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Travel Adventures in Denver
With the Mint, State Capitol, and Molly Brown House checked off my list, it was time to head to my next destination: History Colorado Center. From the moment you step inside, it's clear that you're somewhere special.
History Colorado Center is enormous; allow plenty of time to explore the five stories of exhibits that cover a huge variety of aspects from Colorado history.
In an exhibit about mountain climbing, visitors can try sitting - or sleeping - on a belay ledge. It felt comfortable and safe enough two feet off the ground, indoors with no wind, but there is no way I would trust it on a mountainside. Not that you'll find me on a mountainside in the first place.
There are a good number of interactive exhibits at History Colorado Center. I took a quiz and learned that my superpower is curiosity...
... then I decoded inspirational sayings.
I loved the exhibits about Colorado's Native tribes.
Like Christmas lights. Denver was once The Christmas Capital of the World.
Guess who this belonged to? (The guitar, not the Orange Crush sweater.) Yep, you're right.
A sympathy card sent following the Columbine High School massacre.
There were so many interesting things at History Colorado Center. You could easily spend all day there.
I was excited to see Casa Bonita was featured. We were headed there later in the week, so I'll tell you about it in a future post.
Did you know the car boot was invented in Denver?
One of the exhibits I found the most interesting was about the Dust Bowl. Inside this theater, you can experience 1935's Black Sunday.
It's intense. I can't even imagine experiencing it in real life. The theater reminded me of the Tornado Alley Theater at Little Rock's Museum of Discovery and the Shake House at the California Academy of Sciences. Experiential exhibits like this are so impactful.
The last exhibit I visited was The 90's. Oh my gosh - the nostalgia! I graduated from high school in 1990, so I remember the decade well. This exhibit alone is reason enough to visit History Colorado Center. I loved it.
Like I said, you could easily spend all day at History Colorado Center. But I had other places on my agenda, including lunch. I'd gotten a bunch of recommendations for Leven Deli, so that's where I went.
Despite the fact that it was 1:45 pm on a Monday, it was insanely crowded. When I got in line, there were 20+ people ahead of me and no available seats inside or outside. Fortunately, the line moved quickly and when my food was ready, there was a bit of open seating.
I had caprese toast on their homemade sourdough and it was SO good. I also had their lemonade. Delicious. I highly recommend Leven Deli.
Refueled and rested, I was eager to check out my next destination, The Kirkland.
From its opening in 2003, The Kirkland was its own museum, focusing on international decorative art, Colorado fine art, and the works of its namesake, Vance Kirkland. In October 2024, The Kirkland merged with the Denver Art Museum.
I'd never heard of Vance Kirkland before researching for this trip. The museum does an excellent job of leading visitors through his five painting periods, from realism to impressionism to surrealism to abstraction to his signature textured dot paintings.
See the straps above the work table in Kirkland's studio? He would lie face down on the straps, then an assistant would slide a canvas onto the work table so that Kirkland could apply perfect dots.
I loved this museum.
This is Kirkland's studio building. The story of how it was moved from its original location to the present location is incredible.
After touring the Mint (6:25-8:55 am), the State Capitol (9:00-9:55), the Molly Brown House (10:00-10:50), History Colorado Center (11:00-1:30), and The Kirkland (2:00-3:00), I must be done for the day, right? Nope. Not even close. In tomorrow's blog post, I'll tell you about the rest of my jam-packed day of fun in Denver.
