It was a late night. Nathaniel and Kate were enjoying sleeping late on a Saturday morning.
How weird. A day off. A weekend off. Holy Crow. A normal schedule. I’m not sure I will be able to handle a 40 hour work week when the ride is over….
It’s gonna have to be a good job after all the things I’ve proven to myself that I can do.
Beans. We needed coffee! What better way to wake up than smelling strong, delicious java. Have I told you yet how cool Nathaniel and Kate are? I’m so thankful that Nathaniel contacted me in April.
We had plans to meet some Lora and her husband at Scooterville, to ride around town when she was done with work. I get to see a lot of things tourists don’t. I’ve got access to all parts of the city, not just the major tourist spots. Although, Minneapolis seems pretty accessible, by light rail.
In fact, they also encourage biking with The Green Trail, which is a converted train thorough fare that runs the main artery of town. There are a lot of cool spaces in the city. Like two major lakes, city center. On any given day people are rollerblading, biking, running, walking, swimming or wind surfing. I suspect having an outdoor recreational space smack dab in the city promotes a direct appreciation of green spaces and the awareness to conserve them.
The Grand Rounds are parkways that circle the Lakes. The speed is set just right for gazing at all the fancy homes. None of them were overtly pretentious. Just beautiful, old stone work. Our plan was to ride the rounds. As soon as we got to the shop the clouds let out some heavy rains. We all hung out until it cleared and decided to first visit the Guthrie.
It is located in the Mill City historic area which reminds me a lot of downtown historic Richmond, VA, where I grew up. We too are a port city and had a lot of industry moving in and out. The Guthrie however, is a majestic modern theater that somehow, doesn’t seem out of place next to its dilapidated mill neighbors.
It is the antithesis of commercial Broadway. You can go in wearing jeans of tuxedos. You can roll in with a pack of your scooterists friends and goof off on the different levels or you can take a date to dinner and a performance. But that will cost you. Looking about and goofing off is free.
There is a wonderful observation deck to view the city skyline, the bridge being repaired and the Mississippi River. Interesting that just two months ago, I sat by the Mississippi while in New Orleans. Completely different atmosphere, one river.
The museum design makes great use of angles and lighting. The third floor is yellow and made me feel pleasantly lightheaded.
                    There are some really great pictures on my flickr, check em out.
From the observation deck we spotted a Segway tourist group. This is now all the rage, touring cities on Segway. Ya know, one guy rode cross country on a Segway and made a movie about it, 10mph, which won an award. I’ve seen it, it’s good. As we left the building they rode past and we followed them for a bit. They asked if we were Hells Angels.
It’s fun riding in a pack. People always look so happy to see a pack of scooters. I feel like we are a parade. A Genuine parade that is, with almost every model in their line up present. 
After frolicking around dinner was to be had. Conversation flowed well. These Minnesotans are really giving Southern Hospitality a run for the reputation. Nathaniel and Stephen geeked out a little, but I enjoyed it.
They were talking inventions and I’m encouraging Stephen to build one in particular. I don’t want to spoil the prototype, but I will tell you that this particular video came up. Check it out below.
We split out after dinner and went back to the house to lounge around. Good day!