maybe you can get that booster without putting it on your to-do list. Seeing the shot kiosk will remind you.

I wonder though if you’d need to have your shot records with you in that case? Someone with a hazy memory, like myself, might get a little too booster happy just “to be sure.” Maybe all the way to Cincinnati or somewhere else, people who didn’t stop to get the shot will fret and wonder if they should avoid rusty pieces of metal at all costs. Certainly, I can see how when the person sitting next to you is wadding used tissues and shoving them in the seat pocket or coughing particles, that flu shot you passed up might come back to haunt you.

Flu shots cost $15 to $35, only take a minute or two to get, and take 2 weeks to go into effect. Get one now, and you’ll be ready for flu season. With the recycled air on planes, that’s probably not a bad idea.

Tour the U.S. on horse and feel better about the world

by Jamie Rhein on

The story about Bill Inman, a rancher who is traveling across the U.S. on his faithful steed, Blackie, caught my attention. Inman’s stated purposeof this journey is to find out the good things about the America amid the bad news. The war in Iraq, the housing market bubble burst, the gas prices, etc., etc., etc. All of this what’s wrong news can make people feel downright crabby. Anyway, Inman thinks what we hear or read is too gloomy and wants to discover the sunnier side of life through his plodding travels. He travels about 25 miles a day. (photo by Charlie Riedel, AP)

So far, wherever he has stopped, he’s found people friendly. Although, one might say, people are friendly because of his horse. Maybe that’s true but I found a similar situation after I got back from the Peace Corps and I wasn’t traveling with a horse or even a small dog, a kid or a hamster. I was traveling with my close friend, a fellow RPCV (returned volunteer) whose mission was the same as mine. Let’s avoid getting real jobs for awhile and see the U.S. as a good reason for not earning a paycheck. Without a horse or a car, we relied on Greyhound (or Trailways) and in two cases Green Tortoise. Twice we found plane tickets cheaper than bus tickets.

We started our bus journey in Kentucky (we had car rides from New York (me) and Massachusetts (her) and zagging across the U.S., stopping to stay a night or two with relatives, relatives of relatives, friends, friends of friends, parents of friends and people we didn’t even know. We didn’t know anyone at the center for wayward women in Des Moines, Iowa. We weren’t even wayward women, but they let us stay. (Maybe we were wayward women but we didn’t know it.)

The point of this story is, we did not have one bad experience. Not one. We found people to be helpful, kind, and interested in us. People gave us rides to the bus station if we needed it. Offered us food and company and even a police whistle when we asked if the bus station in Denver was in a bad part of town. Perhaps, it helped that we told people that we had just finished serving in Africa for two years in the Peace Corps and that we were traveling across the U.S. to learn more about the wonders in our own country. (Okay, perhaps a bit thick, but it worked.) So, I found the U.S. to be a marvelous place–even Texas which was the place I expected not to like for some reason. I loved Austin and San Antonio. Still, I’ve found every country I’ve been to (and it’s a boat load) mostly marvelous. It helps to go into a place thinking you’ll find no different. At least, that has been my experience.

I hope Bill Inman keeps finding the same pleasant experiences that he has so far. I wonder how he’s getting home. He lives in Oregon. I flew to Albuquerque, New Mexico from Las Vegas, the last stop of my three month trip. I finally needed to get a job and Albuquerque seemed like a good place to land for awhile.

Oh, if you ever do make your own lengthy journey across the U.S., here’s a tidbit of advice. Go easy on the margaritas and ice-cream. It doesn’t take long to develop a paunch.