Transient Living: Getting to Know the Neighborhood in Denver, Colorado

Editor’s Note: The past several years saw Maliha frequently moving from one place to another, a sort of nomad who likes the thrill of starting anew and finding her place in every city she stays at. In the last decade she has spent in the USA, Maliha has stayed at six different cities in five different states. Currently, Maliha is based in Denver, Colorado, and “Transient Living,” a new series in the Lomography magazine, documents her experiences and the ways that she has come to call this city her home.

I am a nomad, never staying in one place for more than a couple of years. As exciting as it is, moving to new places so often has its own challenges: getting to know my way around town; finding the places to buy organic food; finding a coffee shop that’s cozy enough to spend hours reading, writing, or just people watching; finding the local boutiques and the artisans; and above all, making new friends! Each story in this series encompasses a different aspect of me in the process of blending in to a whole new city.

I moved to Denver, Colorado only a couple of months ago, and the first two things I needed to figure out were the locations of a shop or a farmer’s market where I could buy locally grown organic produce and other goodies, and a coffee shop where I could sit down and work at my leisure without sticking out like a sore thumb. You see, coffee shops can be tricky – you have to find just the right place that speaks to your own personality.

Thankfully, my neighborhood turned out to be a pretty damn good one. When I moved to Denver, it was sort of in a hurry and I didn’t have a lot of time to do my research. I came to this city to pursue graduate studies, and found a place to stay near the university to save myself the cost of gas by commuting. And lo and behold, I found myself in a neighborhood full of cute little restaurants, cafes, bars, salons, and boutiques! It was love at first sight.

As I mentioned above one of the first things I had to do was to find a good place to buy locally grown organic produce, and I found the best little farmer’s market just a short couple of minutes drive away. As a matter of fact, during the warmer days in summer I managed to walk to this place early in the mornings. It is the best way to start a Sunday, I must say. The South Pearl Street Farmer’s Market is not that big, but it has everything I had hoped to find: fresh produce, stalls full of clothing made by local designers, all-natural and locally-made cosmetics, and a bunch of other different kinds of things. Denver has no shortage of farmer’s markets, but having found such a good one so close to my abode was like a blessing from the heavens.

The next thing I needed to find was a coffee shop where I could become a regular real fast! Like I said, there are a number of coffee shops in my neighborhood, but I had to find the right one! I started with the taste, of course. I went to all of the coffee shops within walking distance or a short drive from my place and ordered my favorite drink, chai tea latte with soy. It turned out that the best tasting chai was also made by the coffee shop that was closest to me, Kaladi Brothers Coffee. A short five-minute walk from my house, this coffee shop at East Evans Avenue is not too big, but not tiny either. The interior is warm and inviting, with lots of room to sit down and work on assignments or projects or just sit and watch people come and go. The walls are always adorned with artwork or photographs by local artists which makes this coffee shop just that much more interesting.

Needless to say, finding such gems so close to home had set off the mood from the get go. First impressions have always been a very big deal for me, and Denver obviously was a clear winner!

Maliha is many things and a photographer is just one of them. Her inspirations, adventures, stories and ideas can be found on her blog.

written by maliha on 2014-11-12 #places #colorado #location #coffee-shop #farmer-s-market #denver #local-flavor #kodak-portra-160 #select-type-of-location #pentaxmv1 #transient-living