Minnesota
Wednesday was a travel day for us, so we caught a taxi to the Metra stop to downtown Chicago to catch Amtrak’s Empire Builder rail service to Minneapolis. We spent quite a bit of time in the lounge car with its large windows, watching the American landscape pass by. We arrived early, to our surprise, and found the ’89 Oldsmobile our relatives kindly lent us for our northerly trip. We hit a freakish blizzard for the first half of the trip, so we were glad to make it in around 1:30 a.m. Thursday was a light day with a dog walk and errands, ending with a sushi dinner.

We all got up early for mini dog sled races that began at 7 a.m. It was super cute with dogs under 20 lbs. pulling miniature sleds hopefully the twenty or so feet to the finish line. Afterwards, we had a light breakfast and took a walk along the chilly Lake Superior shore filled with broken up ice that made beautiful sounds as the waves moved them. DeWitt Seitz marketplace warmed us back up with some inside shopping, as well as some antique shops across the streets and the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory (caramel apple, yum!). Across the river, we had lunch with my uncle I haven’t seen in at least five years, then we called it a day to prepare for an evening bonfire. Herr provided some homemade gluewein that went over well.

Saturday was a big day. My aunt came up from Minneapolis and joined us for the Cutest Puppy Contest. The venue was quite crowded, however, so we didn’t stay too long. An Alaskan Malamut won (she was very adorable and fluffy), although I voted for a Great Dane puppy (the size of those paws… so cute!). The weather was conducive to a sleigh ride (unlike our wedding), so 16 of us piled on a sleigh way out in the boonies and had fun pushing each other off for near an hour. Pretty exhausting, but it’s all fun. We had a good mix of food and roasted s’mores around a bonfire per tradition.

The Beargrease races started on Sunday, but we were pretty worn out from all those activities and chose to instead go for snowmobile runs. Herr and my father took the sleds out to the Buffalo House, and my mom and I met up with them. It was a good day for it, and Herr hadn’t had a real chance to go sledding before. He seemed to enjoy it well enough!

We had to get ready to head up farther north though, so we packed up and drove to Larsmont Cottages on the North Shore Monday afternoon. We took it easy and swam a bit indoors before heading for the outdoor hot tub. Woo! Nothing like sitting in hot water with below freezing conditions to feel like you’re really in Minnesota.

Tuesday started off well with a lazy morning and a scenic walk on the waterfront outside the cottage. The resort provided complementary snowshoes, which we used around Gooseberry Falls. We stopped at Bettys’ Pies for a quick bite before joining my parent for a yummy meal at the New Scenic Cafe. When we were leaving, I noticed just how bright the stars were so far out of the city. What a sight!

On Wednesday we celebrated our fourth anniversary by nordic skiing, swimming, taking an hour-long professional massage, and then eating at the Rock Edge Grille located at the resort. I did okay for my first time cross country skiing, but as a beginner, I really do not like turns going down hills. The massages were some of the best we had; I’m sure they helped us recover from our outdoor activities.

It was sad to pack up and head back down. The staff at Larsmont are all friendly, and I was getting used to a whirlpool tub. Alas, we stopped in Duluth to have lunch with my grandma and have a chat with my other grandma before hitting the road for Minneapolis. We stayed with my aunt who then kindly brought us to the airport the next morning for an uneventful flight back to Germany.

On Wednesday we departed Germany for the States. We took a wide array of transportation: tram, train, bus, plane, then taxi. After arriving at the Frankfurt airport, we learned our flight was cancelled due to a cabin crew strike. We were to connect in Dublin, so the employees rerouted us on a nonstop flight that arrived in New York four hours early. When we went to the new check-in desk, the employee gave us business class seats before realizing the other airline’s code for economy was their code for business class. She tore up the tickets and printed us standard economy but was kind enough to give us all three seats in the middle row. So close to an upgrade but can’t complain.

New York and Chicago
We stayed at the Wellington just two blocks south of Central Park and were given a top floor (27th) room with kitchen and balcony on the roof. We were far above the steady thrum of life on the streets below and had bright yellow sunlight streaming in the large windows in the morning. That evening we visited the New York Public Library and Central Station, having our five or sixth meal (we ultimately stayed up about 23 hours that “day”) at the Oyster Bar. A few blocks away we stopped by Birdland for dessert and live free-form jazz by Dave Murray and his big band.

After walking around Central Park and back down Madison Avenue in the morning, we caught a cab to Penn Station for our Lakeshore Limited overnight train trip. New York to Chicago is a 19-hour trip, so we went all out for a first class sleeper room with private bath (meals included in the dining car). We only arrived an hour late, possibly due to snow on the tracks. From the station, we crossed to catch a Metra (the local train) out to the suburbs. Other members of the family arrived later, and we all went out to eat at a good restaurant with live music (a tad too loud for us to talk).

On Saturday we celebrated two birthdays. Herr’s niece just turned two and his grandfather 84. We had a large family gathering with entertainment from the little one banging on her new toys. Everyone was heading back to their homes by Sunday afternoon, leaving the four of us to take in a play at the Steppenwolf Theatre called Sex with Strangers. It was a literary play that everyone seemed to enjoy, with a hibachi (Japanese) meal to follow.

Herr’s mother had to work the rest of the time we were visiting, so his father chauffeured us around Chicago to see the Shedd Aquarium (I think the amount of time spent photographing fish tested his patience), and then we stopped by the Field Museum to check out the new Gold exhibit. I want a gold-leaf room now… We visited the Egypt exhibit as well before hopping back in the car to make some paella.

The next day we returned to downtown Chicago to investigate the Art Institute of Chicago. The museums offered free days on Monday and Tuesday so we were able to take advantage of this deal and see some pretty amazing exhibits. We started in the Thorne rooms, known for its miniature models of interior design over the centuries. Needless to say I acquired a few ideas of my own.

After seeing all the miniature architecture, I suggested we go to the architecture exhibit. It’s contents were primarily conceptual. I found several of these thought provoking, especially an augmented (hyper) reality presentation. After a brief lunch in the new wing, we made a short stop in the modern art section. I believe Herr’s father is glad we left as we both were making several somewhat insulting comments about splotches as art (some days I am just not that interpretive…).

Overall the Institute had some fabulous artwork including Saurat’s stippling masterpiece, several Georgia O’Keefe pieces (I really like her technique but could do without the sexual undertones – or overtones in most cases), Edward Hopper, and a couple Monet, Picassos, a Carravaggio… well, they have some good art. I had determined that morning that I did not have enough outfits to make the trip comfortable, so we walked to Macy’s department store and picked up two in maybe 40 minutes? It was a very quick trip for me. We joined up with Herr’s mother for dinner at Noodles and Co. and watched the State of the Union Address.

Friday turned out nice and sunny. Our first stop was Se Cathedral. It resides atop a hill, so we climbed a few stairs and checked it out. The church itself was standard. One real difference we saw in the churches in Portugal is their use of tiling in white with blue (think porcelain). It is often found on the exterior walls of the buildings. Se also had them in the monastery, which Herr and I paid to go see. Unlike several churches, this one was still quiet. November isn’t high tourist time.

We took another set of stairs down from the cathedral towards the river. This took us through narrow pedestrian streets with high residential buildings. One detail about the city stands out; they were hit hard in the past and much of the city is derelict. We would pass buildings completely boarded up in what seemed a decent area of town. You couldn’t walk down a street without seeing at least one building like this.

Despite the appearance of poverty, everyone was very friendly. We came out of the maze of back pathways onto the riverfront under the Dom Luis bridge. We ordered ice cream (great after breakfast snack, and very tasty), and I purchased a fuzzy cute hat to keep my ears warm (the chilly breeze was a bit unrelenting).

Afterwards, we walked back up to a gothic church that did not allow photography. At first we were put off by this, but when the crypt visit included the church cost, we changed our mind. It was worth it. I wish I could have taken photos! It was painted gold and had so much intricate woodwork it would take a day just to really look at the main cloister. I had the strong urge to sneak a photo (how many bozos with camera phones do that for a crappy photo that doesn’t do the architecture justice??), just like at Rosslyn Chapel, but alas, I cannot break stupid rules. *sigh* (Just FYI, I understand they want to make money from the postcards for support, but it still stinks.) The crypt was small; it was weird walking over, well, people. One could only really see the catacombs through a windowed hole in the floor.

After seeing a bunch of dead people, we went for lunch at a bistro (plenty of those) under the church, then caught a historic trolley that runs along the river to the ocean. When we disembarked, it felt slightly warmer (ahh, ocean effect ). This area is much more posh. We walked through a large garden and checked out an old fortress (only us, it felt weird), then we proceeded to the beach. Herr and Yin went to check the breakwaters while JJ and I went to the waterfront. We both put limbs in the Atlantic Ocean and took many pictures before we started walking north. This area was my favorite; I’d go back just to spend more time along this stretch.

We made it to the northern point of the waterfront walk to see another fortress, but it had just closed. Honestly, we all felt we didn’t miss too much. In the same area was an expired international port building with only the main structure still standing. Oddly, with all the broken buildings, they didn’t feel… scummy? Used? Forbidden? In any case, the sun was beginning to set, so we caught a bus back to the main plaza. We had eaten at the only restaurants we really found, so Yin and JJ decided to go to Imperial McDonalds. *sigh* I do not like fast food, but at least European fast food still tastes like food. I had four chicken nuggets, which actually have chicken in them (it is worth checking out if you eat fast food).

Herr went for a stroll afterwards to get some tram footage over the lit-up Dom Luis bridge. I was too cold, so I missed the phenomenal lights. We left with a comfortable amount of time back to the airport Saturday morning. Overall, people and service is fantastic. Food only so-so. I definitely want to go back to see Lisboa and Sintra, and a beach farther south was also recommended to me. Lovely!

For Thanksgiving, we took a two-day trip to Porto. The city sits along the northern coast of Portugal with temperatures reaching the mid-50s for the end of November. A river also runs through it, and as we found out, it is a very hilly city.

Because we flew RyanAir, which leaves from an airport nowhere near a train-line, we stayed with one of our friends who lives closer, has a car and joined us for the trip. We arrived at the airport with plenty of time but ran into an unruly middle-aged woman who felt we should be privileged she cut in front of us with her entire family because it was Thanksgiving… rrrr… I’m sorry, but Americans are the worst travelers with super high anxieties.

Anyhow, Porto was a lovely city. The weather report predicted rain, but all we got were some strong chilly winds. Our hotel was just off the main plaza, and the city was small enough that we could walk to most places. Because it was Thanksgiving (even for us, Crazy Lady), we walked over to the shopping district to enjoy a lunch at the Majestic Cafe. The architecture was nice and service fantastic, but the food was only so-so. As Porto is on the ocean, most of the food served is seafood. That was primarily a problem for our one friend who does not eat seafood.

Afterwards, we wandered over to Clerigos Tower, part of a church, and got some great views of the city. By this point, it was getting chilly and dark, so we went back to the hotel to warm up and pick a place for dinner. We just wandered the streets some more until we found an actual restaurant (Portugal does not seem keen on restaurants; they are quite sparse). Again, we received fantastic service (and at one point had four people serving us), and the food was okay. It was a good restaurant for Thanksgiving dinner; no one left hungry.