Cheeeeeeeeese...and Chicago!

So before sharing our day in Milwaukee, I'm going to share a picture from our morning drive on Friday on the way to Chicago. Can you take a guess what it might be?

If you guessed something to do with cheese, you're right! Who goes to Wisconsin and doesn't get some cheese? Come on now! They aren't called cheese heads for nothing!

Mars Cheese Castle in Kenosha, WI

We picked up some 4 year old cheddar, a cheddar and jack mix and mozzarella string cheese. It was pretty darn good.

Anyway, back to Milwaukee.

On Thursday morning, we drove another 5 hours on I-90 to Milwaukee for the 1:10 PM Brewers-Padres game.

The game turned out to be a pretty exciting one with the Brewers losing 10-8 and because the game had a lot of offense, we were even able to see the Brewers famous mascot, Bernie Brewer, slide down on a home run!

Bernie Brewer sliding down on a HR

But the best part of the afternoon was my picture with the sausages from the famous sausage race!

The sausages from the famous sausage race

If you're a baseball fan, you might remember Randall Simon taking a bat and knocking one of the sausages out during a race. Well, it was during this race that he did it!

The famous Miller Park sausage race

As you can probably tell, we had unbelievable seats for the game. Clearly, the one nice thing about going to a game in a small market with a team that's doing terrible is you can score $30 seats right behind home.

The field at Miller Park

They did a nice job on the park. It has a retractable roof, which is a pretty impressive site (you can see pieces of it in the top left corner of the above picture and some of it on the below picture) and the fan experience is positive despite the team being terrible. We couldn't believe it, but there were close to 35,000 people there for a Thursday afternoon game!

Outside of the stadium, there are statues honoring Hank Aaron (played for the Milwaukee Braves and Brewers), Robin Yount (Hall of Famer), Bob Uecker (Hall of Fame radio announcer and ex-Brewer) and Bud Selig (ex-owner of the Brewers and now MLB Commissioner), which was definitely a nice touch.

Outside of Miller Park

After the game, we headed to the Harley Davidson Museum for the rest of the afternoon and evening. The museum was very enjoyable and we're glad we went despite not knowing anything about Harleys or bikes in general.

The collection of unrestored bikes, paraphernalia and other things that were showcased was extremely impressive. We spent about 2 hours at the museum and barely got through both floors. The explanations on the bikes, how Harleys are different from other motorcycles and how the company started and has changed through the years was extensive adding a great deal to our specific experience. If you ever make a trip to Milwaukee, we'd highly recommend checking it out.

Here are some pictures from it:

Serial Number One - The Oldest Harley in the world

Explanation on Serial Number One

The "EL", introduced in 1936, set new standards in the motorcycle industry

Promotional poster about the Sheepshead Bay Classic (early 1900s)

The most memorable pictures we took though were probably at the very end of our self-guided tour of the museum when we were able to touch and get on some of the Harleys...

Heather on a Harley

Brian on a Harley

After the adrenaline rush we got from sitting on the Harleys, reality struck when we were greeted by Bike Night, an event that occurs every Thursday outside of the museum where the real bikers show off their bikes. There were tons of bikes, which was really cool to see.

Bike Night at the Harley Davidson Museum

On Friday, as you already know, we started our day with a stop at Mars' Cheese Castle in Kenosha, Wisconsin. When we got to Chicago at about 2 PM on Friday afternoon, I drove around for about an hour looking for a reasonably priced parking garage for the rental car and then we closed out an otherwise uneventful day spending a great evening with our friends Zach and Taina at Lou Malnati's for some deep dish pizza (unfortunately, I forgot to take pictures!).

Since Heather and I have been to Chicago recently and saw all of the major attractions, we decided to check out the Lincoln Park Zoo (which is free by the way).

I got some pretty cool close-up shots of the animals, but our favorite is probably the meerkats who decided to pose for everyone taking pictures of them.

Meerkat posing for pictures

Rhino

Polar bear playing with his ball

Tiger having some dinner

From the Lincoln Park Zoo, Heather and I headed over to US Cellular Field to meet up with our friend Zach for the White Sox vs. Royals game at 6 PM.

Now as far as baseball parks on this trip go, US Cellular was definitely the least exciting and impressive. The park itself wasn't terrible, but there just was nothing special or unique about it...although it doesn't help when the team sucks.

The good news is that we got to see a great pitching duel with the White Sox ace Chris Sale pitching a complete game (but losing 1-0) and some really nice fireworks.

Outside the front gate of US Cellular

From our upper deck seats at US Cellular

Fireworks after the game

Now on Sunday afternoon, we did something completely impromptu all thanks to Zach. Since Heather and I have been to Chicago recently, our original plan was to spend a couple of days, have brunch or dinner with Zach and Taina, see a ballgame and head out. But Zach asks me a few days before we arrive whether we want to goto the Gold Cup Final soccer game at Soldier Field with him on Sunday at 3 PM. At that point, the US was in the semi-finals, but either way, how could I turn it down?

Suffice to say, Heather wasn't all that thrilled with going to a baseball AND soccer game, but considering she came along on this trip, what's another sporting event, right? So we went.

Outside of Soldier Field

Before the Gold Cup Final

During the National Anthems

Despite the trek getting over to Soldier Field and the ridiculous crowds to get into the stadium, even Heather admits it was awesome to see the US win the Gold Cup over Panama 1-0 in a nail biter.

The Americans parading around Soldier Field

Presentation of the Gold Cup

After the game

We were all so proud and excited that the US won that Zach couldn't resist buying and wrapping himself in the stars and stripes!

Zach with his newly purchased US flag

And that's how we ended things in Chicago...on a great note!

Next up: Detroit (where we visited The Henry Ford today and where we will be returning tomorrow before heading to Comerica Park)!

After finishing up Detroit tomorrow, we head to Cleveland and an Indians game on Wednesday and the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Thursday with the plan to complete the trip and arrive home sometime either Friday evening or Saturday morning.

Depending on how much time we have to write, the next post may sadly be coming from Brooklyn...

Until next time!

Great Faces. Great Places.

South Dakota welcome sign

There's that classic South Dakota welcome sign and wouldn't you know, it came out pretty good! Heather has exponentially improved her ability to take pictures of welcome signs as we zoom past them!

But before reaching the South Dakota border, we made a couple of stops.

The first stop was an immediate one outside of Yellowstone at the North Entrance. At the North Entrance is the Roosevelt Arch, an entrance way dedicated to President Roosevelt, our "conservationist President".

During the dedication of the arch in 1903 (which now bears his name) he said: "This Park was created, and is now administered for the benefit and enjoyment of the people." As you can see in the below picture, "for the benefit and enjoyment of the people" is now what is carved at the top of the arch.

Roosevelt Arch - North Entrance, Yellowstone

Our second stop was a bit further away, a 7 hour drive via I-90, at America's first national monument Devil's Tower (guess who proclaimed it a national monument? President Roosevelt!).

Devil's Tower

Devil's Tower from the walking trail

Devil's Tower is exactly what it looks like: a humongous rock in the middle of nowhere. It reminded us of the famous Uluru (Ayers Rock) in Australia that we visited when I was studying abroad in 2003.

Uluru/Ayers Rock, Australia - 2003

Besides the fact Devil's Tower is an unbelievable rock formation, what's very interesting is that it also has a similar significance to the Native Americans as Uluru does to the Australian Aborigines. From what we read, every June, Devil's Tower is closed to climbers as a sign of respect to the Native Americans who wish to visit it in peace.

We thought about climbing Devil's Tower (sense the sarcasm?), but instead opted for the easy walk on the trail around it. We spent about an hour there and then headed 2 hours east to Mount Rushmore for the lighting ceremony that started at 9 PM. And it was well worth it!

The ceremony starts with a patriotic monologue by a park ranger, a short video on how and why Mount Rushmore was built and ends with all active and retired military personnel taking the stage for the audience to acknowledge their commitment to our freedom. Some might think of it as cliche or perhaps over the top, but we really enjoyed it.

Active and retired military personnel taking down the US flag

Lighting ceremony at Mount Rushmore recognizing active and retired military personnel

But the arguable best part of the day was what we saw when grabbing dinner at the Mount Rushmore dining room: a tray that starts with "What does baseball have to do with Mount Rushmore?" How fitting! We got a good laugh at that.

On Sunday, we started our day touring the Black Hills of South Dakota. Our first stop was the Crazy Horse Memorial, a project that started in 1948 and is not close to being complete. Instead of paying the ludicrous $10 per person charge to see a work in progress (that many TripAdvisor reviewers said is a tourist trap), we just drove by it and took a picture.

Crazy Horse Memorial

We then made our way to the Peter Norbeck Scenic Byway, regarded as one of the top scenic drives in the country. The first road, Needles Highway, is a mountainous, winding road that is named after the high granite "needles" around it. One of the features is a structure called the Cathedral Spires, a bunch of "needles" in a row.

Cathedral Spires on Needles Highway, Black Hills

Another feature of the Peter Norbeck Scenic Byway are the many tight, one way tunnels. Before entering the tunnel, you're asked to honk your horn so an oncoming car doesn't enter after you do.

Needles Highway, Black Hills

After Needles Highway we rode on the so-called Wildlife Loop because, well, we didn't quite see enough wildlife at Yellowstone. But at least this time we saw something other than bison and elk (although we did see them too). We saw burros! And got to feed them!

Feeding the burros

And of course we ran into a bison traffic jam.

Bison traffic jam on Wildlife Loop, Black Hills

Once the bison traffic jam finally cleared after about 30 minutes, we went back to Mount Rushmore to experience it during the daytime.

When you enter the memorial, you are greeted by a large stone entrance bearing the memorials name and in the not too far distance, you get a glimpse of the great faces along with the Avenue of the Flags, a walkway leading toward the mountain that is flanked on both sides by flags of the 56 states and territories.

Mount Rushmore entrance

Avenue of the Flags, Mount Rushmore

Mount Rushmore

For us, the first thing that popped into our heads was how in the world did they do this?

For those that are as unfamiliar with the Mount Rushmore story as we were, the effort was led and started in 1927 by a man named Gutzon Borglum, a Danish-American artist and sculptor and completed after his death in October 1941. Borglum created a miniature sculpture of Mount Rushmore (below), which served as the guide for the miners, sculptors and rock climbers. Each inch of the sculpture was to represent one foot on the mountain.

Miniature Mt. Rushmore sculpture created by Gutzon Borglum

As you can see in the sculpture, the memorial was supposed to include the depiction of each president from head to waist. We were told that the reason why the memorial stops with their faces is because of unanticipated changes in the rock formation, however some other stories say its because of a lack of funding. Regardless, it's still pretty spectacular!

Mount Rushmore from the Presidential walking Trail

Mount Rushmore

After getting our patriotic fix for the year, it was time to continue our journey 2 hours east on I-90 to Badlands National Park.

Badlands National Park

I was told that the Badlands are like nothing I have ever seen, weird and something that you might find on the planet Mars. Boy was that accurate! It's a pretty spectacular place with some pretty spectacular rock formations and colors. Take a look.

A very interesting and spectacular place to say the least!

After 2 hours of driving through the Badlands along Badlands Loop Road, it was onto Minneapolis to visit Heather's brother Josh, his lovely wife Kim and most importantly........our baby niece!

It was a long day however, so driving 9 hours in the middle of the night to Minneapolis was not in the cards. Instead of falling asleep at the wheel, we drove 5 hours to Sioux Falls, South Dakota and massacred a ton of I-90 bugs along the way.

The I-90 bug massacre

But when we reached Minneapolis after a 4 hour drive on Monday morning, we got to meet our precious, beautiful niece Alexandra Rose for the first time!

Brian bouncing baby Alexandra

Heather holding baby Alexandra

As they say in South Dakota, Great Faces Great Places.   :)

The show must go on however, and tomorrow morning we depart for the last leg of our trip: Milwaukee, Chicago, Detroit and Cleveland along with 4 baseball games at Miller Park, US Cellular Field, Comerica Park and Progressive Field.

Cheese heads..........here we come!