To celebrate the kick-off to the last year of my twenties, my family kidnapped me. With love. My mother took the endeavor very much to heart and proclaimed I must be blindfold with a pillowcase “because that’s just how it’s done.” (Since reading The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn for book club she has been channeling Tom Sawyer just a little bit.) I evaded said blindfolding, and with three successive rings of the door bell all the family ladies were here and off we went.
But first, the monthly shoutout to my fellow 10-on-10ers:
OK, now off we go.
To a magic school bus. Banjo Billy’s Bus Tours is sort of a cross between the actual Magic School Bus (Ms. Frizzle, what up) and something maybe the Beatles would have rented to explore the wonders of Colorado.
Disclaimer: I’m sorry to report that prior to this day I totally lacked a birthday kidnapping preparedness plan, and hence didn’t even think to grab my big ol’ camera before being whisked away. Oops. Thank goodness for fancy phones, yeah?
So what is a Banjo Billy Bus Tour exactly? It’s a historical tour of Denver (and other options in Boulder) viewed from the comfort of easy chairs and couches aboard a retrofitted school bus. There’s a tour guide with tales and jokes and a sound effects machine. You drive around town and stop at landmarks and wave to the people gawking at the funny looking bus. If it sounds a little cheesy that’s because it totally is and totally why I love it.
I’ve seen this bus putzing around Denver for years now (it drives down the road I used to live on near the capitol building and it’s rather difficult to miss), and I was very excited to finally take the tour myself.
I’m happy to report it was amazing. Worth it. Do it yourselves if you’re ever in town and soak in the cheese, my friends. Soak it in.
Next up, a Moroccan feast.
(I know, the quality of this photo is quite awful, but it was very dark in there. What can you do.)
Mataam Fez is a full-fledged dining experience in east Denver. Rugs and tapestries everywhere, cushions for sitting around the table, no utensils whatsoever. It’s a five-course meal, dinner and a show extravaganza.
There’s soup and tea and hand washing brought right to your table with warm lemon water to start and rose water to finish. Fruit, pastry puff chicken creations, slow-cooked meats and lots and lots of spices. And a belly dancer who dances with fire. Real, live, actual fire. A bold move with all those tapestries hanging everywhere, but she prevailed.
It was a pretty delicious meal and made us want to strike out on other culinary adventures more often. To try new things and eat more food sans forks. It was a great way to start year 29. So thank you to the fabulous ladies who kidnapped me. It was a great day. Love to you!