There are many things that make Denver such a great place to live and continue to give our Mile High home an A+ rating from people all over the world. Some reasons are commonly known, while others may surprise you.
Alcohol
Denver is unlike most other cities. That’s why we love living here. Some of our idiosyncrasies have to do with our relationship with liquor. Usually, when a city was formed in the old west, it needed a bank, hospital, and jail. Denver started with a lowly saloon. Denver was originally named after James Denver. There were a few names in the hat, but Denver was accepted for a shared barrel of whiskey. Each year, Denver hosts the Great American Beer Festival, which is the top beer tasting and competition in the American brewing industry. There are also more than a dozen wineries in the Denver metro area. But imbibe with caution; alcoholic beverages can pack up to 3 times the punch in a city as high as a mile.
Activity
Don’t fret over Denver’s love of liquor leading to the beer gut. The Mile High City is also one of the healthiest locales in the nation. Denver has the largest city park system in the country, with 14,000 acres of mountain parks and 2,500 acres of natural areas. According to USA Today, Denver is one of America’s top 10 “thinnest” cities. The ranking is based on only 19.3% of its population being obese, which is low compared to other locations. Our altitude affects our attitude in exercise, too. Take note, golfers! Golf balls in our fair city roll 10% faster than they do at sea level. Denverites sure love the heck out of our fur babies, and they are getting in on the healthy action too. Denver was rated as the healthiest city in the country for pets by Purina, ranking high in categories like veterinarian to pet ratio and low number of fleas.
Arts
We love our night life, our health and our pets. We also love the arts like no other city. Did you know that Denver spends more per capita on art than any city in the United States? This isn’t a new thing. During the Gold Rush and the city’s inception, Denver had a performance of Shakespeare’s “Macbeth” before it even had a hospital or school. The city itself was built with aesthetics in mind. The 16th Street Mall in the heart of the city was created by I.M. Pei, who is a master architect who even designed the glass pyramid outside of the Louvre. If you look at the walkway of the mall from an airplane, the hundreds of thousands of granite paving stones are made to look like the skin of a western diamondback rattlesnake.
Obviously, Denver is unique in more ways than these. John Denver changed his name to pay it homage. Now THAT is love. Regardless of the reason for your infatuation, Denver is a city that loves its citizens back. It provides a beautiful place to work and have fun. The scenery is second only to the art. The Mile High city makes sure its citizens can stay happy and healthy enough to enjoy it for many years to come. If you are not here already, come join us!