Let's talk about yesterday. We drove around a bit at first in search of coffee and bagels, but a bridge was closed so that was a whole thing. We did end up finding a Starbucks in a local supermarket but alas, no bagels. Did I mention before that we are trying to collect all of the state mugs from 'bucks? We have a bunch but missed a few between this trip and last trip...we'll get 'em though!
We stumbled across an adorable little place called Red Canyon Cafe in Eagle, Colorado and their bagels were perfect. The whole vibe of the shop was amazing.
Everything about this.
From here we were off to Nathrop which is a beautiful place full of snow covered mountains, serene creeks with water gently flowing over giant rocks, wildlife, and CHIPMUNKS. Friendly, happy, fluffy little guys who eat from your hand. You park at the end of a dirt road in the little town that still has a functioning convenience shop. Outside the store is a table with baggies of black sunflower seeds (they don't like the standard ones much.) You can get plenty for fifty cents a bag.
We walked across the street and sat on the ground and the chipmunks happily scampered our way. It was a revolving door of cuteness. The entire area is covered in sunflower seeds and shells, showing us these little guys are well taken care of. Every person sitting there had the biggest smile, how could you not. We had to drag ourselves away (and almost went back.)
Check. It. Out.
After bidding adeau to Alvin and friends, we drove through some truly magnificent scenery. Internet service was an issue, but we still noted addresses in the area to add to our dream house file (pretty much every one we passed.)
It took us about two and a half hours to make it to Casa Bonita, but no amount of time could have prepared us. I'm going to go ahead and assume you've seen that episode of Southpark, right? If not, you can just YouTube "Casa Bonita Southpark" and it will give you a VERY accurate depiction of this place. It almost doesn't feel real. The giant pink tower points the way to a Mexican themed maze-like entrance. Halloween was a secondary theme for the season. Your food is ordered before continuing through the maze and collected at the end. You then walk into a wonderland of in your face-ness as green lit palm trees surround a waterfall, costumed people walk around, and children are amuck.
About 10 minutes into our (delicious) meal, we heard speaking over a microphone. A cowgirl (one of the costumed people previously mentioned) spoke in a country accent to a pirate. After an "altercation" about treasure, she "shot" him and he plummeted through the waterfall to the pool below. He came back to life and began climbing the surrounding rocks and diving back in. Completely unexpected for a restaurant (but not if you've seen that Southpark episode.) Another skit was performed and our attentive waiter kept it beverages coming (thanks Blake!) Some other festivities include a magician, a caricature artist, humans dressed as monkies walking around, a haunted house type section, and a gift shop. All of this is scattered throughout an ornate, glowing dining room. If entertainment is what you seek, Casa Bonita delivers in ways you wouldn't imagine. We recommend it, for sure!
After Casa Bonita we were full of food and visual stimulation so we stopped at a little hotel for some ZzZz's.
Horses, cows, crops, and tons 'o land surround us as we write this post in Kansas, and a fox just ran across the road. Pretty cool stuff.
Get out there and see the world friends. It's big and beautiful.
Love,
Pat + Deb
P.s. Song in the video is "On My Own" by The Used. Felt perfect for this one.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Questions? Comments? Let us know what you think! We love talking to fellow adventure lovers!