Hopelessly Devoted to Grease

We were happy that the Orange County Performing Arts Center (OCPAC) decided to repeat its Free-For-All Movie Mondays program this year. On four consecutive Mondays during the summer, OCPAC projects a big movie musical on the side of the main theatre and invites people to bring their lawn chairs and blankets and watch the movie for free, drive-in movie theater style (only without the cars). And this year, Tim, Amy and I attended the screening of Grease.


True Grease aficionados, James and Amy. (07/21/2008)

Last year, we made it to Singin' in the Rain and Xanadu (sadly, we missed West Side Story and Moulin Rouge!). Although we wanted to attend all of the movies they selected this year (Easter Parade, Grease, The Muppet Movie and the 2007 version of Hairspray), if there was one that we absolutely could not miss, it was Grease.


Tim ready to be converted. (07/21/2008)

Forget the fact that Grease is one of my favorite movies of all time (and one of Amy's for that matter). What was important was that we converted Tim. For years, he has always said he hated Grease because his sister loved it so much and would play it over and over and over (and rightly so). This was our chance to lure Tim to the Grease side of The Force.


The crowd at Grease. (07/21/2008)

I don't know how successful we were in converting Tim, but he did enjoy the night. Seeing it on the big screen again was fun, especially outdoors with a bunch of other Grease fans (some of whom wore 1950s era costumes). The only downside for me was that no one was singing along with the songs. I say next year, make it a sing-along version!

Pikes Peak or Bust

We saw so many cool things in Colorado, but one of our trip's high points (pun intended) was our adventure atop Pikes Peak. Although Pikes Peak is not the highest mountain in Colorado — it's only one of 54 mountains in the state over 14,000 feet — it's certainly one of our country's most famous mountain peaks.


James, Tim and Amy atop Pikes Peak summit. (07/06/2008)

The mountain is well known because of its height and its proximity to the edge of the Great Plains. In fact, back in the 1850s, during the western expansion, "Pikes Peak or Bust" became a common expression for westerward-bound settlers.


The Pikes Peak railway depot station. (07/06/2008)

In addition, the stunning vistas from the Pikes Peak summit inspired the lyrics of one of our country's most famous songs. In 1893, Katherine Lee Bates, an English professor from Wellesley visited the summit, and was so inspired by what she saw, she wrote a poem about it that night. The title: "America the Beautiful."


Just one of the amazing views from the Pikes Peak summit. (07/06/2008)

To get to the top, we took the Pikes Peak Cog Railway, which has been taking passengers to the 14,110-foot summit of Pikes Peak for 115 years. It also has the distinction of being the highest-altitude train in the entire United States.


The train that brought us to the top. (07/06/2008)

Although only 8.9 miles long, the train ride to the top takes two hours. Every moment of it is gorgeous too, with the views getting better the higher up you get. The last three miles of the route are above the timberline, which means there are no trees. The rocky landscape almost looks like you're on another planet.


The landscape above the timberline. (07/06/2008)

Although there isn't a lot of wildlife at that altitude, we did see some. For example, we saw a couple of yellow-bellied marmots, large rodents that adept well to high altitude climates. Pikes Peak is also home to one of Colorado's largest herds of bighorn sheep, and we saw several.


We saw wild bighorn sheep near the Pikes Peak summit. (07/06/2008)

We were given about 40 minutes to walk around the various parts of the summit. We didn't stay outside too long because it was bitter cold! Fortunately, the summit also houses the world's highest altitude donut shop, which makes fresh, hot donuts. The donuts are plain (no frosting, glaze or sprinkles), but trust me, when you're trying to warm up from the gusty winds outside, they are the best tasting donuts you've ever had.


Amy delves into her mountain-top donut. (07/06/2008)

Of course there is a gift shop too, which conveniently sells a wide array of sweatshirts and other warm gear. I was just happy to get a pressed penny stating that I made it to the top of Pikes Peak.

The Stunning Garden of the Gods

One of the highlights of our Colorado trip was our morning spent at the Garden of the Gods, just outside Manitou Springs, CO. The park is a collection of stunning rock formations that look like they're from out of this world!


James and Anita at Garden of the Gods. (07/04/2008)

My cousin Anita, our trusted tourguide, made sure that we compressed the very best sights into our half-day excursion, without feeling rushed. Plus, she knew just the right photo spots to make it appear like you've been rock climbing for hours, when in reality, it's maybe 20 or 30 feet from the road (shhhhh ... our secret).


Tim, James, Amy & Jon at Balanced Rock. (07/04/2008)

The dramatic landscape was simply incredible. You can see in the pictures just how beautiful it was there ... and let me tell you, although the pictures look gorgeous, they didn't do the place justice when you compare to seeing it in real life!


James and Tim at Garden of the Gods. (07/04/2008)

So if you're ever near Manitou Springs, CO, we highly recommend you check this place out! Free admission, although donations are accepted.

Lunch at Denver's Oldest Restaurant

After an exhausting half-day in Denver, there's nothing better than sitting down to a nice, steaming-hot plate of rocky mountain oysters. For that, we made our way to the Buckhorn Exchange, Denver's oldest restaurant. The place has been serving patrons since 1893. Even President Theodore Roosevelt ate here in 1905. How cool is that?


Buckhorn Exchange: Denver's Oldest Restaurant. (07/03/2008)

The Buckhorn Exchange is tucked away in a part of Denver where you would never think to find it. But it's definitely worth seeking out. As Denver's oldest restaurant, the place is as much a museum as it is a restaurant. The place is stacked with memorabilia, historical items, and an absurd quantity of taxidermy hunting trophies. I loved it!

The place serves everything you'd normally find at a steak house, but so much more. Where else can you order a New York steak that weighs four pounds? (Granted, the four pounder, which costs $178, serves five or more people). Other unique menu items include rattlesnake, fried alligator tail, buffalo steaks, elk ... and of course the house specialty appetizer, the rocky mountain oysters I mentioned earlier (sliced bull testicles that have been breaded and deep fried).


Main dining room at Buckhorn Exchange in Denver. (07/03/2008)

We got there just after 2:00 p.m., right after the dining room closed for lunch. I was worried that we missed our only opportunity to have our rocky mountain oysters. Luckily for us, they were still serving food in the lounge upstairs.

Although the lunch we ordered was pretty standard fare (I think the most exotic thing was my buffalo burger). But I simply could not resist the call of the famous rocky mountain oyster appetizer. Tim had already told me he wasn't going to try one ("I don't eat beef," was his excuse). Amy was out too. Jon said he'd try them (although he actually thought they were oysters, until I explained it to him after we ordered).


Jon, Tim, Amy and James at the Buckhorn Exchange. (07/03/2008)

About 20 minutes later, the waitress brought out the a plate of rocky mountain oysters, fresh out of the deep fryer. And there was a ton! Far more than enough to feed the only two daredevils who were willing to try them. Finally, it was the moment of truth.

I grabbed one, dipped it into the dipping sauce, and popped it in my mouth. And you know what? It was good! It was kind of like eating calamari, but not as fishy. Basically, if you like popcorn chicken, you'll probably like the Buckhorn Exchange rocky mountain oysters.


Rocky Mountain Oysters at the Buckhorn Exchange. (07/03/2008)

Jon liked them too. Even Amy tried one (a small one). I was proud of her for trying it. Tim was the only holdout (that whole beef thing, you know). Now I have to find some place that serves chicken testicles.

We couldn't even come close to finishing the rocky mountain oysters. There were far too many, plus we still had our lunch plates coming. So we packaged them up to go and took them to my cousin's house in Manitou Springs.


James likes the rocky mountain oysters at Buckhorn Exchange. (07/03/2008)

When I told Anita about them, she wanted to have her three boys try them, but she didn't want us telling them what they were until after they tried it. Guess what? They liked them too! And then when we told them what it was, they were totally unfazed. It was no big thing. All they know is that it was fried food and it tasted good (those boys will eat just about anything).

Buckhorn Exchange is located at 1000 Osage, in Denver. (303) 534-9505. Reservations recommended. Open 7 days a week.