Ian and Carol live in Basalt, Colorado. It's a beautiful little town of about 4,000 residents (not all permanent), about 20 minutes from Aspen. Having never been to that region of Colorado, we were excited to visit. Living in this beautiful area of Colorado does not come cheap. A 2,400 square home, nice but not extravagant, runs about $900,000. Small change compared to what a house in Aspen might cost. Homes in the $10-20 million range are everywhere.
The drive from Denver airport to Basalt was 3 hours and 20 minutes, most of time enjoying magnificent views of rocks, mountains and small towns. We spent the afternoon and evening together. Carol and I got to hear high school stories that the two of them shared, and we enjoyed the fact that they were having so much fun. We were tired from a day of travel and driving, so we went to bed early. I was told not to go out for a walk in the neighborhood alone, as there were bears in the area. That's all I had to hear. No walking for me!
The next day we went to Aspen. It's everything I thought it would be and more. The homes are gorgeous, and the downtown shopping area is just what you'd expect from a town inhabited by people with more money than they know what to do with. We had lunch at The White House, a great choice. I had a delicious salad, Ron had a French dip sandwich, Carol had the fish and chips, and Ian had a burger. Lunch for the four of us was $100. If you go to Aspen, bring your wallet.
Dinner that night was at a local Italian restaurant called Bella Mia. It's the restaurant where Ken Lay had his last meal (Enron executive). He died, so they said, of a heart attack that night, before he was scheduled to report to jail. Nice little local restaurant with a bit of history.
Visiting Ian and Carol was great fun, especially for Ron. There's nothing like reminiscing about crazy high school days. Ian and Ron were crazy then, and it was fun to hear Ian confirm funny stories I'd been hearing for the past 47 years.
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