Day 9: Denver

Another city and another capitol. Wednesday was the day to visit Denver. Having not read the U.S. Mint’s website closely, I failed to make a reservation for the tour in advance. I only realized my mistake as I approached the Mint. Fortunately, they have standby tickets for the same day. I was given a ticket with the number 2. At 20 minutes until the time of the tour, those with reservations stand in one line and the standby tickets in another. There was no issue with getting in with low numbered standby tickets. Unfortunately, cameras are not allowed. A picture of the outside is all you get.

They were making pennies and as grown adult, I felt like a kid in the candy store. There were nice shiny pennies everywhere, bin after bin. It was like the Jelly Belly Factory in Fairfield, CA, but it was even more impressive. They make an incredible 50 million coins a day. The tour included history about how Americans hoard coins, which only makes the mint more money. Tom the tour guide wasalmost tooecstaticabout the fact that we should all collect coins, removing them from circulation, so they can add more. The more the better.

You see, it only costs them a fraction of the face value of the coin to make them. They sell the coins at face value to banking institutions and keep the profit. The surplus then goes to the US Treasury account for the general fund. It is truly fascinating, but make sure you make reservations for the 30 minute tour so you don’t miss it.

After the mint, the State Capitol is a great stop. With three floors of beautiful redish marble on the wall and brass railings, it competes with the Boston State House with concern to a non-white marble capitol and my favorite thus far.

There is a 45 minute tour. Simon, our guide, gave some history and showed us the Senate and House chambers. The doors were closed so entry wan’t allowed. Also on the tour is the Old Supreme Courtroom, which is now used for meetings and other events. Simon answered all our questions and even added a few interesting tidbits.

With the rest of the day to venture wherever, I spotted the free shuttle that goes down 16th street. There are shops, restaurants and many attractions on side streets.

The clock tower at 16th and Arapahoe has information inside on the first floor. Visitors are not able to go up as there are offices.

At the end of the line is the Union Rail Station. It is more impressive from the outside than the inside but is great for those who are interested in train stations.

Down the street is Coors Field stadium. From the outside you can see the seats inside. There is a small brick baseball field that has the words of Take Me Out to The Ball Game. The tours inside charge admission.

On parallel streets Blake and Market, you can see a number of historical brick buildings. Women used to perform illicit acts on Market Street and part of the street changed the name due to this unattractive history.

Down the other side of 16th street on Larimer there are more brick buildings. This street is lined with lights that must look grand at night.

Next to Writer Square, you can see Pegasus by Sandy Scott.

If you go

Denver is a great place to hang out for a few hours or a day. Taking advantage of $4 all-day parking near the U.S. Mint, and walking to 16th street (only a few blocks), this adventure was very cheap. All the attractions except for the inside tour of Coors Field is free.

The shuttle stops at almost every block on 16th Street Mall. If you miss a stop, either walk the block and take the shuttle on the opposite side. Shuttles are suppose to come every three minutes during the day, but they seemed to come right after each other. There was no shortage of shuttles this afternoon.

There are information booths down the street that you can ask for guidance on tours, getting around, and what’s around. Two gentlemen were helpful in pointing me to Larimer. Thanks goes to them for taking the time to share insider information.