The End of Minneapolis

Minneapolis came and went, but before we drown ourselves in Tex Mex and finish out the year we want to give it an appropriate send off.

Minneapolis Report Card

Minneapolis was completely unplanned, but turned out to be a really solid experience. We arrived at the end of August when it was still hot and humid and swarming with mosquitoes and left at the end of October when the leaves had mostly fallen from the trees and there was more than a slight chill in the air. Having an actual season change was very welcome and it was even nicer knowing we wouldn’t be sticking around when the temperatures dropped below zero.

We were pleasantly surprised with the food options; coming to the midwest we didn’t have high expectations but we were blown away with the abundance of different food options and happily ate our fair share of food. A favorite of ours was Lotus, which happened to be right across the street from our apartment, but we also enjoyed the Brewer’s Table at Surly and World Street Kitchen (get the Korean rice bowl and thank us later) to name a few. We didn’t partake in as many breweries as we would’ve liked, but Fulton, Dangerous Man, and Sisyphus all had excellent brews – though we’d advise skipping Lakes and Legends unless you’re really into Belgians, which we are not. And if you find yourself in Menomonie, WI Lucette Brewing is worth a stop for some pies and pints.

Food and beer aside, Minneapolis had some top-notch parks which were incredibly accessible. We were able to walk all over the city to the Mississippi River and along the chain of lakes, and we were never further than 1/2 mile of a park. Being around so many natural lakes was so different than any other part of the country and, although she’s hardly a water dog, Snickers loved splashing along the banks and chasing all the migrating geese. We loved not having to drive much, especially coming from Denver where we were always in the car. The biggest drawback for us was having to adjust our expectations in regards to hiking. We sure did miss the mountains.

Would we go back? Probably not unless we were visiting friends/family – it’s just not a “vacation” city. Would we live there? Nope! While we thoroughly enjoyed our time there, we just wouldn’t be able to stomach the winters.