In June of 2012, my friend Emma moved to Denver to pursue a degree in medicine. She had lived with me for the previous 5 months, and was my Sounders game day other half. So it seemed right that a month after she moved, the Sounders played in Denver and I had the perfect opportunity to visit! I flew in a few days early as I had never been to Denver before and wanted to explore. Our first activity was to drive out to Red Rocks Amphitheater.

The views of Denver were great!

Tenacious D was playing that night so they were setting up the stage for the show.

It was so beautiful! We spent a lot of time walking around here, enjoying the views and soaking up the sun.

After Red Rocks, we drove out to Golden to take the free tour of the Coors Brewery. Even if you don’t particularly like Coors, this is a fun and entertaining self-guided tour with a lot of information and history, and a nice way to spend a few hours. Plus, it includes a FREE beer tasting at the end!

These are the tanks where they brew the beer. Most were empty when we walked through, but you can tell this is a major operation. They seemed to go on forever.

This is the job I want to have!

As I mentioned before, the tour ends with a free beer tasting. And we’re not talking about small glasses, either!

Emma found her name on a mug in the gift shop. Lots of touristy things to buy here, but we didn’t get anything.

No idea why I am hugging this sign.

After the tour, we walked around Golden to have dinner and check out the town. It’s really small, with only a few streets, but we found a Mexican place that had pretty good food.

Then it was time to head back to Denver for a Rockies game. Emma’s friend Eli got us tickets and showed us around.

The Rockies sadly lost, but we all had a good time.

The next day was Sounders match day! We got our gear on, took some pictures, then hopped on the train into the city.

I only took one picture in all downtown Denver! Unbelievable!!

We had lunch at a pub where we had to explain our attire to some locals (soccer is not very big in Denver), then headed to the Three Lions to meet up with the local Sounders supporters and catch a ride over to the stadium in Commerce City. We had a BBQ tailgate with everyone in a field next to the parking lot, then went inside to watch the match.

It’s weird looking back through these photos and seeing players who no longer play for our team. It’s such a different line-up today.

Emma was really excited with the 2-1 win. Love this girl!

And it’s always nice when the players come say thank you after the game.

For a short trip, we definitely packed a lot in. I feel like I got to do most of what Denver has to offer in just a few days. But if I ever go back, I hope to get a 14er or two in. Or maybe some skiing in Vail. Can’t go wrong either way!