This museum is one of the city's most popular attractions, drawing almost two million visitors a year. There are permanent displays on North American Tribes, Egyptian mummies, dinosaurs, and minerals, all stunningly detailed and vast. The museum also hosts traveling exhibits such as Ramses II and Imperial Tombs of China. An IMAX cinema, gift shop and cafe are also on-site.
This is a place where a child's natural urge to experience the world hands-on comes together with art and science projects, building materials and imagination. The museum includes nine interactive Playscapes including the CMD Fire Station #1, My Market, Center for the Young Child, Under My Feet and Over My Head, The Assembly Plant, Making the Team, Arts a la Carte, Around the Block, and Alphabet Soup. There are also several programs, activities and special events held throughout the year. Check the museum's website for a complete listing of upcoming events.
This library, a post-modern structure full of turrets and odd geometrical shapes, is a bastion of knowledge. Internally, the academic atmosphere of each study area is indicative of individual moods. Six of the ten floors of the library are open to the public. Keeping with the tradition set in 1894, the library still has a world-class children's facility. The library is a regional depository for government publications. It offers extensive genealogical resources as well as historical books, photographs, art, and memorabilia chronicling the American West. The library also offers fiction and non-fiction texts, periodicals and computers allowing free Internet access. Tours are available.
Experience the great outdoors at Denver Botanic Gardens. Sprawling over three acres (nine hectares), this natural oasis is replete with several themed gardens. Stroll along bonsais at the Japanese Garden, or enjoy a fairytale-like experience with Winnie the Pooh and friends at the Storybook Gardens. Xeriscape Demo Garden is great to gather tips on home gardening and horticulture, while the Rock Alpine Garden showcases a unique topography. Take a guided tour and marvel at the verdant landscape dotted with exotic flora, lawns, waterfalls and ponds. In addition, these gardens offer several botanical exhibitions, illustrations and workshops that are both fun and interesting.
This 314-acre expanse of garden, greenery, fountains, ponds and fine sculpture, located just east of downtown, is home to the Denver Zoo and the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. Built in the early 1900s as part of the popular City Beautiful movement, the park served Denverites as a civic refuge and swimming retreat. The lake beach no longer exists, but the historic boathouse, seen on many area postcards, remains. Three playgrounds, picnic tables, tennis courts and a public golf course are all available.
This museum occupies Hangar Number One on Lowry Campus, formerly known as the Lowry Air Force Base. Here, visitors can view 31 aircraft, from a World War II Corsair to the B1A Bomber. The museum also houses extensive exhibits on the history of Lowry Air Force Base, World Wars I and II, former President Dwight D. Eisenhower and even the Hubbell Telescope. A display on the science of flight includes a space station simulator.
Redline is a contemporary art space that supports the intersections of community, art experimentation and education. The gallery, which is housed in a building designed the architects Semple-Brown in the Northeast area of Denver, contains a roomy gallery showcasing the works of its artist-residents, as well as creations by community members. Indeed, in addition to monthly exhibits, Redline strives to reach out to homeless populations and local public school youth through its solid arts-education programs; their work is often featured on its walls. As a result, Redline has created a vibrant, engaging space that invites everyone--artist or public--to rethink the line between artist and community.
Baseball is an essential part of the American culture and a vibrant component of Denver, all of which makes Coors Field a hub of activity during the summer. It seats more than 50,000 and is regarded as one of most fan-friendly parks in the country. For a few dollars you can take a guided walking tour and learn about the history of the field while taking in all the sights, including the Colorado Rockies dugout and the visiting team's clubhouse.
B's Ballpark, located opposite Coor's Field with its entrance near one of the seating gates, is more than just a tribute to Colorado baseball culture. Bruce Hellerstein began collecting baseball memorabilia in his youth and now his collection has become B's Ballpark Museum. Hellerstein's collection includes the usual memorabilia like cards, jerseys, autographed balls, and banners, but also unique artifacts like pieces of Babe Ruth's bat, a section of "The Green Monster," and the manhole cover that Mickey Mantle tripped over at the 1951 World Series that permanently injured his leg. For casual baseball fans, there is plenty here to entertain you before the game, as it is open during every game at Coors Field. For serious fans, B's Ballpark Museum is a treasure trove of baseball history.
Sakura Square is a small square at the edge of downtown Denver built around a handful of cherry blossom trees planted there by Japanese ambassadors in the 1950s. Though the trees rarely bloom due to the unpredictable Colorado weather, Sakura Square still maintains relevance as the center of Japanese culture in the Denver area. The square contains a small park with several relevant statues, a shopping center with Japanese market, restaurants, and small museums, and the local Buddhist temple. Sakura Square also hosts the yearly Cherry Blossom Festival every July, and offers classes in Taiko drumming, flower arranging, and more. For a peaceful sit in the park or a brief glimpse into Japanese culture, Sakura Square is a lovely place to visit. -Sabrina Zirakzadeh
In the 1940s during World War II, many Japanese-Americans and Japanese citizens living in the United States were forced into internment camps for the supposed safety of the American people, a dark moment in history that few protested at the time. One of the few was Denver mayor Ralph L. Carr, who not only publicly stood against discrimination of the Japanese during the war but was the only American politician to publicly apologized for the internment, which he did in 1942. The apology cost him a potential Senate appointment, but the Japanese community in Denver never forgot his actions. When Sakura Square opened, one of the first statues put up in the garden was a bust of Mayor Carr. The inscription and care given to the statue to this day show how much the words of one man can be remembered by the entire community. -Sabrina Zirakzadeh
Sakura Square in downtown Denver has several statues erected due to the importance of the figures in the Japanese and Denver communities. Minoru Yasui was a Japanese-American lawyer who was one of the few to actively protest the Constitutionality of Japanese interment camps during World War II, as well as curfews for minorities. In 1942, Yasui deliberately broke curfew in Portland, Oregon, in protest of the laws, and was convicted and sent to prison for one year while his case was deliberated by the Supreme Court, which at the time upheld his conviction. In 1944, Yasui moved to Denver where he returned to practicing law and fighting for Japanese rights until his conviction was overturned in 1986. The bust in Sakura Square was erected in thanks for all that his protests did in pushing for minority rights during his life. - Sabrina Zirakzadeh