I don't want to assume you know much about me, but my partner-in-crime and I like to do little road trips. I'm not the best road trip companion, at times, due to my blinding headaches and tendency to get car sick - but for some reason we still manage to have a good time and we continue to partake in them. Some highlights are the Iowa State Fair, Detroit Institute of Arts and the dog sled races in Marquette, Michigan. So now since we're in a new area, we figured we better get to traveling around these parts. I have some things in the works for places to visit in our little Iowan town, but first up is our recent trip to Minneapolis, Minnesota.
We left town around 11:00 am on a Friday morning, and with a few breaks we made it to our hotel (right downtown) around 3:30 pm. After checking in, admiring our beautiful street views and adding on a few layers we headed out to find a place to eat around 6:00 pm. We had tickets to the Twins - Royals game, which started at 7:05 pm. I figured it would be nuts downtown and it would be hard to find a place to eat. I was wrong. Minneapolis had clearly given up on October baseball and was not bustling with fans. We stopped into Hells Kitchen where I had some lemon ricotta pancakes with a locally brewed cider and Alan had a burger with peanut butter and bacon on it or something else crazy. After that we headed out to Target Field where we got free (!!) beanie's and got to see the beautiful skyline. I know, I'm talking about all this but I am not putting any pictures to back up my claims. Sorry about that. Then we went back to our hotel and crashed.
After a decadent night of sleep and an incredible breakfast, we headed out onto our adventures. First up, was Minnehaha Falls.
As you can see, they're awesome. It totally sneaks up on you, it would be so easy to not even realize that they are there. I absolutely love waterfalls, and A surprised me by taking me to see these ones. Absolutely amazing and I highly recommend.
After the falls, we drove over to Lake Calhoun to take in the views and relax by the water for awhile. In Iowa, there is not a lot of water and being from Michigan that can be an issue at times. So it was nice to just sit by the water and take in the peacefulness.
After the lake we went by Sebastian Joes for a quick pre-lunch dessert. I had strawberry basil sorbet and it was INCREDIBLE. Seriously. The flavor. Oh my. Then we headed out to the Mall of America. As we were walking in, I noticed there was an aquarium. I happen to love aquariums and paused to admire some sea life. A asked me if I wanted to go, and I immediately declined because it's rather expensive. He encouraged me to get go down to the ticket booth with him anyway, and I agreed - but was curious why. It turns out he had purchased tickets online for us because he knew I loved aquariums! Yay!
That starfish is just the cutest little thing. After the aquarium we wandered around the mall and shopped for a bit until I had a mini panic attack and we left. But not before admiring the large Peeps store.
I actually don't like Peeps, but I am an appreciator of all things candy. I think the MoA would have been something teenager Esther would have loved but adult Esther was overwhelmed and stressed out. I appreciate my little Iowan town more and more after trips like that. I did love Minneapolis though - there were people out everywhere on bikes, walking, jogging - it was awesome to see. I could definitely live in a city like that - and no, I'm not hinting at anything.
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