Byebye Florida, Hi Colorado

Greetings from beautiful Denver!

Since yesterday, I am no longer in the southeastern USA, but I have flown to the southwest to Colorado. Why? Because I love the mountains and fell in love with the Rocky Mountains last year during my time in Canada.

But first, let's say goodbye to Florida: Honestly, it wasn't easy for me... It was a great time with Luzi and Martin. Experiencing beautiful moments together and exploring impressive areas together is simply a lot of fun. It's easier not to be on your own and to be able to share things. Besides, it was a great feeling for me that Luzi stood behind me in emotional crises that inevitably occur while traveling. While the two of them continue to enjoy the great weather in Miami Beach, they took me to the airport. Saying goodbye really hurts, but I am grateful for the great time we had together. Luzi also made me a wonderful travel book, which I will surely benefit from in sad moments :)

At some places, you could already see open ski resorts, while other mountain passes were still completely free of snow and represented a highlight for hikers. I could rave about the mountains forever: They free your mind so much, are incredibly beautiful, and offer numerous sports opportunities. I really believe that I fit in well in Colorado: The Americans here all seem to be very enthusiastic about outdoor sports. My companion told me that many young people consciously move to this beautiful state because of its proximity to the mountains.

As far as my love for the mountains reaches, there is a huge disadvantage here in Colorado: the weather... Just yesterday, I was in Miami with about 30 degrees Celsius. Today, on the other hand, it was sometimes below 0 degrees Celsius here. You can't imagine how cold I was... Not only did the change in weather bother me immensely, but also the wrong clothing for cold weather... and not because I didn't check the weather. But when I left my Airbnb in the morning to go hiking, it was still about 20 degrees and I could walk around in a t-shirt. However, during the day, it cooled down incredibly and it even started snowing in Denver City. Unbelievable these weather changes. The people from Denver told me that yesterday in Denver it was still 27 degrees Celsius. And then today, it started snowing! Unbelievable for me, but apparently quite normal in Denver. Here, the weather can suddenly change completely every hour. So, for the next outing, I will pack a bikini and a winter jacket ;) Anyway, unfortunately, it was not possible to go hiking in a winter jacket at an altitude of 4000 meters with -5 degrees, so I could only explore the mountains by car. But that's still a good start and I will simply make up for the hiking in the next few days, otherwise, I wouldn't be Kathrin ;)

So what do you do in Colorado when you can't be active and climb the mountains?

We visited a former small gold mining town near Denver. Oh my God, such a cute place. The clocks there really seem to have stopped. The people are incredibly relaxed and friendly, and the area is beautiful, just a few houses in the mountains. Do you know the gold mine train in Phantasialand? The place looked exactly like that. Only the homemade candies that were offered to me were just way too sweet for me.

Furthermore, I learned that beer and breweries are absolutely typical for Colorado. There are over 50 breweries in Denver alone. It amazed me that people would start going there at noon to have their beers... Crazy! Of course, my companion wanted to show me that German beer is very popular in Denver. So, I was actually able to drink a Düsseldorf Altbier in Denver.

As open and cool as the people from Denver are, they are a bit crazy too ;). After all, you can't go out for a beer without giving some to your dog ;)