Singing the Blues

Recently, I've been thinking a lot about the trip to Denver that I took with my husband last year. The more I think about it, the more I begin to think this trip was possibly the best we've taken so far - and trust me we've had a lot of great vacations!

We decided to take a trip out to Colorado for our 5 year wedding anniversary. For me it was a recent addition to my list based on some things I had seen and read about the area; however, for Brian it was a place he'd been wanting to visit for a while.

On one of our nights in the city we asked the hotel concierge for recommendations of places to check out. We tend to favor more local, hole-in-the-wall places whenever possible. The concierge, who had not steered us wrong yet, suggested we check out a place called "Blues on Blake" for live music and a few drinks.

That night we made our way through downtown stopping at a bar here and there to sample many of the city's locally brewed beers - after all, you cannot visit Denver without sampling beer. When we finally stumbled upon Blues on Blake we found that the place was not very busy. We were seated at the bar and introduced to the gentleman sitting next to us. While I do not recall his name I do remember the bartender introducing him as our entertainment for the night.


We got to chatting with him and he asked where we were from. When we said Virginia Beach he seemed quite surprised. Why would two twenty-somethings from the east coast want to travel all the way to Denver in the off-season? We were there at the very end of April/beginning of May - missing ski season by a few weeks and arriving at the very start of rafting season (more on that in another entry). Brian answered his question of "Why Denver" by explaining that Jack Kerouac's On the Road was the inspiration behind why we traveled to Denver.

Now, before I go any further I will state that I was supposed to be finished reading this book prior to our trip but did not actually do so until several months after. It's one of Brian's favorites but I wasn't as impressed. I never quite got into it but I will say that Kerouac's descriptions of the country - the landscape especially - is what really fascinated me about the book. His descriptions of the landscape were beautiful and in line with what I always expected to see when I travel.

The musician seemed quite impressed that Brian knew Kerouac and that On the Road was what led us from Virginia to Denver. They continued to discuss the book while I enjoyed my drink. I found it slightly amusing that something so random to me would give to complete strangers something to talk about so easily.

When it came time for the musician to perform we left the bar and grabbed some more comfortable seats in line with the stage. We sat back, relaxed, and enjoyed the live music. The whole exchange was quite simple and yet one of the most fantastic about our trip.

"We had finally found the magic land at the end of the road and we never dreamed the extent of the magic." -Jack Kerouac, On the Road

Windy City

Since I was a teenager I have absolutely LOVED Oprah. I would like to think I wasn't just jumping on the bandwagon, though I'm sure there were some moments that resembled just that. I have watched her show, at times faithfully, read several of her book club recommendations, subscribed to her magazine (thanks to my mother-in-law), and have purchased products because she said they were awesome... so yes, you could say I have jumped on the Oprah bandwagon along the way.

Sometime within the past 6 years I created what most people would call my bucket list. My life's to-do list includes various places I want to visit and things I want to do. Since its creation I have been lucky enough to cross of several items. Today I found out that I will have the chance to cross off another item in just 2 short weeks.

Over the weekend I was browsing the Oprah website and noticed that the reservation request window would be open for 48 hours this week for upcoming shows in October. Knowing that this is the last season of the Oprah show it was impossible for me to NOT submit my request. I chose multiple dates the week before and week after my husband is scheduled to come home from a 5 month detachment to Bahrain. While I knew it was a long shot, I had a really good feeling about this. After all, two of my closest friends got to go last year after submitting a request much like mine.

This morning when I woke up and checked my email I saw it waiting there - an email titled Oprah Show Reservations Status Request. When I opened it up the first words I read were "Great news!" At that point I couldn't help but get excited. If you have been in touch with me at all over the past few months you know how busy work and school are right now and how stressed I am over getting the house together for when Brian gets home. The date chosen for me is smack-dab in the middle of all this.

Going back to my list, the fact that this is Oprah's last season on the air, and the pure luck that happened with my request being accepted I just knew I couldn't pass this up. After much discussion with my original travel buddy, Jody, we agreed that I would take my mom and she would stay behind to continue with recruiting.

When I called to ask my mom if she wanted to go see Oprah I could hear her shaking through the phone. I don't think I have ever heard my mom so excited about anything... ever! Not even when I took her to Vegas for Mother's Day about 5 years back. At the end of our conversation I heard my mom scream as I hung up the phone. My dad later confirmed this for me and told me how wonderful this trip was and that my mom was really excited about it. I hate to say it but it just might be possible she's more excited than I am. Then again, I'm not sure it's all quick sunk in just yet.

In less than 24 hours I confirmed our show reservations, booked our airfare through Southwest, and scored an amazing travel agent rate at Kimpton's Hotel Palomar in Chicago.

I have only been to Chicago once before, almost 8 years ago, to see Brian graduate from boot camp. I did not get to spend much time with him while I was there and it was too cold to do much sightseeing. While there are many things that I remember about that trip, the moment I remember most was when we were sitting in the back of the rental car his parents were driving. We were listening to Box Car Racer on the radio and I was holding his hand trying desperately to hold back tears knowing that it would be several months before I saw him again.

I'm excited to travel back to the Windy City and cannot believe I'll be there in less than 2 weeks. Hopefully, I'll get to see a bit more of the city this time around. I'll be sure to post a follow-up after we return!

Welcome...

I've tried to blog before but have always had a hard time coming up with something to say that I actually wanted to share with others. I often have random thoughts running through my head that make complete sense until I actually try to put them into words.

Lately, I have found my love of travel growing increasingly greater. I can blame this on many things - my job, my master's program, my current geography class, and the insatiable thirst I have developed for seeing new places and experiencing new things. I even created a bucket list of places I want to visit and things I want to do in life before I knew exactly what one was.

Reminiscing about my past travel experiences has brought back some wonderful memories that I want to share with anyone who is interested. And that's where this blog comes in...

By sharing some of my favorite travel experiences - both past and future - you will hopefully enjoy a little bit more than just a picture and a cute caption. Call it narcissistic if you must... in all honesty, it is to an extent.

I believe we all have an addiction and for me it's travel... Welcome to my Travel Addict blog!