Beauty is in the face of adversity being able to do rise above all else. It's the ability to see…read morethe beauty in all things in the world. The little mountain town of Vail, Colorado offers the perfect opportunity for love and peace in shear bliss. Life can be a bit more difficult and complicated to navigate. Even if you are not a resident of this beautiful community, plan a visit and just walk around in serenity . So why Vail, Colorado we have much to learn about ourselves. Or we can detach ourselves from all that is negative. Sometimes we need to get our heads together and our thinking patterns perfectly aligned. Come and walk around through the shops. They offer so many options for coffee, artisan ice cream, pizza, music, and other various activities. The streets for walking are so large that one can walk and if you get tired take the bus. It's a family affair and bring the furry babies along for the walk too. Look up and all around varied art pieces are beautifully placed around for your eyes to see. Get out and see what life brings you. Hold hands with the one that makes you smile. The dog can get their steps as you walk along the avenue. Love conquers all .

Writing a review of Vail is like trying to describe chocolate to someone. It's great and you just…read morehave to try it. I went to Vail in late January and stayed at a killer townhouse on the shuttle route with buddies. I dream of the back bowls, there is so much varied terrain even for an average skier like myself. It is just incredible. Why are you even reading this review? You already know you should go.

Walked over after tour of the Denver Mint (parked at the Justice Center Garage on West 14th where…read moreprices were very reasonable). Great location for the garage as the Capitol Building also was within walking distance). In the lobby, I was delighted to see a large display of items cleverly hanging on the wall that led up 4 floors. There were ordinary things such as office chairs in a circle, handsaws, clipboards, construction hats, pitchforks, one way signs and on and on. The art could be seen up close by accessing the elevators or stairs. The artist is Donald Lipski that makes works for public buildings among other things. The staff at the Information Desk were helpful and nice. I asked an office worker for a place to eat near by and she recommended Z!Eat (formerly Zoup!). Tasty food. The atmosphere in the whole building was quiet and clean despite all the offices. I love quirky art so seeing this wall was a wonderful surprise for me.

There is no free parking directly at the Wellington Webb Building, but I took the light rail…read morestation to get here. The Webb building stands in the middle of a very busy courthouse, and a child day care center. One of the tallest buildings in Denver, beating the Republic Plaza at 714 ft. Wellington Webb was one of our first mayor of Denver, back in 1991. The double W building, is the place to come if you're trying to get licensing on for city jobs such as airport/hospital security. Most doors have card readers on them, so don't panic, and locate the very front entrance that is open for the public. HSS guards are posted in the front with a metal detector screening incoming visitors. The lobby in itself is very geometric with conservative art, representing the image of a government municipal building. There is a built in Subway cafe, with plenty of seating and a spacious lobby.

Denver -- where the mountains meet the mile-high attitude and everyone's secretly training for a…read moremarathon (or at least jogging to catch the bus). I came for the views, stayed for the craft beer, and left wondering how so many people can own both a yoga mat and a fancy hiking backpack but still look slightly confused about which one to use. The weather? Oh, it's like a box of chocolates -- you never know if you'll get sun, snow, or a surprise wind tunnel all in one afternoon. Pro tip: always carry sunglasses, sunscreen, and a snow shovel. Just in case. Food scene? It's a foodie's dream. From green chili that could wake the dead to vegan tacos that taste like a party in your mouth, Denver's got it all. Just don't ask a local where to park--they'll give you the most scenic 20-minute walk you've ever had. Public transit is... let's say "quirky." The buses and light rails run on their own schedule, which seems based on planetary alignment rather than any earthly timetable. But hey, it gives you time to appreciate the city's art and that friendly Denver smile (or is that just from the altitude?). Overall, Denver is a city that wears its quirks proudly. It's outdoorsy but laid-back, trendy but unpretentious, and has enough craft breweries to keep you busy for a lifetime. Just remember to pace yourself -- the altitude hits different. Five stars for the vibes, three stars for my confused legs.

Wonderful city and people in it! However, homelessness is…read moreabundant. Homeless folks everywhere and are smelly and dirty. City is trying pretty hard to solve the problem but nobody knows how. They're throwing various things at the wall to see what sticks at the taxpayer's expense and actual results are weak. They're still everywhere. Don't get me wrong, homelessness is generally not a chosen "lifestyle" and a lot of it is not a simple drugs/alcohol/mental health problem but an economic problem instead. Taxpayers foot the bill for drugs/alcohol/mental health rehabilitation programs (which is definitely needed) but in turn hard working people are taxed to the max and are priced out of their homes/apartments and become homeless themselves, then turn to City/County/State for help and use taxpayers money to get subsidies, which in turn raises taxes on the next group of taxpayers, and so on and so forth...

I have to say I am really biased. I have lived here for 51 years and still live it, flaws and all…read more No place is perfect in its entirety or for everyone. But from food and fun, education facilities from Pre-k to PhD, Boulder has it all. It would be nice if more things were affordable to more people and personally, I would like less snow but I suspect I am in the minority on that one. Visit and test it out before making a decision to stay. Hopefully some of our flaws will be solved someday. Downtown is fun as are the foothills.

Boulder, the lynchpin of the hipster revolution in Colorado a few years ago and the continuation of…read morethe California-cation of the state. Outdoors 5/5 Road infrastructure 3.5/5- lot of potholes, cracks, and construction hamper the drivers and residents Downtown 3/5 it's nice but the unhoused population loitering around constantly is an issue; they even boarded up and control the one public bathroom on the shopping street. It's a great look to see the dichotomy of the upper middle class elites against the druggies walking around.

The Fort Collins City Council is composed of six district Council members who are elected on a…read morenon-partisan basis for a term of four years, and a Mayor who is elected at-large for a two-year term. The Mayor Pro Tem is chosen from among the entire Council and serves a term of two years. The City Council serves as the community's legislative body, having responsibilities for enacting City ordinances, appropriating funds to conduct City business, and providing policy direction to City staff. By provision of the City Charter, Council has the power of appointment over the City Manager, City Attorney, and Municipal Court Judge.

I am not impressed with our City Elected leaders, Baldridge Award not withstanding. They use Tax…read moreIncrement funding to rob the tax till to pay developers-who should be paying their own way. Government should not pick winners and losers and the City Council does this as a matter of course. I was the head of a City Board that I was on for four years, improved the processes of the Board immensely, brought a lot of experience to the Board and built a "bench" of future Board leaders and they did not allow me to serve a second term because I am a senior citizen/white male - all in the name of identity politics, AKA diversity. I lay this at the feet of Councilman Ray Martinez and Mayor Troxell. Martinez had a hand-picked member on our Board (most likely a family friend) who was almost always absent (always an excuse) and never did participate. He refused to remove her from the Board despite ample evidence...he put her on probation and then she still did not show or participate. I am convinced the pressure I put on Martinez to remove her from the Board (she abruptly resigned after being able to put it on her CSU graduate resume') played a role in my not getting a second term. Agendized, corrupt, good old boy network Fort Collins City Council, particularly Martinez and Troxell.

Got my passport here. Super convenient, as they take walk-ins, but the crap service more than ruins…read morethat. Unfriendly, old and bitter women work at the desks, and God forbid they have to stop shooting the sh*t with one of their co-workers and come back to their own desk to do their JOB. Only come here if you're desperate.

Got our passports taken care of just now. Read the review that said the lady wasn't very nice, and…read morewas prepared for that. In reality, the lady in there was really nice, said it was very helpful that we had all the paperwork filled out ahead of time, and took our pictures and everything. IF YOU ARE GETTING A PASSPORT HERE, know that you will have to send a check for $110 to the department of state, as well as pay the $35 processing fee and $10 for a picture, both of which can be paid by cash or card. Although the town of Berthoud office is open till 5, the department of state requires that ALL PASSPORT APPLICATIONS are submitted before 4pm. We got there at 3:30 and BECAUSE we had the paperwork ALREADY filled out, AND there was no wait, we were out of there by 4.