I had business meeting in Denver, bright and early on Monday Morning at 8 am. So I needed to fly in on Sunday. But since I am short on nights for keeping my Hyatt Diamond status, I flew out on Saturday to Hyatt Hop.

Hotel Hopping or mattress running are terms near and dear to the frequent traveler trying to maintain their status in hotel programs. To maintain Hyatt Diamond, you have to have 25 stays or 50 nights. I am not about to make the status on nights, but I am coming close on the stays.  Well I was coming close due to hotel hopping. So Saturday night I stayed at the Hyatt Place Denver Airport and Sunday night I moved to the Grand Hyatt.  So 2 stays done. If I had wanted to stretch for a 3rd stay I could have over to the Hyatt Regency, but even I get lazy about packing up and moving every night.

The Hyatt Place was great! First time I’ve been given a rose and the cookie was pretty tasty too.

I originally had plans to spend the day with friends down in Colorado Springs, but those plans changed and I ended up at the spa.  It’s funny in all my travels, I think I can name all the places I have every done “spa” days. First time was in Bangkok, Thailand, with my friend Jon. They mistook us for a couple and we were put in the same room for massage.  I refused to take my clothes off. It was awkward.  If you’ve ever had a Thai massage, you know what I mean.  That put me off massages for a little while. The next one was on the beach in Cancun, thought it would be nicer then it was.  And the last one with in Bali, where I was covered in so much oil, that no amount of showering would rinse it off.  So my “spa” experiences up until this trip had not been memorable.

Enter the Oxford Hotel Spa, Club and Salon. I had unintentionally arrived early so Leo and Zero, at the hotel next door invited me to have a seat in the lobby, while I waited. What a beautiful hotel, too bad it’s not a Hilton or Hyatt, I would have liked to stay there. I booked The Perfect Day Package, that included a massage, facial, lunch, manicure and pedicure.  It was bliss…….

I have to wonder why I don’t do it more often. It was a experience that I will definitely plan on repeating again in the future! Possibly even at the Oxford Spa! I wish I had written down everyone’s name’s that had done my treatments, because they were just wonderful! I only remember Christine, who did my facial, because we bonded over our love of travel!  My face still feels amazing!

It was such relaxing day, I headed back to my hotel for my favorite pass time, drinking wine in the lounge, while pretending to work.

I would like to say I did something awesome during the day on Monday, but well can’t be posting that on a public blog……… However Monday evening, that’s a different story. I love Bacon. . I found a place that had bacon appetizers, but probably should have looked closer at the address though …. Oh well thank goodness for Uber. I ended up at The Berkshire , for some swine and wine.

After thoroughly enjoying the bacon, it was time for cheese. Yes my perfect night, wine, cheese and bacon……… So off to Cru Wine Bar, for wine flights and goat cheese beignets.

And finally ended the night at Tom’s Urban for some pork belly tacos. Of which there are not pictures, because at that point, I inhaled them upon sight. It was a nice night, until the damn sidewalk jumped up on me, causing me to roll my ankle. YES, sigh, the same foot.

Lucky for me the Grand Hyatt had a nice gym, so the next morning I was able to work off the remaining effects from the night before. And then I had another seriously boring day at a work conference, that first speaker really should thought about serving coffee as part of their presentation…….

And finally time to head home. Of course the conference ended earlier then planned, and of course, I booked a later flight to be safe, and well I could have switched to the earlier flight but I was not about to trade my confirmed first class seat, for a middle seat in coach. I knew I could find wine at the airport. 

Somehow I made it, 5 minutes late for boarding. I was not in a hurry because my carry on’s were small. BIG MISTAKE. I get to the gate and there is not line for boarding, odd. That’s because there was an insane line on the jet bridge and it was hot. 

Given the prima donna traveler I have become, I started looking around for the special line for people like me. Yeah, there is not such line……….

And back to Chicago I go, but I have to wonder will I ever get tired of this view?