The Great Escape: from CT to MN to WI

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My dad and I drove up to Bradley International Airport near Hartford and stumbled on a replica of the Mark Twain House.

We had the conundrum of do we eat before or after the security checkpoint. We opted for before and learned it can take 20 minutes to make a sandwich. Bad call on our part.

Dad found a really short security line down a separate hallway in the airport. Only 3 people in front of us. Should have known better. Turned out to be the new body scan checkpoint. Fast, but incredibly creepy.

Our Delta flight was delayed a few times. Not fun.

When it arrive, it was barely 17 rows of seats.

I felt like Chris Farley in Tommy Boy. No matter what I did I smacked some part of me into some part of the plane.

The plane looked like they pulled it our of a junk yard for one last flight.

We arrived in Minneapolis and  took the tram to our rental car. We got a nice Jeep Grand Cherokee. Dad was pleased.

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I navigated us to the hotel with my iPhone.

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The Radisson Plaza Hotel Minneapolis was a traveler’s oasis.

 

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A solid 4 star hotel. I used Hotwire and check in was a breeze.

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We dined at Firelake.  This is my beer battered rock shrimp appetizer. It was AMAZING.

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We have never had popovers like these with honey butter. Almost a dessert in themselves.

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My entree was hunter crusted elk loin filet. That’s sweet potato spaetzle and chard with a lingonberry compote. It was a delight for my taste buds.

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The meal ended with a tartly tantalizing peach rhubarb cobbler.

Then we walked around the hotel area and took in all the shops and went to bed.

 

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We rose early and breakfasted at the Firelake again.

Then we checked out and started our road trip through Minnesota on 35 to 70 into WI.

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This was a lake near Siren, WI.

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We stopped at a unique gift store in Stone Lake.

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Hours later, we arrived in Park Fall, WI. One town south of Butternut. At the charming B&B Munro Manor. I loved all the accents and touches throughout the house!

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This was my beautiful room. I picked it because the vineyards on the wall reminded me of Italy and Napa. And I prefer blue to yellow (Dad’s room).

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And I fell in love with the sink. I have a weakness for bowl sinks and marbled coloring.

 

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After we got all settled into our luxurious accommodations, we headed out to the Northern Pines Resort for dinner. I had the breaded scallops.

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The restaurant’s interior was  newly renovated and the wood still gleamed.

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Northern Pines is right on Butternut Lake. I had to walk gingerly on a shaky jetty to get this shot. I almost tumbled into the water. It was worth it.

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On the ride back to town, we saw not 1 but 3 deer hanging out in someone’s front yard.

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We popped into Super One Foods for water and yogurt. No sign of Mickey or Oliver.

Then we called it a night.

 

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