Stanley

Friday morning dawned bright and my dad and I headed out to Estes Park, Colorado. Our destination was The Stanley Hotel.

IYKYK.

So way back in 1980 a little film called The Shining opened to mixed reviews. But today it is still regarded as one of the best horror movies of all time.

We took The Shining Tour at The Stanley. Some people think that The Shining was filmed at The Stanley. Nope. Others thought that the video of the Torrances driving up to The Overlook Hotel from the movie was the actual drive up to The Stanley. Nope. (And for the record, this is what I thought.). And still others thought that The Overlook Hotel was inspired by The Stanley Hotel. Still nope.

The real story is that Stephen King and his wife stayed at The Stanley Hotel back in September 1974. They were the only guests in the hotel that night. They stayed in room 217.

He had a nightmare while sleeping that woke him up and prompted him to go out on the balcony for a smoke. While out there he fully developed his novel ... beginning, middle and end.

The last photo is the cemetery for all the owner's and caretaker's beloved pets over the years. I loved it! Visitors have dropped coins all over them. In fact, visitors dropped coins in different places around the grounds.

To round out this post, I'll tell you where we ate and snacked.

We had lunch at You Need Pie! Deli and Bakery. We did not have any pie. That is truly unfortunate because it may have improved the review. Okay. So the review is not terrible, but I was disappointed with the food available. I chose this place because it was a diner. I incorrectly assumed that I would be able to get brekkie for lunch. I mean, diners serve breakfast all day, right???

So we had to get lunch. And aren't diners notorious for their vast menus? Well, not here. So my dad ordered an enormous cheeseburger and I ordered a grilled ham and cheese. The food was okay. I would probably try something different if I went back for a different tour.

After leaving The Stanley, we stopped at Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory on our way out of town. No joke. We spent over $75 on chocolate.

And then I had to make a pit stop at Starbucks. I was super parched. So I got an iced caramel macchiato and a giant water.

All in all, it was an absolutely gorgeous day and lots of fun.

xoxo

Yvette