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Hillwood Japanese Garden

Dear Imaginary Friends,

Howdy! Nothing beats a beautiful garden except for maybe a delicious meal, or a perfect painting, or a perfect cocktail... I digress!

This month, my intrepid and classy friend and I trekked over to Hillwood Gardens to see and be seen.

This garden was one of the many highlights. A famous Japanese landscaper designed this garden down the hill from Marjorie Merriweather Post's mansion. The mansion was built from the Post cereal fortune. It is not actually composed of cereal, but it might as well be. Also a big factor in building the Post fortune was Postum Coffee, which predates my existence. 

Marjorie was wealthy beyond my wildest dreams, and collected more Russian treasures, such as icons, Faberge eggs, Imperial china, and miniatures of the Russian Empire, such as portraits of Catherine the Great. Walk up the grand marble staircase and you will see portraits of Peter the Great, Catherine 's inspiration. One of Marjorie's many husbands was the Ambassador to Russia, hence the intense interest. It was right around the time of the Communist deacessioning of church treasures and all things that spoke to the previous Empire. Marjorie would visit thrift shops, where she would find bejeweled silver chalices, priests' vestments and antique icons piled in a heap. And so the heiress scooped them up.

I digress again!

In addition to being a loveletter to America's late, great wealthy lifestyle, the Hillwood mansion is an oasis of quiet with its own Adirondack cabin and a Russian dacha. Not to mention a formal French Garden with parterres and a channel pond.

If you haven't visited Hillwood, you really should. It is at its best in spring and summer when the gardens are thriving. In July, it is all about the hydrangeas and the water lillies.

You will definitely remember Marjorie's face by the time you leave: There are about 20 commissioned portraits of her!

Your Imaginary Friend,
Patsie

Denver and Boulder,CO

Dear Diary, aka, Imaginary Friend,
Wow, what a meal we ate tonight at Mizuna, the best restaurant in Denver. Our fave dishes: Carlo had a beet salad with goat cheese tortellini, and I had the famous lobster macaroni and cheese with mascarpone. The more expensive the restaurant, the smaller the portions. But so tasty! Great house bread with 3 different butters. Our wine was from Willamette Valley: a Pinot Noir called Siduri. YUMtastic! But pricey.
To make life even better, I trekked to Broomfield and Boulder, where I had lunch at The Kitchen, very gourmet crab salad. AH, thanks, Barbara, for taking me there! If you travel to Boulder, check out the Pearl Street mall shops, and be sure to go into The Peppercorn. SO many kitchen items, foods and things culinary. The biggest cookbook assortment I have ever seen.
AS for aesthetic delights, the Denver Botanical Garden just slayed me with so many blooming flowers and water features, abloom with so many kinds of water lilies. It was bejeweled with 20 Henry Moore sculptures, which were beautifully integrated into the landscaping. A true visual treat. The sculptures are a temporary exhibit, so run, do not walk.
Our first day in Denver, we drove up into the Rockies, to Georgetown, a charming Victorian town where we snacked at the Happy Cooker. {sic} We east-coasters are accustomed to our tap water tasting of refreshing chlorine. Nope, here it smacks of minerals, that make your iced tea taste like it has artificial flavoring. Alas, there is no getting around the fact that the mountain water, although fresh, tastes like swill.
Small matter. The air is clear and the skies beautifully blue.
What is Colorado famous for? Healthy thin people, who ride bikes, recycle, are deeply invested in preserving the environment, and import homeless from other states, so as to educate them and release them back into society. Shux, Denver, you guys are nice.
Your liquor bill will be reduced if you move here, because you will get twice as drunk on half the liquor, due to the altitude. But you will spend all that surplus money on sunscreen. The sun here is surprisingly direct and strong.
What's hard here is breathing when you have not yet adjusted to the altitude, baking potatoes and cakes and cookies (takes forever), and driving up the mountain roads without getting the shakes. A small price to pay.
More awesomeness: the Denver Museum of Art, housed in boldly striking architecture, with magnificent sculptures luring the viewer in. What a great collection of contemporary paintings and sculpture! Wow. And don't forget to visit Cherry Creek Mall.
I am so glad I visited. Denver, you are a refreshing change from Washington, DC.
Your new buddy,
Patsie