Mike Nelson's Colorado- Fun, Educational Day Trip To Boulder

This is one of the features you can see on Mike Nelson's Colorado next Tuesday at 9:30 p.m. on 7NEWS.

Living in Colorado means finding ways to entertain numerous family and friends who come to visit. Here's a perfect relaxing day trip you can send them off on-- or join them -- and it's just up the turnpike in Boulder. There's no rushing on this day, no getting up early, just take it easy and think "relaxation."

First Stop. Celestial Seasonings.
Yes, this is the famous tea company that sells dozens of flavors at your local grocery store and around the world. The company was created in 1969 in Boulder, Colo., when Mo Siegel and John Hay discovered great herbs growing in the area. Decades later, the herbs and other ingredients may come from around the globe, but the teas are still processed in their Boulder factory. Tours starts at 10 a.m. Monday through Saturday, 11 a.m. on Sunday. Children are welcome, but they have to be at least 5 years old.

If there's a wait for a tour, that's actually a good thing here. The tour center features several different kinds of teas to sample; when we visited they had both hot and iced teas. The smiling people behind the counter will even make you any flavor on the menu that you want to try. There are also displays featuring the story behind the teas, the story of the artwork on the tea boxes and even the original art works. There's also an herb garden to sit in outside.

Steve Spencer, the guest services manager for Celestial Seasonings, describes the tour as a "chance to see, taste and smell the world of Celestial Seasonings." He said to expect "a lot of sensory stimulation; you see the tea being processed, you hear the sounds of the machinery, the stereo, the music, you can smell wonderful teas, lemongrass and rose buds and all kinds of different herbs and spices and teas, and you get to taste 100 kinds of tea."

The tour itself begins with a video presentation. Then after a short walk to the factory, it's time to put on your hair net (and for some men, a beard net), and enter the factory itself. The first thing you'll notice is the smells. It's probably different all the time, depending on what's being made. At the first stop on the tour, you'll even see what's being milled on the machines. You'll walk between row after row of fresh ingredients still in their packages from their home countries. China, Kenya, Malaysia were just some of the countries we spotted as we walked by. We stopped in the herb room, then went to another room no one forgets, the mint room. The mint room is opened for a short time because the smells can be overpowering! The smells of peppermint and spearmint are so strong it clears your sinuses and it is the room you'll want to go back to see again and watch the reactions of other people experiencing it for the first time.

As you clear your sinuses from the minty smells, your group moves onto the factory floor itself. You'll see the packaging zipping along the production lines. You'll see the famous boxes being filled and folded and you'll see some of the workers in action. The factory runs 24 hours a day, Monday through Friday, some seasons are busier than others, but it's always interesting. Like most tours, this one ends in the gift shop, but this gift shop is definitely worth a look around with teas to buy, unique gift items-- even lip balm-- that shares its name with several varieties of tea. Now that you know how tea is made, it's time to head for a real-life teahouse for lunch.

For a map and directions, click here.
For the tour web site, click here.

Next stop, Boulder's Dushanbe Teahouse, for a unique lunch.
Pronounced doo-shawn-bay, this teahouse is a one of a kind in the United States, probably because while it was assembled here, it was actually created in Dushanbe and other cities in Tajikistan. Boulder is a sister city of Dushanbe. Dushanbe artisans created a teahouse and sent it to Boulder. Owner Lenny Martinelli said the teahouse "was probably one of the best representations of their culture; a chance to see how they eat, how they gather, their artwork, etc... " In exchange, Boulder is in the process of raising money to build an Internet cafe in Dushanbe. (For more information about the project, click here.)

The teahouse is ornate. It has hand-carved and hand-painted ceiling, tables, stools, intricately carved cedar columns and exterior ceramic panels. It's hard to believe, but the pieces of this teahouse actually sat in storage for several years while the city of Boulder and supporters of the sister city program worked out several issues, including where to put the teahouse and how to run it. It finally opened in 1998 and now serves more than 100,000 people a year. Martinelli said, "It's the only one of its kind in the western hemisphere. The only place you're going to find a tea house like this is if you go over to Europe."

Martinelli said there is one teahouse like this in Austria, because a city there also has a sister city in Tajikistan, otherwise you have to go to central Asia to see a tea house like this. Martinelli told us the teahouse is "the biggest gift given to the United States by the Soviet Union and it's here in Boulder. "

While the teahouse is just an amazing place to see, the food makes this place a real treat. The menu is not Asian, Italian or anything in particular. Instead it is a fabulous mixture. For lunch, our group chose a variety of dishes, including an Italian Polenta (fried polents with artichokes, roasted tomatoes, crimini mushrooms, finished in a smoked tomato broth and fontina cream), a chicken curry dish, plav rice with beef and even a unique pizza (sundried tomato pesta, mission figs, caramelized onions, goat cheese, fresh basil and tomatoes). This is a place worth more than one visit.

For a map and directions to the teahouse, click here
For the teahouse web site and menu, click here

If you still have time on your meter, right next door to the teahouse is the Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art, click here.

Next stop, Boulder Falls.
Boulder Falls is the perfect place to work off that lunch or to enjoy the dessert you may have taken to go. The 5-acre site was home to mining claims in the 1800s. It was donated to the city in 1914. It's a short hike from the parking area to the falls, about a third of a mile. But for people not use to the elevation, it can be a slow go. Remember, the stairs and walkway can get wet, so wear good shoes. Once you arrive at the falls, take lots of pictures, spend a little time enjoying the roar of the falls and think about the people who've been visiting this area for more than 100 years.

Directions: Take the Boulder turnpike towards Boulder. In the city, the turnpike becomes 28th Street. Continue to Canyon Drive, Highway 119 and turn left (west). Boulder Falls is located 11 miles west of Boulder, on the north side of Boulder Canyon Drive (SR 119) between Boulder and Nederland. For more information about Boulder Falls, click here.

After a break at Boulder Falls, you can return home or choose a few of these options.

Check out the Leanin' Tree Museum & Sculpture Garden of Western Art, click here.

Hit the trails at the scenic flatirons, click here.

Have dinner at the historic Chautauqua Dining Hall, click here.

Walk around Boulder's first cemetery and look for the markers with a big red lollipop looking stone, markers with marbles and even a marker with a wooden log, click here.

If you have more suggestions on what to do in Boulder, or questions, e-mail me, deb_stanley@kmgh.com.