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June 2024 - Cafe Paprika
Janet Johnston arranged a fabulous dining experience at Cafe Paprika in Aurora. This Moroccan and Mediterranean restaurant has been in business over 30 years. We were served an amazing tasting menu with bastillas, several appetizers, lamb, chicken and vegetarian main dishes and a special chocolate backlava dessert.
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May 2024 - Baroque Chamber Orchestra
When this professional orchestra returned to St. Luke's we did not miss out. This concert "With Strings Attached: Bach’s Goldberg Variations” was delightful and energetic. A true musical experience.
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April 2024 – History Colorado Museum
We went to visit the latest display of John Fielder photographs and we experienced so much more! Most participants in our group visited the 10th Mountain Division exhibit in the lower level of the museum and were fascinated with the displays and learning about this time in Colorado history. Our Colorado mountains trained soldiers to be prepared for duty in the rugged mountains of Italy during WWII. A fascinating exhibit to add on to our experience.
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March 2024 – Reggae Pot Jamaican Restaurant
This is located in Centennial strip mall and provided great food for all of us to try. Most popular were the Jerk Chicken, Brown Stew Chicken and Pumpkin Soup (spicy!) Reggae music over the speakers added to the ambiance.
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February 2024 – Denver Botanic Gardens
The Orchid Showcase was on display and the Tropical Conservatory was filled with budding fruits and flowers on the tropical foliage. The art exhibits that day included the art of Little Golden Books and an extraordinary photography exhibit of large scale nature photos by Tanya Marcuse. A surprise to all of us was the opening of a short film in Gardens Auditorium entitled “A Branch of Us” which follows the lives of four trees in America. Highly recommended!
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December 2023 – Denver Art Museum
We partnered with Brave Spaces again for a docent-led Special Exhibits tour of Soul of Black Folks, a solo exhibition of the work of Amoako Boafo. The Denver Art Museum explained, “Boafo’s artworks serve as an invitation to think about and challenge the "othered" perspective concerning Black people and the Black figure.
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November 2023 - Surena Persian Restaurant
This elegant restaurant, located in Centennial, is another authentic gem. Try the Kabobs, Koobideh or Tah-Dig - all were enjoyed at our table.
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October 2023 - Baroque Chamber Orchestra
This musical experience performed by the Baroque Chamber Orchestra in the St Luke's sanctuary. Their Vivaldi Extravaganza! was a musical delight. We are looking forward to their return visit in May 2024.
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September 2023 - Mango House Food Hall
This is a food-hall style restaurant, located in Aurora, is staffed with chefs cooking their country’s signature dishes. Our participants explored several of the food stalls and would love a return visit.
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August 2023 - Evening stroll at Denver Botanical Gardens
We met for dinner at Mici Italian in Centennial and then carpooled for an evening at the gardens. Everything looks different in beautiful summer evening light!
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July 2023 - Konjo Ethiopian Restaurant
This restaurant is located in Edgewater Public Market (a food hall near Sloans Lake in Denver); they specialize in traditional Ethiopian flatbread, stewed meats, lentils and sauteed vegetables. Our group checked out other vendors at Edgewater Market, including ice cream, dessert and vegan food offerings.
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June 2023 - Denver’s Street Art Tour
Wow, what an amazing experience in the RiNo (River North) district of Denver. Our group was led by a street savvy tour guide (who is also a local educator.) The amount of art (mostly murals on the sides of buildings) in this area is overwhelming and our guide highlighted the cultural, historical and political meanings behind so many pieces. We finished the day with lunch at Central Market, also in the RiNo area.
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May 2023 - Taste of Vietnam Restaurant
The food at this restaurant in Lone Tree is worth a return visit. The ambiance was special too.
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April 2023 - Boulder Contemporary Art Museum and Dushanbe Tea House
We started our visit on the CU campus and toured the University of Colorado Art Museum. We especially enjoyed seeing the ancient Chinese artifacts, the Shark’s Ink exhibit, and the Greek and Roman coins, struck by hand. It was a great time of year to visit as they had projects from students on display. After our visit to the art museum we went to Dushanbe Tea House for their afternoon traditional English Tea. With over 100 teas to choose from, we each had a hard time selecting our personal pot of tea. Highly recommended are the Boulder Tangerine and Colorado White Peach teas. The sandwiches, scones and desserts exceeded our expectations. The rich beauty of the Tea House, gifted to Boulder from Tajikistan added to the culturally rich day.
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March 2023 - El Lucero Salvadoran Restaurant
A little restaurant tucked into a storefront in Littleton provided a fantastic setting for a spring Saturday. Afterwards some of us went to the Space Gallery in the Santa Fe Arts district to see a display of large-sized winter paintings created by a local artist.
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February 2023 - Denver Botanical Garden
Yes, you can enjoy the Botanical Garden on a winter day! We visited the extraordinary Orchid Showcase, the Tropical Conservatory and the traveling art exhibits - all indoors!
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January 2023 - Museum of Contemporary Art in Denver
We partnered with the Brave Spaces team to visit the Dirty South special exhibit. It explored the traditions and legacies of the Black South and how these traditions have shaped visual art and music in America.
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October 2022 – Corn Maze at Chatfield Botanical Garden
We didn't get lost, but we learned collaboration is necessary to be successful on a venture like this.
September 2022 - Cracovia Polish Restaurant
Our friend Suzanne Alexandria lived in Poland in the early 1990's working for the Peace Corps and she joined us to share in the adventure of authentic Polish food and culture. We tried all the foods she recommended and no one left disappointed or hungry. This restaurant in Westminster is worth the drive.
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August 2022 - Immersive King Tut
The myths and legends of ancient Egypt in a 360-degree movie experience. Afterwards, we found our way to the Highlands neighborhood for ice cream.
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July 2022 – Betty Ford Alpine Gardens
A road trip to Vail on a beautiful summer day; the flowers were in full bloom and the New York Philharmonic was rehearsing at the adjacent outdoor concert venue so we were serenaded with music while viewing and smelling the gorgeous flowers. A true multi-sensory experience.
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June 2022 – La Chiva Colombian Restaurant
This authentic Colombian restaurant in a cute red house along Broadway in Denver provided great food and a wonderful patio for summer conversation.
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May 2022 – Little Museum special exhibits and FREE café coffee shop
We visited the special exhibit showing one year of plastics recycled into art; this provided a lot of thought-provoking discussion over coffee at FREE cafe. Our group also enjoyed the Secret Life of Clothes exhibit at the museum.
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April 2022 – Sherpa House Himalayan restaurant
This restaurant in Golden hosted a large group of us excited to try Himalayan and Tibetan cuisine. After dinner, we checked out their market of traditional Tibetan goods.
March 2022 – Kirkland Museum of Decorative Arts and English Pub lunch
We were mesmerized by an unbelievable number of fine arts and decor in this downtown Denver museum. The highlight may have been visiting Kirkland's art studio at the back of the museum. Lunch at the English Pub after our visit extended our fun and gave us a place to discuss all we had seen at the museum.
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February 2022 – Café Jordano Family Italian Restaurant
A family-owned restaurant in Lakewood featuring homemade pasta. We had to make a quick pivot when the restaurant we had selected was closed when we arrived! No one was disappointed in our change of plans.
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January 2022 – Museum of Western Art, Denver
Our first adventure! We explored the American West through paintings, drawings, and sculptures representing the period from early 19th century to present day. This little gem of a museum is in downtown Denver.