Beaver Creek, CO - Feb 2013

Beaver Creek

Rakesh and Simran wanted to go skiing for a long weekend with their daughter, Ria, so we planned on a trip to Beaver Creek over President's Day Weekend.

Accommodation
Chez Dodds - We stayed at our house for two nights - when they arrived and the night before they left.

Westin Beaver Creek - Simran was able to get a two bedroom suite with kitchen/living room for half off by just using 1000 points.  It's a great hotel located just outside the gates to Beaver Creek with free shuttle service to the mountain.  The suite worked out perfectly allowing us to cook at night and relax in the living room.  The hotel also had a great happy hour - service was slow but the drink prices were pretty good - and an awesome gym.

Tom, Keith and Rak

Activities
They arrived on Friday night around 9pm.  Keith went to pick them up while Shawna made dinner.  After getting them settled in, we ate a Thai curry fish dish and then went to bed as we had to get up early the next day to beat the ski traffic.

Rak and Keith Ready to Hit the Slopes

Are We There for a Week?

On Saturday morning, we were on the road by 6am and it only took us 2 hours to get to Beaver Creek. We registered Ria into ski school (the class was called Ski Girls Rock - how appropriate) for 4 days and then the boys got their ski passes and rentals and went off to ski for the day.  Kim and Tom, who also happened to be in CO skiing this weekend, met up with Keith and Rakesh to ski together for the day.  We couldn't check into the hotel until the afternoon so Shawna and Simran had a leisurely breakfast at the Park Hyatt, walked around the village and then drove over to Edwards to see the shops there.  They stumbled upon a great sale at one of the sports stores, bought a few things and then had lunch at a yummy Chinese restaurant.  They went to the grocery store to pick up food for dinner and by the time they were done, they were able to check-in.  After getting all of the luggage and groceries unpacked, they went to the gym and were done just as the gang returned to the hotel from skiing.  That evening, Shawna cooked a pasta dish with scallops along with a salad.  We stayed up drinking and then crashed around 9pm with the Snarrs sleeping on the sofa.

That Curran Smile!

Tom and Keith

On Sunday, everyone went off to ski again while Shawna and Simran went to the gym (pilates class followed by the treadmill) and then went to the Park Hyatt for an afternoon at the Allegria Spa.  Shawna got a pedicure and a massage while Simran got a spa package including a massage, body scrub and facial.  The spa is very nice and has a water feature that you can enjoy with multiple hot tubs, cold showers and a steam room.  Simran decided that she liked 'skiing' again and coined the trip "Spa Girls Rock"!  Shawna and Simran returned to the hotel and hit happy hour with the boys and Ria.  Ria met a few friends and ended up roasting s'mores and going to the hot tub.  Due to the 'exhausting' day, Simran did not feel like cooking so we went back to the Chinese restaurant in Eagle to get take-out for dinner.

Ski Girls Rock!

On Monday, the boys decided to ski in Vail and the girls planned on meeting them there for lunch at our favorite restaurant, Sweet Basil.  Before heading over to Vail, Shawna and Simran relaxed on the sofa, checking out various travel sites and planning future vacations.  It was at this moment that Shawna learned about glamping (aka glamour camping) and she is now stoked to try out this place in Montana that Simran introduced her to.  Before the boys left, Keith mentioned that this was a dangerous venture - leaving the two of us alone to do travel research and he was right!  When we arrived in Vail, we met up with the boys and walked around for a while and then had an awesome lunch at the restaurant - Shawna really liked her dish which was a duck confit.  We returned to the hotel for a brief nap and then the boys went to get a massage in the spa at the hotel while Simran and Shawna got groceries for the evening.  Simran made a great shrimp and feta dish to go with the leftover pasta.

Rakesh and Simran

Tuesday was our last day there.  Rakesh had to fly out for the day for a meeting so Keith opted not to ski and we all (with the exception of Ria who was a trooper for skiing four days straight) went to gym and then went to the Ritz Carlton hotel to have lunch at Spaggo.  The food was very tasty.  Simran then picked up Ria from ski school and we packed up and drove back to Denver.  We went to a local Indian restaurant for dinner, Little India, and brought some home for Rakesh who arrived back at our house around 9:30pm.

Uncle Keith, You're Scaring Me!

Due to a snow storm that was hitting Denver on Wednesday afternoon, Rakesh and Simran changed their flight to leave on Wednesday morning.  After a quick breakfast, Shawna saw them off and then returned to the grind stone of work!

Shawna and Keith

Restaurants
Henry's Chinese Cafe - In Edwards.  Had lunch here and then also got take-out for dinner.  Food was cheap and tasty!

8100 Mountainside Bar and Grill - At the Park Hyatt.  Had breakfast here - shared a yummy omelet and tostada.

Sweet Basil - In Vail.  Had lunch here - quite tasty.  Shawna had the duck confit and Keith had the chicken cordon blue upon insistence by the waiter that this was the best dish on the menu.

Spaggo - At the Ritz Carlton.  Had lunch here - also very tasty.  Shawna and Keith shared the beef ragu and we all shared the mushroom flatbread and shrimp as an appetizer.

Little India - In Denver.  Had dinner here.  Food was not good.