I was in Denver a couple weekends ago for the Law and Society Association conference. This was technically my third time in Denver (the first time was a family vacation in 1992 and the second was when I moved to California nearly 3 years ago). Denver was pretty cool and lots of fun; it kind of had this wild west feel to it, but not overwhelming since I was downtown. And downtown Denver reminded my of downtown Minneapolis, so that was nice. Lots of stuff to do, shopping, restaurants, stuff like that.
On the day I arrived, I checked in at the conference and went to a panel. It was all right. I saw this big name guy present a paper, and he looked like the dad from the Family Ties. Anyway, that night, I went to a Colorado Rockies game. They were playing the San Diego Padres. Now, I've never actually been to a Padres game in San Diego, so it is ironic that I traveled about a thousand miles to see them play. Anyway, the stadium was cool- I could sort of see the mountains in the distance.
The second day, I went out and walked around downtown Denver. So, something I like to do is look at outdoor art sculptures. It's interesting to me, and one of my favorite places is the Sculpture Garden at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis. Anyway, I heard about this sculpture of this giant blue bear peering into the Civic Center, so I had to go find it. It was worth it.
After that, I wandered over to the State Capitol, the City and County Building, and the Denver Art Museum. I stumbled upon a buffalo statue outside the Colorado Historical Society.
Then I walked over to this park situated between the capitol and the city and county building. It was beautiful. 
I made my way up to the state capitol. It looked pretty much like other capitol buildings; I've only seen four, so maybe they're not all alike. Anyway, the dome was gold plated. Is that a capitol requirement?
I walked up the steps to the state capitol, and I was technically one mile above sea level. Not sure if you can see it, but that's what the words on the step say.
On the way back to the hotel, I passed by the U.S. Mint. I vaguely remember going on a tour in 1992.
I went back to the conference to present a paper, and that night I walked downtown, ate Indian food, and saw a movie.
I ate ice cream from Colorado Liks, this local and family owned business. I had the graham cracker ice cream which might sound odd, but it was really good. And it had toffee bits in it. 
On the last day in Denver, I went to the Museum of Contemporary Art. I love modern art, but this museum was not that impressive. It was small, loud, and almost not worth the $5 student admission. Anyway, it had a cool sculpture outside...
...and a really awesome painting...
...and a small garden on the rooftop, which had a nice view.
After the Museum of Contemporary Art, I walked back downtown, taking a slight detour. Here is the Pepsi Center, where the Lakers defeated the Denver Nuggets to go to the NBA Playoffs. Denver fans did not take this well.
I decided to go to the Denver Art Museum, which was phenomenal. It was absolutely gigantic, and I got through only one of the two buildings. It had a great collection of Southwestern art and modern art. I was impressed. The museum was also very kid friendly- lots of hands-on art activities. It also had this cool exhibit of psychadelic rock posters from the 1960s- a special exhibit. 
And that sums up the trip to Denver. It was a quick trip, lots of fun, and the weather was beautiful. 
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