vikings/Packers in Minneapolis

We woke up Saturday morning, no worse for wear and we were ready to head out for Minneapolis to meet with Doug and Michelle, our rivals for the Sunday battle at the dome. After a filling breakfast at the hotel, we were off and running. This Court Yard served the best breakfast that we have had in these types of hotels. The trip to Minneapolis took us north to Eu Claire, where we would cross the border into Minnesota. We knew it would take us about three hours and that we really did not need to be there before noon. The trip up interstate 94 was very scenic and pretty quick. Traffic moved along and the left lane was pretty much left for passing cars, unlike what we had seen on the way up from Indianapolis, where the left lane was used by the slowest drivers allowed on interstates so that the faster drivers could pass on the right. About 60 miles north of Madison we started hitting rain and it rained on us all the way to Bloomington. This rain was to haunt us for the rest of the driving part of our trip. It was a strange rain. It was the kind of rain that made you have to use the windshield wipers like a skilled craftsman. It would not rain consistently enough to let the wipers run, it would slow up just enough to have to keep adjusting the tempo. When we would get the right tempo, it would pour and then we have to start over. It went on like this for most of the drive. Fortunately, it was less than the 250 miles that it takes for Herm to lose it, so there were no instances on this leg that required mending time. It was during this leg that Luann came up with the idea to start the blog. We found it a little difficult to blog and drive at the same time, but we pulled it off.



We arrived at the Marriott Court Yard in Bloomington Minnesota before 1:00 pm and it was one of those rare times when the navigator and pilot pulled it off without a fist fight. High fives were shared by both of us and we checked in, happily putting the car away for a couple of days. We patiently waited for Doug and Michelle who were coming in from the other direction, Johnston Iowa. They showed up a little after us and after our hellos and hugs, it was time to get down to business. We had to show them our Packer clothes and hoped they would not be too jealous of us. As luck would have it, they were pretty good at accepting their fate as viking fans and hid their emotions pretty well. I could see it in their eyes that they wished they were us for that short moment in time. Doug had been astute enough to make reservations for that evening at the Mall of America for dinner. Usually when the word mall comes up, it is not a good omen. It is synonymous with BORING, crowds, frivolous spending and just a waste of time. However, we were not with ordinary people. We were with Doug and Michelle. Though they are much younger than us, they are two of the most fun people you could spend time with. They like their beer and their wine and can converse about any topic under the sun, so I knew I was safe. No shopping today! Since Doug and Michelle have spent a lot more time here than we have, they knew where to go to watch some college football and have some appetizers and a beer before our dinner reservations. We had appetizers and beer at the Stadium Club Sports bar located on the upper level of the mall. The beer was good (Summit) and the appetizers were normal for that kind of an environment. The only issue we had with this place was that they ran out of glasses for our beer. We can handle beer out of plastic at things like wedding receptions, company Christmas dinners and keg parties. However, a person should never have to drink from a plastic container at any restaurant. Fortunately for us, we had gotten glasses before they ran out so we had them, then all we had to do was transfer the beer from the plastic cup to the glass. We got a big surprise when we found out the plastic cups contained more beer than the glass we got originally. We were hoping they had plastic pitchers, but they didn't. We wanted to rate this place, but the fact is, we couldn't determine how to factor in the beer and the plastic cups. A good time was had by all, so we think this bar is worth going to. We finished at the sports bar and went to dinner. We had a nice dinner at the Napa Valley Grill. The food here was very good, a 3 coconut. Their martinis were very good and they had a nice selection from the wine list. The service was good and for the most part, very fast. We were not in the restaurant very long and finished dinner well ahead of the time the mall closes. We went back to the hotel to get ready for the next day, which was game day. Overall, it was an early night, but it had been a long and filling day. Life doesn't get much better than that.



Morning came sooner than expected, but that was ok. It was game day, we had tickets and we had new Packer clothes. How cool was this? Breakfast was as delicious as always at this location and after some chit chat, it was off to the dome. The nice thing about staying at the Marriott Court Yard in Bloomington is the convenience of catching the shuttle (train) that takes you to the stadium. It was apparent from the time we got to the shuttle that this was no ordinary NFL game. There were more people in Packer garb than we had ever seen. A quick census on my part showed that in our particular car, the Packer crowd out numbered the viking group by a 2 to 1 ratio. I felt sorry for Doug and Michelle but there was nothing they could do about it. It took us approximately 30-35 minutes to get to the dome, but the ride was fun. Packed like sardines and listening to the barbs thrown by two competing sets of fans was pretty entertaining.



The most important things required by a good football fan are these: Good seats, concession stand close, bathrooms close and your team winning. We were good football fans that day thanks to the seats Doug and Michelle had for us. We sat in the corner of the end zone, high enough to see every play develop and yet close enough to be able to help officiate the game. It was great. We were able to see Brett Favre break Dan Marino's touch down pass record and saw the Pack beat the vikings 16-13. If we thought life was great the night before, this was even better. Unfortunately, the game ended and we had to go home. In the middle of a terrific downpour ( our Packer wear protected us), we boarded the shuttle and headed for our cars and the long five hour drive home. We drove home on that Sunday afternoon in a constant barrage of rain, lightning and wind and pulled in our driveway exactly five hours later. To our dismay, our nicest tree was missing a quarter of its limbs thanks to a bolt of lightning. I am now wondering if someone at a higher level is a Viking fan as well.