Minnesota and Wisconsin November 2018:
Day 3 - Onalaska


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Minnesota and Wisconsin November 2018: [Day 1 - St. Paul] [Day 2 - St. Paul] [Day 3 - Onalaska] [Day 4 - La Crosse]

Saturday, November 3, 2018: We were back at the hospital in time for the visit from the Medtronic tech, who checked out Bob's pacemaker using the blue device shown here on Bob's shoulder.
Around 11:00, we said our goodbyes and headed out.
We made a quick stop at Trader Joe's in St. Paul.
It was the first time we've visited one with an underground parking lot.
As we approached St. Clair Avenue on Snelling, we were surprised to see an entire city block removed, including an old dry cleaners and a florist.
The St. Clair Broiler location had been stripped down even further since closing the previous year, but it was still slightly recognizable.
We drove past Macalester College but didn't stop since we had spent plenty of time here five months earlier.
We stopped at White's Ace Hardware (dubbed "Jean's Hardware Store"). We didn't see Jean, ...
... but we did get more of the great deals we had found on our previous visit. This time, Tom got two pairs of $3.99 sunglasses, and Debbie bought a stack of clearance personalized pencils for the next Schilling Reunion.
North of Macalester on Snelling, O'Gara's was also being torn down.
Meanwhile, the Allianz Field was getting closer to completion. It had been more of a shell five months earlier.
We passed downtown St. Paul one last time ...
... then headed north past Little Canada, ...
... to Birch Lake Square in White Bear Lake, ...
... home of Carbone's Pizzeria.
It has a similar name and similar menu as Carbone's on Randolph, but they split long ago and are now separate companies.
Debbie's cousins Melissa and Laura met us there, ...
... along with three of their four adorable kids, who took advantage of the arcade next to our tables.
Fortunately, the Carbone's Special is almost as delicious at the alternate Carbone's locations.
After lunch, we headed south this time, passing downtown St. Paul for the final time.
Debbie's Aunt Mary had passed on a folder of family memorabilia for Debbie to process, so she paged through it as we drove.
South of the Twin Cities, we passed a train yard, ...
... then we crossed the Mississippi River ...
... at Prescott, Wisconsin.
It was going to be more scenic and a little faster to travel the Wisconsin side of the river for a short distance.
We raced a train at Diamond Bluff, ...
... but eventually pulled ahead.
We crossed over the Mississippi River, passing a bar with the best name ever: Mr. Sippi.
There's Red Wing on the Minnesota side of the river.
We looked for a Welcome to Minnesota sign but didn't find one. Odd.
Here's the Minnesota Correctional Facility at Red Wing.
As we got near Lake City, we spotted Kelly for Sheriff signs. Yes, our four-year-old granddaughter would make a great sheriff of these parts.
There's Lake Pepin, which is really just a wide part of the Mississippi River, but for some reason, we all pretend that it is a lake.
It is that pretend lake that gives Lake City its name.
Lake City is home to the Lake City Dairy Queen, a Schilling family favorite since the 1970s.
It lies roughly halfway between the Twin Cities and Grandma Schilling's house, so it was a favorite stop along the way.
We came for the ice cream, but beautiful views of the lake are a nice bonus.
Here's some information about Lake Pepin. History blah blah blah.
We passed a Sinclair station in Winona and were rewarded with a glimpse of one of their iconic green dinosaur statues.
This wooden model beckoned motorists to consider a La Crosse Queen riverboat cruise on the Mississippi.
On the other side of the road, Minnesota was welcoming new visitors ...
... as we left Minnesota to cross back over to the Wisconsin side.
We had a room booked at the Comfort Inn, but before checking in, ...
... we had to make a stop at Woodman's.
The liquor department was huge. Here's part of the view, ...
... and the rest of it.
We built ourselves a six-pack of local beer, ...
... plus stocked up on packages of Laura's Lefse and a selection of Racine Kringles in convenient rectangular containers.
We got checked into our room just moments before meeting up with Debbie's cousin Heather.
Heather and Ron met us in the parking lot, where we passed on this cherished family heirloom and many other boxes of baby things, as their granddaughter would be arriving a month later.
At Debbie's request, we went to Coney Island for dinner. The downtown location is where Debbie's family used to go after family gatherings in the 1970s, but it closes early so this was the next best option.
Oh, yeah, all the chili dogs and fries you can eat!
We had a great time eating and chatting at the mall, before heading back to our hotel room.
We enjoyed a couple of beers from the Wisconsin six-pack we picked up earlier.
We also sampled the RockFilter bourbon we bought in St. Paul. Then there was much talking and laughing before calling it a night.

Day 4 >


Minnesota and Wisconsin November 2018: [Day 1 - St. Paul] [Day 2 - St. Paul] [Day 3 - Onalaska] [Day 4 - La Crosse]

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