up the road, meaning north, was a stop in ames for lunch at the pizza ranch. it may be a chain, but its homeland is in iowa and that's really where most of them are located [ a couple here and there in south dakota ]. they offer a lunch buffet with multiple and rotating styles of pizza, a chicken wing/mashed potato/corn area, salad and soup bar, and a dessert center. quite a bit of food to choose from. next along the route was the carousel museum in story, iowa. however this lovely indoor carousel with ornate and majestic horses was closed...noooo! back in the car, back on the road,
and back in time with a stop at the surf ballroom, the last performance of buddy holly, near clear lake, iowa. this ballroom is still a concert hall and the hallways are lined with the many faces and autographs of the stars. hundreds and hundreds of them. from alan jackson to los lobos. hillary clinton [ probably not for vocal appearance ] to brett michaels. it's just a small raised wood stage with an open dancing floor, some tables around the floor area, and pineapple wallpaper on the walls. but enough with iowa already, let's
get to minnesota and wisconsin.
having not of taken a road trip with my sister in nine years [ the first one was in 2001 when i was 18 and she was 15 and we drove from kansas city to san luis obispo to move me west for college. she sleep most of the time and i was just trying to get there already ], this was the most pleasent surprise of getting along and sharing; being that we had never really had time as two adults to get past and learn from our childhoods together. and from the realization that you're meeting your sibling in a new place for the first time, i was completing the circle by meeting my brother for maybe the fifth time in my life...and it was wonderful. the whole weekend of the three of us was great. guess it's a little test of nature vs. nurture in action, because it didn't seem as though we had any problem finding ourselves with inside jokes, get alongs, and quirk exposures.
days filled with the pumpkin patch, animal petting zoo, and hay rides. corn hole in the garage and going out to dinner. and the older nephew was so smart, clever, and a gentleman. the little tike a smile fest when mom and dad are around, a bit fussy any other time. the weekend passed by quickly and i very much look forward for the return visit and getting to see everyone grow, but kristen and i's fun was not over...no, no, no, i was just about to being. we had a california friend to pick up and a chicago to see! with hugs and goodbyes, and mostly see you soons, we began our eight hour drive through wisconsin; cheeseland!
we didn't really take much time to do anything touristy on our drive, but we did search out the u.s.'s largest 'M' located in platteville, wisconsin. it is a concrete poured slab that measures 241 feet by 241 feet. we couldn't really figure out how to get very close to it, so we just positioned ourselves else where for the kill [ please also note the horse and buggie reserved parking spot... ]. we also found a restaurant in platteville named the pioneer. it wasn't until we got to the door and noticed the bowling pins etched into the glass that we also found ourselves at a bowling alley. alright, we can handle eating lunch at a bowling alley greasey counter. and i decided to eat out side the box: i order the montana burger. 1/3 lb of beef with a fried egg, ham slices, tomato, onion, cheese, and lettuce. we also got a side of cheese churds as an appetizer, all of which was pretty delicious, though my stomach did have a moment of pause while digesting.
the end of the day ended not so much as planned. we found ourselves in more traffic than planned, late to pick up anouk at the airport by an hour, so schedule re-configured to just meet at the hotel instead. at approximately and exactly 5:56pm on october 10th, 2010 we, the three of us laying our bags around the intercontinental hotel on michigan avenue, pushed the start button on our chicago adventure-land...and the start of the next entry too.
notable iowa:
1. lots of dvds for sale in their gas station convience stores.
2. 'H.E.L.P.' : highway emergency long distance phone
3. it's a state where every one waves to strangers :D
4. they not only have rest areas, they have 'modern rest areas'...whatever the difference is
5. bike parking full of bmx trickster bikes and scooters with orange flags
notable minnesota:
1. trees painted on their water towers
2. they have two off ramps splitting from just one highway exit. so it's an A and B situation from one lane, versus the difference of a quarter of a mile and two completely different exit ramps
notable wisconsin:
1. veterns memorial highway
2. double drive thrus, with one window on each side of the building
3. HO CHUNK ELDERS reserved parking at the gas station
4. instead of turn lanes on a two lane highway, they add an additonal outside passing lane for the traffic to pass by
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