If you know Scott and I even just a little bit, or follow any of our travel adventures, you know that we have a healthy appreciation for the slightly absurd. Our day back in Denver with Sara and Joey was filled with some of that and we loved every minute.
Act I: Recharging Batteries Before The Glorious Fever Dream That Is Meow Wolf
We were exhausted from the last five days of full tilt Colorado sight-seeing and road tripping and it felt good to have a lazy morning. Sara worked from home the first half of the day and Scott and I lazed around drinking coffee with her before she started work, then headed into Arvada to return the rental car and grocery shop for the next phase of adventure that we would be partaking in with them the following day.
When Sara got off work we headed downtown to Meow Wolf Convergence Station.
What is Meow Wolf? Well, that’s a great question.
For the uninitiated, Meow Wolf is best described as a cheerfully overwhelming interactive multi-story art installation whose theme is an interdimensional, other-galaxy, mystery. It is a 90,000 square foot neon and space-age scrap metal fever dream, thought up by teams of artists who appear to have been on some sort of hallucinogenic drugs, who were tasked with making a loose representation of the lovechild of Burning Man and the sets of Universal Studio theme park’s Men in Black.
Long story short, it is trippy.
We spent several hours wandering between “worlds” and were quite entertained, as well as quite perplexed, by what we saw.
I won’t bore you with descriptions of what we saw, you can Google that, or go visit yourself to fully experience it, but I will say that my favorite part was the cave-like alcove made up of thousands of books that housed a couch. Sara and I even found a book about horseshoeing tucked into its structure.
I was also tickled to find a ridiculous piece of artwork hanging on the wall in one of the rooms that depicted a campy 1960’s era cowboy riding… rather improbably… a hotdog of all things.
Which, if you know me well of recent, you will be reminded of an anecdote that I have been telling regarding Scott, who when asked if he thought I looked too big to be riding a cute large pony named Paschal, replied after a pause: “Well, it looks like you’re riding a hot dog.” Then, after a beat, having probably noticed the perplexed WTH look on my face, quickly clarified, “a hot dog with legs.” So there is that.
(When I recounted this conversation to the pony’s owner she replied “I hope he at least looks like a Ballpark Frank.” So now we like to joke that the pony should be renamed to AGF BallPark Frank rather than AGF Paschal Decoration.)
We had a little time to kill before our second act, and as we were leaving, just happened to stumble through an otherworldly portal and into the Sipz Lounge- think 1950’s intergalactic cruise ship lounge. We decided that was a sign that we needed to have $25 cocktails, so we plunked down on the banana shaped neon purple velour couch and savored our cosmic themed libations- Sara’s featuring some sort of fancy smoke bubble, Scott’s the shade of Baja Blast, and mine with a cotton candy cloud as well as an actual flashing faux ice cube.
Were they overpriced? Yes. Were they ridiculous? Also, yes. But did we get to do the thing you’re supposed to do in the place you’re supposed to do it? I would say so.
And then it was time for Act II.
Act II: The Denver Institution That Is Casa Bonita
Sara thankfully had made reservations for us at Casa Bonita (yes, THE Casa Bonita) and we met Joey there. We went through the security station and made it inside and were escorted to our seats.
This is another one of those things that I won’t go into every glorious detail describing because I can’t do it justice. But, I can include a link to a video about the 50,000 square foot outlandish labyrinth that is equal parts restaurant and entertainment experience, vaguely reminiscent of the Mexican villa exhibit in Epcot’s World Showcase. But with cliff diving. And South Park characters. And, it’s sandwiched between a dentist’s office and a Dollar Tree. So, imagine all that.
Casa Bonita describes themselves as:
The Greatest Restaurant in the World! Casa Bonita combines Mexican food with cliff divers, a 30-foot waterfall, arcade games, and puppet shows, all under one roof in Denver. Great cocktails for the adults, endless exploration for the kids. Reservations required. Come hungry, stay for the excitement.
So, only having a vague idea of what to expect, we eagerly took our seats. In “the mines.” 
Made to mimic a gold or silver mine from the 1800’s, the mine area provided a rather interesting backdrop for us to enjoy our meal of Mexican, and when we were ready for our complimentary sopapillas for dessert, we raised the flag at our table to signal our intentions to the wait staff.
At one point during our meal, Sara needed to use the restroom, and upon her return, got turned around and lost her way. A helpful server helped escort her back but had to first ask several clarifying questions about where she was sitting to reunite her with us, making sure she wasn’t seated in the cliffs surrounding the waterfall, the lava caves, the rose garden, the villa terraces, or the Limestone room.
It really is that big.
Our one hour of dining time ran out so we had to move on along and investigate the rest of the iconic and beloved sprawl. It wasn’t time for a cliff diving show yet so we popped over to watch The Insanely Mysterious Sorsoro’s magic show. We were sufficiently entertained and then made our way to the waterfall area. We ooh’d and ahh’d at the cliff diver and managed to stay dry from the splashes of the diver as he plunged into the alarmingly small pool. 
We explored for a little longer, making our way into Black Bart’s cave, before going in search of the lifesize Cartman statue and catching several other South Park easter eggs in the process.
Eventually we all agreed that we had reached peak Casa Bonita fulfillment and decided we could call it a night, and waved adios to the gaudy but lovable pink palace and headed back to Arvada.
