Boulder, Colorado, USA
Created | Updated Apr 1, 2002
Boulder is a town about half an hour to the north of Denver, Colorado, the state capitol. It is home to the University of Colorado at Boulder, the Flatiron Mountains, Celestial Seasonings Tea, a large number of microbreweries, and a lot of hippies.
Boulder is popularly described at "36 square miles of city, surrounded by reality." It's also known as "The People's Republic of Boulder." That's mainly because it is, in fact, caught in a little world all its own. It's very different from the rest of the state, one of the small outposts of Democratic thought (as in the Democrat/Republican dichotomy.) The town doesn't pay much attention to the rest of the state. It essentially does whatever the heck it wants to, withouty any regard for anywhere else. For example, it is now illegal to smoke cigarettes in public places in Boulder. A very few restaurants, such as one Perkins, the Dark Horse Bar, and a few breweries with rooftop patios, have a special dispensation to allow smoking. Boulder also has Environmental Police who trundle around in little green cars to make sure the environment isn't being harmed, and policemen riding about on bikes occasionally.
Boulder has also gained a bit of notoriety lately, what with the Jon Benet Ramsey scandal, and the riots held by a bunch of undergraduates who were angry that they weren't old enough to drink. Boulderites tend not to enjoy discussing those topics, because they're about all that outsiders mention when they hear the word "Boulder." Well, that, and "Mork and Mindy" and that Stephen King novel. Any way you look at it, Boulder hasn't gotten a lot of positive press.
There are a few nice spots in town, such as the Pearl Street Mall. It's a pedestrian mall in the middle of town. The main drawback to this place are the inordinate amount of buskers asking for money. Be warned if you walk through here - you may see a few too many juggling acts for your own sanity. There are plenty of other performers hanging about Pearl Street as well - sword swallowers, random magicians, and a rather unsettling Rastafarian man who shoves himself into a box for money. Mind you, it's a very SMALL box.
In addition to the weird grunge hippie vibe that permeates a large portion of town, there's also the weird preppy white-collar vibe that gets the rest of it. A few years back, Boulder had the highest number of Internet connections per capita than any other city in the nation. There's a whole vegetarian-health-conscious-wholesome-foods thing going on too, so there are definitely less healthy places to spend your time.
All in all, it's a fairly balanced town (which isn't to say that the residents themselves are mentally balanced - that's a different story entirely.) Boulder is very weird, very eclectic, and very unique. Come check it out!
Boulder is popularly described at "36 square miles of city, surrounded by reality." It's also known as "The People's Republic of Boulder." That's mainly because it is, in fact, caught in a little world all its own. It's very different from the rest of the state, one of the small outposts of Democratic thought (as in the Democrat/Republican dichotomy.) The town doesn't pay much attention to the rest of the state. It essentially does whatever the heck it wants to, withouty any regard for anywhere else. For example, it is now illegal to smoke cigarettes in public places in Boulder. A very few restaurants, such as one Perkins, the Dark Horse Bar, and a few breweries with rooftop patios, have a special dispensation to allow smoking. Boulder also has Environmental Police who trundle around in little green cars to make sure the environment isn't being harmed, and policemen riding about on bikes occasionally.
Boulder has also gained a bit of notoriety lately, what with the Jon Benet Ramsey scandal, and the riots held by a bunch of undergraduates who were angry that they weren't old enough to drink. Boulderites tend not to enjoy discussing those topics, because they're about all that outsiders mention when they hear the word "Boulder." Well, that, and "Mork and Mindy" and that Stephen King novel. Any way you look at it, Boulder hasn't gotten a lot of positive press.
There are a few nice spots in town, such as the Pearl Street Mall. It's a pedestrian mall in the middle of town. The main drawback to this place are the inordinate amount of buskers asking for money. Be warned if you walk through here - you may see a few too many juggling acts for your own sanity. There are plenty of other performers hanging about Pearl Street as well - sword swallowers, random magicians, and a rather unsettling Rastafarian man who shoves himself into a box for money. Mind you, it's a very SMALL box.
In addition to the weird grunge hippie vibe that permeates a large portion of town, there's also the weird preppy white-collar vibe that gets the rest of it. A few years back, Boulder had the highest number of Internet connections per capita than any other city in the nation. There's a whole vegetarian-health-conscious-wholesome-foods thing going on too, so there are definitely less healthy places to spend your time.
All in all, it's a fairly balanced town (which isn't to say that the residents themselves are mentally balanced - that's a different story entirely.) Boulder is very weird, very eclectic, and very unique. Come check it out!
