Exploring the Pretty City

My friend Casey and I decided to do some photo adventuring for Ari's blog, so we went into Minneapolis with a goal of exploring the city on $20 or less. It's amazing how much you can see for so little.

We took the light rail into the city and stopped at the Guthrie, because neither of us had been there before. We spoke to a friendly receptionist and made our way to the 9th floor for some spectacular views of Minneapolis. This observation area is open until midnight almost every day. I would love to go back at night!

From there we went to the Mill City Museum and the Stone Arch Bridge for some more awesome views, here are a few pictures:

We had every intention of stumbling across a great and inexpensive cafe for lunch, but soon after we left the bridge our stomachs started talking to us and quickly we became desperate to fill our stomachs with anything... We stopped off and got some mall food and continued our walk. Nicollet mall was pretty slow and it began to get cold out so we hopped back on the lightrail and started heading south. Our last stop was Minehaha falls. Casey got most of the good pictures from the afternoon and we hope to make an album of them soon so that you can see more of what we did. All in all, it was a fun day of exploring our awesome city!

Spanish and Fiestas

So I did not get the chance to attend Prof’s show on Friday night as I was hoping too, however I did have a very awesome, but overwhelming, night. My cousin, Bea, is from Spain and is currently living here in St. Paul working at Adam’s school. Adam’s is an immersion school and her role is to teach the students all in Spanish. There are several student teachers in this school from all over the world and Bea threw her first international party since being in the US. (She’s been here since the end of Aug – It’s about time!) This party included amazing food that everyone brought representing their own countries! We had people from Spain, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Argentina and the US in the house on Friday night and lots of amazing food! The night was filled with loud music and loud voices, all in Spanish of course! I felt like I was right at home, back in Spain with my family, surrounded by so much yelling in Spanish that my brain felt like mush by the end of the night. Here’s a pic of some of the amazing new friends I had the chance to meet on Friday. (My cousin is to my right.)

We finished the night off in the traditional American way of going out to a bar. We went to The Wild Onion in St. Paul. This trip there was actually the 1^st time I’ve ever been there, and sure enough, we ran into tons of people I went to high school with! St. Paul sure feels like a small town sometimes! Overall the evening was a ton of fun and I would definitely recommend checking out The Wild Onion if you’re looking for a bar with a dance floor, a good DJ and a great vibe!

Oxfam International

My good friend Megan is taking an event planning course at Stout, and their final banquet is this afternoon. I think her class chose a great cause for their final project... they are putting on a fundraiser for Oxfam International, which is an agency that provides relief to those that are dealing with food insecurity throughout the world. Many of them have less than a dollar a day to live on, and are very malnourished because of it. The goal set by the class is to raise $1,500 which is enough money to build a school in an impoverished nation (it's crazy how such a small amount of money can go so far).

This week we had presenters in almost all of my classes that explained Oxfam's purpose. They showed a few tear-jerking videos that finally convinced me to donate. (I can sacrifice one drink at the bar this weekend in order to feed a starving child in a poor nation)

As far as I know, her class has not yet reached their goal, but there are still a few hours left for those who are apt to procrastinate!

Here's the poster:

If you would like to donate a small amount to Oxfam International, please click here. Every little bit helps! It's amazing how far they can stretch your dollar.

Pedal to the Metal ... the breaks that is

I was driving tonight close to the Uptown area, specifically at the Lyn-Lake exchange when I quick pulled over and jumped out of my car to snap this picture. I had to park illegally and dodge the super sketchy guy standing on the corner asking for cigarettes (I’ve been smoke-free for a year and a half), then climb a snow bank to get a decent shot, but it was worth it! Honestly, how could a giant picture of Prof’s face starring you down not make you want to take a closer look?? So I have a confession, listening to Prof is totally a guilty pleasure of mine! I was actually driving back from La Crosse, WI late last night and I stopped at a gas station and had a 5 minute discussion about Prof’s music with the guy working behind the counter because he was listening to Prof from his phone! Prof is all over the map currently with The Lookout Tour and I am very glad I saw this poster and didn’t miss his Minneapolis show! It’s been way too long since I’ve been to one! I’ve got a few things already on the schedule for Friday night, including an international fiesta my cousin is hosting where I’ll be forced to speak Spanish all night (¡oh my gatos!) … but my plans may have just changed (after the international food anyway! Yum!). Not only is Prof performing what I can only imagine to be an incredible, high energy, wild show, but it’s at a great venue as well, The Fine Line Music Café. If you haven’t had the chance to see Prof live or even get into The Fine Line, I would highly recommend it!

Prof is very intense but super goofy in his music. This poster depicts Prof perfectly. More to come on this if I make it out to the show! (crossing my fingers!)