Boise certainly shows its growth. There are new subdivisions after new subdivisions broken up by nice low-key blocks of shops or office parks or other businesses. The city management and planners are obviously doing their job at making it fit and appear the same. Overall, they are handling it well. What was unexpected is that the metropolitan area of Boise apparently extends from exit 57 to exit 26 along I-84. I learned that while trying to leave town.

The downtown area has quite a hussle and bustle to it. I went to that section to see the state caapitol building. Since it was a Saturday, I expected the place to be mostly void of people and traffic. Wrong. It was quite busy. Finding an empty parking space is not for the faint of heart nor the impatient. It was a warm sunny day, thus, people were walking, biking, shopping and eating outside at restaurants. It is always nice to see a vibrant downtown area.

Boise State University is a major player in the town. The nearby Julia Davis Park and the adjacent Idaho History Museum are worth a visit -- especially if you catch the roses in bloom at the Julia Davis Park, as I did. I took numerous pictures. Unfortunately, we are still waiting for a ubiquitous device that can record smells. Ohhhh, did that park smell wonderful, as good as it looked. Maybe better. If only I could have bottled some of it! :>)

I did go to the Idaho Botanical Garden. Howver, it must be done for the year. All I saw were barren fields with people dressed like gardeners with their tools in hand. Adjacent to it is the old state pententiary (thus the name of the street that both are on) that is open for tourism. Since I have seen Alcatrez, I passed on this one. Additionally, there is an Idaho Military History Museum on Lindbergh Street near the Gowen airfield. Again, I passed on seeing that.

While most of southern Idaho was unimpressive, I can see the attraction to Boise. It is a good example of a state capital and apparently a great place to live for many. Its population explosion growth in the past twenty years makes it comparable in size to other state capitals such as Little Rock and Montgomery.