Let There Be Lights

The traditional highlights of downtown’s annual Grand Illumination, which begins tonight at 6 p.m., are the two extravaganzas at either end of the 16th Street Mall: the Denver City and County Building light display that will be switched on with much hoopla at 6:30 p.m., and the Union Station light-up,...

By Susan Froyd

November 26, 2009

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The traditional highlights of downtown’s annual Grand Illumination, which begins tonight at 6 p.m., are the two extravaganzas at either end of the 16th Street Mall: the Denver City and County Building light display that will be switched on with much hoopla at 6:30 p.m., and the Union Station light-up, also at 6:30 p.m., preceded by model-train tours, hot cocoa and restaurant treats. But as Sarah Neumann of the Downtown Denver Partnership observes, there’s something new each year. And in 2009, it’s the Downtown Denver Glow Walk.

“We’ll be handing out glow sticks for a walk led by caroling choirs down the mall, from the City and County Building to LoDo, as a way to extend the evening,” Neumann notes. The Glow Walk, which starts at 7 p.m., will take revelers through downtown, where they can enjoy the holiday lighting displays at the Denver Pavilions, the D&F Tower and Larimer Square, and also enjoy the results of the very first LoDo Aglow Window Contest (maps will be available at Union Station). Along the way, prime stops include the decorated Brown Palace Hotel, with children’s crafts and Santa inside, as well as the outdoor Christkindl Market, an Old World holiday shopping experience that returns to Skyline Park for another season.

Pack up the family and get glowing. For more information, go to www.downtowndenver.com.
Fri., Nov. 27, 6 p.m., 2009

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Susan Froyd started writing for Westword as the "Thrills" editor in 1992 and never quite left the fold. These days she still freelances for the paper in addition to walking her dogs, enjoying cheap ethnic food and reading voraciously. Sometimes she writes poetry.

Contact: Susan Froyd

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