(By Tom this time)
Entering Colorado, the most striking thing (in a state full of striking things) is the color scheme: blues, whites, greens and browns, bold and brilliant. It’s a happy mix of all the shades one can find in a cartoon picture of a globe, true “Earth” tones; the perfect blend.
Fittingly, our time in Boulder (our first stop in Colorado) was spent visiting places where people search for (or think they’ve found) their own perfect blends.
The most obvious place to see this is at the Celestial Seasonings headquarters. The herbal tea powerhouse offers tours of its production facility, complete with a stop at the “Tea Shop & Emporium” (which should actually be, but sadly is not, a "shoppe") and free samples of as much of the stuff as you can put down. As we were reminded much more than once, the company’s process revolves around finding the perfect blend of herbs and flavors.
First, as an avowed fan of Morning Thunder, I will say that Celestial Seasonings does seem to accomplish this goal with regard to their teas. However, as to the tour itself, if it is a perfect blend of anything, it is of touchy-feely references to “all-natural goodness” and heavy doses of antiseptic corporatism. The tour guide was friendly, cheery, and forcefully, repeatedly insisted that nobody touch anything, photograph anything, or walk in front of her, ever. The tour video featured a smiling, sweater-wearing executive, whimsical artwork and a handful of vaguely chilling references to some all-controlling body called “The Hain Celestial Group." And while the company’s “blendmasters” are purportedly honor-bound to seek perfection in every batch of tea they make, according to the scenes I saw in the video, they do little more than spoon liquid into their mouths and nod approvingly.
But then, there were things like the freely flowing vats of herbal tea, and the “Mint Room,” where one can be exposed to near-narcotic levels of peppermint and spearmint. The company also seems to have a genuine interest in creating a working business model that provides consumers with a healthy (or, at least, harmless) product. And everyone seemed to enjoy themselves, myself included; in addition to a bladderful of sampled cups of Sleepytime Vanilla (a new flavor!), I walked out with a decorated mug and an armful of tea. So while the vibe may be more “board-pleasing-PR-campaign” than “flower-children-making-sweet-nectar-from-Mother-Nature’s-bounty,” maybe this is the blend Celestial Seasonings is going for.
The folks who built the Colorado Chautauqua in Boulder, where we spent Saturday evening and Sunday morning, were also going for a perfect blend, and they got much closer than Celestial Seasonings. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, a “Chautauqua movement” saw “Chautauquas,” or parks, springing up across the country as places for adults to educate themselves while enjoying both nature and culture. Constructed in 1898, Boulder’s Chautauqua (one of only three remaining in the country) features several quaint cottages, lots of green spaces, a restaurant, concert halls and hiking trails with access to the mountains in the backyard.
Our cottage was spacious and impeccably appointed. Meals were delicious. Our morning hike (our first close encounter with Colorado’s majestic wilderness) provided a workout and views that were both breathtaking in their own way. We even got to peek in on the tail end of a barbershop quartet "Harmony Festival." Though the park’s high-minded founders may have had visions of a more ambitious curriculum than that pursued by most of the modern-day vacationers who use the park, the Chautauqua, in many ways, represents an ideal mix of nature and culture, a truly perfect blend of the best Colorado has to offer.
Of course, perfection is in the eye of the beholder. Where I see perfection, others may see a collection of ratty old sheds surrounding a grassy expanse where old people can roam freely with their Pomeranians, listening to barbershop quartets.
Which leads to today's Trite Travelogue Moral: though Colorado may be a tempting place to seek it, and some may come close to finding it, there is no one true "perfect blend," whether you're striving to mix nature and culture or hibiscus and rosehip. Or, to be even more trite, your blend can be as perfect (or imperfect) as you want it to be.
Next stops: Denver, where we enjoy some gut-busting chili verde; Georgetown, where we find ourselves 1,200 feet underground and 9,000 feet above sea level in an abandoned mine; and northwest Colorado, where we try to keep our eyes on the road and not on the jaw-dropping views to be had from Rim Rock Drive.
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