Sabina

Here are some pictures from our recent trip to Boulder, Colorado. Some of our friends and family have asked, "Why are you moving to Boulder?" So I tried to capture some of the charm and beauty that we find so appealing. There's a lot more to see, but here's a start.
Ironically, one of the reasons for our move is that Boulder has nearly the polar opposite climate of Portland (almost perpetually sunny and dry vs. almost perpetually cloudy and wet), but during this trip Boulder was cloudy and rainy while Portland was sunny and beautiful. Oh well. Boulder was still great. Super friendly people, tons and tons of great restaurants, seemingly more ethnically diverse than Portland (not saying much), lots of arts and music, always something going on, but all on a smaller scale than the sprawling half-million city we now reside in. I'm ready for it (Briana's in love with Boulder too, though a bit more reluctant to leave PDX).
While many people feel the yoga/health vibe is over the top, we just feel like we're surrounded by great resources. I do feel that, as an acupuncturist, I'm a lot less unique in Boulder than I am in Portland, which will take some getting used to. I'm seeing that there's a fine line between popular and trendy, and perhaps both exist here. But the important part is that, by and large, the city's great interest is health - in a personal sense and an ecological one. And it's really inspiring - I've never wanted more to get on a bike and soar.
Remember to click on photos to see them in full size.

Sabina learns to draw

Sabina in the hotel room after a nap

Sabina and her new best friend, Elmo, in the car

Part of Boulder's central park

Boulder Creek in central park

Sabina napping in the hotel

The mountains looming over the Boulder Creek Fair

Sabina insists on touching water wherever we find it

Hanging out with some street musicians

At the Pearl Street walking mall

Sabina having fun at the great Khao Thai restaurant

Sabina playing in one of the fountains on Pearl Street

More of lovely Pearl St

There are ALWAYS street musicians (even in the winter) - or magicians, jugglers, fire dancers...
Here are some great didgeridoo players from Australia.

Sabina in the distance with her drawing board

And a closeup of her with this favorite new toy - a magnetic drawing pad

Lots of great old brick buildings

Briana and Sabina strolling downtown

At Wonderland Lake, only about a mile from downtown Boulder

Boulder is the most bike-friendly city I've encountered.
This area, like all of Boulder, is connected to everything else by miles and miles of bike paths.
You can get anywhere without ever having to deal with cars.

We'd love to live in one of these houses that sits on the edge of this protected land.
Wary about letting the cats out at night though.
Much wilder than Portland -- bears, mountain lions, foxes, coyotes...

More Pearl Street

Map and play area on Pearl walking mall

Sabina pets an alabaster snail

Briana stands on a stone rabbit

Sabina stomps in a puddle

Taken from the car

A bit of the University of Colorado

Cool bus

They're restoring this middle school & preserving these old walls - never seen anything like it
The City of Boulder takes great efforts (some say to the point of being very restrictive) to maintain the beauty of the city's structures. As for the stuff built in the 70s, apparently it got grandfathered in...