Come on Down to Denver's 16th Street Mall

Many big cities have their main street, the one where thousands of tourists will tread where thousands had tread before. Each cities has its own unique character as well. Chicago's Michigan avenue is full of glamorous, chic shops; New York's Broadway has dozens of theatres showing world class plays; and Denver's 16^th street mall has, well, street performers and food stands. Most of the high end retail has sequestered itself in the far off shopping district of Cherry Creek, and the theatre is two blocks over on 14^th. That leaves the pedestrian walkway free for people carrying their guitars or flutes, or pulling their food carts behind.

The street performers are an exciting diverse bunch, and to a resident of Denver one can see that they keep to their turf. There is also the matter of when to play, and one of the more accomplished guitarists sees no need to play outside of the busy weekends. He not only accepts donations, but also sells copies of his CD, showing that there are successes to come from this exciting profession. Due to this he will always be in a prime location on the street, not tucked into an alcove or alleyway as some of the newer players are apt to do. Of course, having competition is very healthy so, by all means help out the struggling alcove artists.

Guitars aren't the only musical instrument to be heard on the mall, between Larimer and Lawrence on some weekends the mournful strains of the bagpipe can be heard. On closer examination the listener will view an older man clad in Scottish highlands dress and blowing his bagpipe for all to hear. So if it is cold out and this brave soul is only donning his kilt, please make his pain worth it. Towards the other end of the mall is a native American who also goes for the traditional garb and plays his flute, he too has a CD. As you can see there are a variety of musical choices to experience, of course at some point you'll get hungry.

If the sun is shining and it's actually warm out (the sun is always shining) you might want to appease your appetite at one of the many food vendors out on the street. Now the local favorite, and the Denver paper Westword backs me on this, is Biker Joe's sausage cart on the corner of Arapahoe. During nice days when he appears with his delicious wares the line never seems to end for the three hours around lunch. Not only does he have an extensive selection of sausages to choose from, he's an extremely friendly guy and is always carrying on a conversation with at least one of the costumers. If you would rather pass on the sausage, further up on Larimer street is one of the newest stands, a barbecue joint. With smell of barbecue sauce and brisket constantly wafting out you'll have to plug your nose if you intend on passing them up. For a completely different food entirely, near the capitol at the end of the street is a baked potato vendor. Between these standouts are a healthy variety of hot dog and burrito vendors if the simplistic is your desire.

Denver's 16^th street mall has been passed over by some in favor of Cherry Creek and other outlying areas, yet it can be an extremely exciting experience if you stick to the street and enjoy the outdoors.