Day 10: Chicagoland and the Road to Minneapolis

Well I'm on my second drink at Espresso Royale -- they discount you 50 cents on subsequent drinks, one more reason to love it -- the Catan game is starting to get a little more rowdy, and I'm still in the time machine relating the adventures of yesterday's journeys. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, it's because you haven't been checking this blog every minute and therefore missed the last one. Scroll down.

Whoosh!

Exiting the City of Chicago, we came through Cicero, Illinois. Cicero, as we discovered, is a land of scenic churches ...



Exotic businesses ...



And this place, which there are really no words to describe.



We were actually going through Cicero because it brought us to Oak Park, home of Frank Lloyd Wright, much of his work, and many of the architects who followed his style. We toured the neighborhood of Oak Park known for having many Wright-designed homes, including his home and studio, which looks a bit like a Prairie Style explosion, and is now a visitor center and gift shop.



Most of you would know that I've seen many architectural gawkers in my day, and probably know what my opinion of them are. But I have to say, I do understand the satisfied feeling that comes with the ability to treat other people's homes as public spectacles. Particularly when those homes cost multiple millions of dollars.



The houses were actually pretty interesting, even though they don't exactly fit with my taste. I was particularly interested in these two houses, built in 1892 and 1893. I'm imagining someone watching an early Frank Lloyd Wright house going up on a neighboring lot, and saying, "I like that -- could you make me one, but just a little bit bigger?"



We also of course saw the historic Frank Lloyd Wright utility van ...



And the historic Frank Lloyd Wright Mexican landscaping crew ...



The Frank Lloyd Wright-styled hot dog stand (yes, this is really there in the neighborhood, and it really is a hot dog restaurant) ...



And before we left, we used the historic Frank Lloyd Wright restrooms.



Finally we rolled out of Chicagoland, and I saw two things that were interesting to me for some reason. First there was the original pancake house, and I'd always wondered where that was ...



And marking our exit, we went by a Hooters, which is not so unusual except that I think it's the first Hooters we passed on our trip so far. At least it was the first one I noticed.



Eventually we made it to Wisconsin, the land of recreation, agriculture, and industry. The fun flew by so fast I could hardly get a photo of it.



We did discover that the "agriculture" part of the state was no joke.



We were just passing through, but decided we ought to make a quick stop to see Madison. After all, we realized that Madison was the first state capital on our route thus far. (To those of you who might argue, we did not both start in Boston, and Toronto is a provincial capital, which doesn't count.)



We really had no idea what to see in Madison in our brief time looping through in the car. However, Madison Public Radio told us, "Be your own search engine," and so that's what we did. We saw some businesses, some bike paths, and large pieces of university campus, but I think my favorite parts were the places that really worked to make themselves stand out, including Ella's Deli, billed as the first deli in Madison:



And the Octopus Car Wash:



And that's what I'll always remember about Madison. No, I'm just kidding, it was a great town, I'd love to go back, and I'm sure it would have been even better if we hadn't simply spent a half hour trying to get back to the interstate.

The remainder of the ride was pretty non-scenic, mostly because it was dark. We arrived at my associate's second cousin's house in the suburbs a little late, but she allowed us in anyway, for which we were most appreciative. She also gave us quite a bit of useful information about the Minnesota State Fair, which we just got back from ...

(Oh right, time machine -- whoosh, I guess.)

... which I will tell you all about the next time I post. There was just so much to see, so many interesting things to do, and such deadly, deadly food, that I'm sure I won't be able to do it justice now. So I'm signing off for now, but look forward to another double-header (at least) the next time you hear from me.