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girlawhirl explores boulder, colorado's pearl street mall May 12, 2008
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Girlawhirl loves it when she has some free time to explore a new city, and her preferred mode of transportation to do that is walking. So when she found herself with a day off in Boulder, Colorado recently, she headed straight for the Pearl Street Mall... A pedestrian area full of galleries, stores and restaurants, Pearl Street between 15th and 11th streets was a perfect place for Girlawhirl to spend a sunny spring afternoon. The tree-lined, brick blocks offered plenty of benches to just sit and relax and watch the various street performers from musicians to jugglers to a guy making balloon hats for the kids. But there were too many interesting shops for Girlawhirl to sit still for very long.
To satisfy her inner athlete, she checked out Prana and Outdoor Divas for cool workout gear. On the opposite end of the spectrum, she satisfied her sweet tooth with a stop at Tee & Cakes where she could pick up not only a fresh-baked cupcake but a hand-screened T-shirt made by the bakery crew as well. For even more sweet stuff, she checked out Powell's Sweet Shoppe and it was like stepping back in time. The store's shelves are packed with jars and boxes of candy she hadn't seen since she was a kid, retro toys and in the back there's a small seating area to watch the video of “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory” that's constantly playing.
Always on the lookout for fun gifts, Girlawhirl had plenty of options in that category. Blue Skies is a chic little boutique where everything seems to be organized by color. For handcrafted pieces by local artists, there's Boulder Arts & Crafts Cooperative Gallery and Art Mart. Into the Wind features not only a great selection of kites, but lots of fun and funky toys for kids of all ages.
And after a day of shopping and exploring, Girlawhirl found the perfect spot on Pearl Street to unwind and enjoy a delicious dinner – The Kitchen. She opted for The Kitchen Upstairs, which is the restaurant's beer and wine lounge since she had made it there in time for the “Tasting Hour” featuring inexpensive small plates and daily wine and beer specials. And for dessert she couldn't resist their petit pot au chocolat. It was a decadent end to a beautiful day in Boulder.
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And for one of the biggest and coolest collections of kitchen and home accessories she's ever seen, there's Peppercorn. Girlawhirl spent more than an hour there browsing the two stories of kitchen gadgets, cookbooks, linens, specialty foods and more. 
