Saturday, January 1, 2011

New Year's Celebration

Here we are at the start of a new year. it seems like just yesterday we celebrated Thanksgiving and now we are heading towards Valentine's day!

I thought I would post a few pictures of our New Year's Eve bash. We have spent many New Years with a group of our friends and gone to many different places. My dream has been to stay in downtown Denver, dance the night away and see the fireworks at midnight.. this was to be my year!

As a group, we decided to stay in Denver but the challenge was to find an affordable venue. Out of the blue, one of my friends heard about a dance being held at the Ramada which would offer Swing, and Ballroom, dancing. Yippee!!  The best part...was the price!  Well, that should have been our first clue!

I wish I had taken more pictures, but when we first arrived at the hotel, the reality sunk in and I was in shock for the first hour.  Now don't get me wrong, I am not a hotel snob but I think my expectations were too high...way too high!

We walked into the lobby, for check-in, the carpets were dirty and the decor was from the 70's. Does anyone remember the foiled wallpaper? This place had not been renovated since the 60's or 70's, and every nook and cranny revealed the wear and tear.

 After receiving our room key's we asked where we could park the car ( silly me, I thought the room was inside this main building)...Oh No..we had to drive around to the back of the building where the rooms were. Let me tell you, any Motel 6 would be better than what we found.  One couple, who checked in before us, drove immediately to Safeway to buy Clorox Wipe's  and then tore down the sheets looking for bed bug's!

Sorry I did not take pictures of the bathroom..the toilet was stained, the grout on the floor tile was moldy..thank goodness it was only one night!  Our friend's room was so cold they had to ask for a portable heater to keep them from freezing in the single digit temperatures that Denver was experiencing.


After everyone had checked in, laughed about the rooms and the venue, we decided to go out for dinner. We went to La Loma's Mexican restaurant.


Photo
I tried to enlarge this but for some reason it could not make a change

Waiting for our dinner.



The Tortilla Machine!
The tortillas went through the oven, then the conveyor dropped them into the basket.
Handmade Gingerbread House

The meal was fantastic and I need to get better at picture taking because my meal was devoured before I thought to take a picture! The tortilla's were so soft and yummy, my mouth is watering just thinking about it! We enjoyed good food and fellowship. The conversation flowed as we caught up on our respective families, pets, jobs, activities of the retiree's, health and anything else that popped into our heads.


After dinner, it was back to the hotel to put on our fancy dud's, for a night of dancing! Although the ballroom left a lot to be desired,  we had a great time with our friends.

Our Table

S and the two G's..

K and B


G and A
Guess who!  Yep, Me and Hubby!
Dancing the Night Away
Two-Step, anyone?



How about some West Coast Swing?
Can not tell here, maybe Night Club Two
The Hustle Champs!
Then it was time for the Countdown..out came the party hats, the noise makers, bubbles and horns!
Yes, you have to wear the hat!
Happy New Year!

Midnight came, champagne toasts, New Year's kisses, fireworks, more dancing then it was off to bed!
I tried to get a picture of the Fireworks!
After little sleep because of the many revelers that partied ALL NIGHT outside our room, we met for breakfast. I will say the breakfast was FANTASTIC! We talked about our night and decided that we would not return next year. REALLY????  Because I like the idea of staying in a hotel,  I will be on the hunt for a hotel that is affordable and offers dancing.


Even though the venue was not what we expected, it was fun to be together. We were able to laugh about the circumstances, no one was upset, we enjoyed bringing in another year and look forward to many more!

We made more memories to add to the many we have shared!  

Blessings,
Shawn

8 comments:

  1. What a fun night despite the surroundings. Hopefully you can find a better place next time. This does remind me of a Golden Girls episode. They got a hotel because their house was being sprayed and they ended up being arrested for prostitution. Better luck next year.

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  2. How could you not want to return to the multi colored disco light? Better luck next year!

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  3. Oh that hotel sounds awful!! I'm so sorry about the venue but I think the best bit is that you all made the most of it and refused to have this setback ruin your New Year's Eve!! I think the best is that you spent it with friends and with dancing and great food too!! I hope next year you'll find a better venue but yay for all of you for your optimism and sense of great fun!!
    Happy New Year!! Thanks for sharing these wonderful pics! Take care
    x

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  4. You just can't help but have a wonderful time when you're with friends!

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  5. @ Karen, I hope you had a wonderful New Year. I loved the Golden Girls and remember the episode. We do get a little wild! One time we were out dancing and A and I decided to dance on a table..well the bouncers thought we would hurt ourselves and helped us down!!! Shortly after, they built big cubes to dance on!
    @ Mrs. Tuna. Oh those Disco Lights..brought back so many memories *sigh* Now, they just got in our cataract ridden eyes and we could not see!!!
    @ Old Kitty As I sit here today, it was not awful but just a fun memory that we will laugh about for years!
    @ Brian Yes, friends are what make an evening! We have celebrated so many occasions together and always find the best in each one! I am lucky to have these wonderful people in my life.

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  6. As everyone has said its great that you all were able to laugh it off and have a fabulous evening!! You girls all looked HOT!!! Happy New Years, may this be a year full of treasured memories for us:)
    We had a nice evening here at home with the kiddos, the boys bought fireworks so they set those off. Then we watched a couple of movies and snacks:)
    Love and many hugs

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  7. Wow, so sorry about the hotel. Gee my parents had wallpaper like that back in the 60's! It was fun that you got to hang with your friends and made the best of it!

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  8. the people matter more than the place so I am happy that at least you had a great time with such amazing people!!

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