Monday was much less political for me, more touristy, which was ok until I realized that Teddy Kennedy and Michelle Obama were speaking that night. I guess that's what CNN.com is for.
Started off camped out at the same place I am now, City o City. I think if I lived in Denver, I'd put up a cot in the back and just have all my meals and coffee here. They have a good beer list, too.
As I walked around town, I came across the art museum. DC folks like myself get spoiled since all of the art galleries in DC are free - who pays to go into a museum? The rest of the country. But I walked in, just to see where between the National Gallery (free) and the MOMA ($20) it fell. Our friends at Target, aka the Vortex of Columbia Heights, were picking up the tab, and it was free for all. Even for me. Nice gallery, some interesting exhibits, one had sculptures made of lipstick that were commenting on the abortion debate. Pretty intense stuff.
Met up with a friend of a friend, Jason, who showed me some other cool cafes and bookstores. Not as much in the protesting to see, but I heard we were just in the wrong places (allegedly a huge pro-life protest going on....speaking of which, it's pretty wrong to have flat trucks driving around town with graphic pictures of abortions. Free speech and all, but should this not be a punishable offense? Imagine trucks with graphic pictures of dead Iraqi children. I mean, if these kinds of images make a movie PG-13 or R, how can they roll down Colfax?)
The big plan for the day was to head out to Red Rocks to see a short film fest on democracy with bands. Not sure about you, but I watched U2 Live at Red Rocks about once a week as a kid (taped off Nickelodean no less), so this was mecca for me. 300 million year old rocks, a massive hike to get into the amphitheater, great view of everything. On the hike in, they even have places where you can stop and check your heart rate to make sure you're doing ok with the altitude (about 6500? 7000?) and the climb. Turns out that this area was a sacred meeting spot for local indians, and then made into a venue in the early 20th century. Those fires you see in the video? Don't exist. Bah. I walked from bottom to top a few times throughout the course of the night and just soaked it all in. Good music (Murs, Apples in Stereo) and film shorts (10 4-minute shorts on what democracy means), with perfect weather.
Early night in to watch CNN, upload pictures, read a little. Today I'm looking to hit Tent State and the Pepsi Center. More to come...
2 comments:
So are you out in Denver for work, fun, or what? I'd love to be out there right now.
All of the above. So far it's been a great experience watching the convention, the protesters (on both sides) and the general chaos around town. It seems like every third person is a vendor selling shirts and buttons.
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