Other than coming down with a head cold (typical once any break starts) on the last day of my trip, the mini-break to Boise, Idaho was great fun. My friends Tami and Jeff moved from California to Idaho a couple of years ago, and this was my first chance to get up there to see them. First and foremost, my favorite part of the visit was of course visiting with my friends. Beyond that, the cool weather and the soft water were a close second and third. A few years ago several communities in Los Angeles banned salt-based water softeners for environmental reasons. This past weekend is the first time in years that I’ve washed my hair in soft water. Ahhhh, it was so manageable and soft and easy to do. Boy do I miss that soft water!
Anyways, back to Boise. Here are some highlights…
We went to the Boise State football game against Colorado State. Broncos’ football is kind of a religion in Idaho. It was windy and rainy – good football weather. 
Boise State is known for the blue, rather than green, football field. On TV it looks almost teal, but in reality it’s a very deep blue.
The city of Boise is just a few minutes from Tami and Jeff’s so we went in quite a few times over the weekend. It’s a very small and clean city. I was surprised to learn that it also has the largest Basque community in the US.
The Idaho State Capitol Building
We went to three or four coffee places while I was visiting, and none of them were Starbucks! Big City Coffee was probably my favorite of them all.
Right near Boise State there are several different museums and educational centers.
Boise Art Museum (BAM) 
The White Elephant’s exhibit by Billie Grace Lynn. 
Idaho’s Black History Museum and Abraham Lincoln statue.
The Idaho Anne Frank Human Rights Memorial educational park was very moving.
Bridge over the Boise River
A pretty sky… 
There are several drive-in/diner/dive-type restaurants in Idaho that have been featured on Food Network’s Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives television show. We stopped in at the West Side Drive In. 
A used bookstore in the Hyde Park area of Boise…
I arrived back into LA right on time yesterday afternoon and then proceeded to take three hours to get home from the airport. Rigby was happy to finally be picked up and taken home last night, as evident by these photos.
What a nice trip. Thanks to Tami and Jeff for their hospitality!
AND
Happy Thanksgiving!
Yeah, you'd wonder about the Basques.
ReplyDeleteGlad you had a good trip and got back safe. And how big is the bed. Seems a middle sized dog is utterly lost above at the top of it. Still I suppose if it's half as hot as you say it is you'd spend the night in search of a cool spot.
Lovely photos. Is that Tom Jones in the drive-in.
Thank you. It was a good time.
DeleteHa ha ya the bed IS giant. I once log rolled 3 times from one side to the other to prove its enormity, but ironically I sleep only on the very,very left edge. :)
No, the picture at the drive-in is the host of the Food Network show that visited.
Is there a story with the bronze of the playful girl peeping around the wall for a park bench.
DeleteWhoever made it is remarkably good for there is a lot of movement in it.
It's Anne Frank. Here's a little info...
Deletehttp://idaho-humanrights.org/content/article.cfm?article_id=25
Fun. Are you thinking about moving to Boise now? It might be worth it to be close to Tami!
ReplyDeleteHa ha! No, but I might buy a water softener. ;)
DeleteGlad you had a great time!
ReplyDeleteAnd wow...that letter to "Dear Teacher!"
Happy Thanksgiving!
There were several walls of moving quotes. That one resonated the most with me.
DeleteA lovely post. I love small town living. Joplin is a former mining town as are most of the little towns around here. DD2 has a job in Springfield, Mo about an hour from here and will be moving there after the first of the year, and I love Springfield.
ReplyDeleteThere are definitely perks to small towns. I was reminded of that when it took about 20 minutes to get to the Boise airport during "rush hour" and almost 3 hours the get home from lax at 1:00 in the afternoon.
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