Fort Collins, Colorado Part 5 cont'd

So one of my favorite stores of all was this one called Akinz...

And she wasn't kidding. 

A store of all handmade goods, beanies, silk screened shirts and other handmade apparel and jewelry. They even had a little window you could look through into the "workroom" in the back to watch your shirt being created. This store had a really lovely aesthetic and you can find her website here. Please read her ABOUT, it's good for the heart stuff. 

A little trip out to the farm in the afternoon found us caught in a little hailstorm. No trip to Colorado is complete without either. 

The Booze Barn (note the drive-up window)

And this railcar was a beauty! I'd love to have a studio in one of these someday. The trick would be finding a place to park it here in Las Vegas. 

Fort Collins, Colorado Part 4 cont'd

A few of my favorite new places were these...

Where Bobby got a little crazy with the spices, we call him the Spice King after all. LoL. But it was one great store! Locally grown stuff, some imported, but blends and mixes are created right in the store, in what looks like a little spice lab. And there was a ton of information available on any of the spices, the owner was completely knowledgeable and helpful, and they have an online store here Old Town Spice Shop

Looked at apartments

Of course, it's the new thing now, to be vape friendly 

And this bookstore was one I could live in, or happily live above. 

Then we went across the street to see If Ras Cus was around

And check out the Art Lab 

Fort Collins, Colorado Part 3 cont'd

Lots of beauty, lots of outdoor patios, lots of bicycles.

To be cont'd...

Fort Collins, Colorado Part 2 cont'd

The beautiful tree-lined streets, stole my heart away from the first time I ever saw this city. when I was just 20. Architecture that dates back into the 1800's and cobblestone walkways are everywhere,

There is a deep sense of community there. A sense that things must be done collectively there. That it takes the strength of many to create and preserve such a beautiful historic town. You can't spend much time there and not want to become a part of it all. 

To be cont'd...

I was in Fort Collins, Colorado recently

...and had a chance to look around at the downtown area, and see what was new since I'd been there last. This is town completely obsessed by Eco-practices. Which is one of the things I admired most about it in the 20 years I lived there. They have municipal composting, city wide recycling, publicly shared gardens, and food co-ops. They have many many small farms in the area, and a farmers market to rival any I've ever seen. Lots of local healthy organic food is grown right there. From farm to table is a short jaunt. It really gives a new definition to being green. Many of the houses in the downtown area, and outlying areas as well, are solar powered, and have rain water collection systems, and clothes lines in the yards. It's hard to find a home there that doesn't have a tiny garden, indoors or out. You can't drive through it and not realize how many urban ecologists live in this town. Even many of the commercial plants, and businesses are green. It's a beautiful thing to see. But a couple of new things I noticed that I was really pleasantly surprised to see were these...

This was a bike library, in the middle of Old Town Square, that is a FREE bike-borrowing service for residents, students, and visitors. They allow you to borrow a bike for up to a week, for a small donation to offset operating costs. Small price to pay to have such a thing in any city!! Grand idea!

Also, they had these pianos around that people could play in the middle of the square too. 

With little signs on them that read...

Literally, it was so great, I sat there for about an hour, watching people singing, dancing, and playing the pianos! Amazing!! 

This post is to be cont'd...