On the Mississippi - at last!




Popeye the sailor in his hometown Chester (on the Mississippi)
Not a lot ferry's are working during the winter time - but this one was, so we hopped on.
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Meet me in St. Louis




One of the things on my bucket list was to see the masterwork of Eero Saarinen: The Gateway Arch in St. Louis. It was much much better then I had hoped for. It is truly monumental. All the best icons in the world are a "simple" shape - be it a obelisk, pyramid or even the Eiffel Tower. No wonder Saarinen choose to use a simple shape as well - but added some genius touches. The height is exactly the width and the structure is twisted and clad with stainless steel. That makes that the Arch is always different - no matter what the weather is like or what angle you look at it. The ride to the top in a "bubble" tram is an adventure on its own. The the view breathtaking.
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Roadtrip part II



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Mark Twains' town - Hannibal on the Mississippi



It was really fun to wander around in Mark Twain (Sam Clemens) old home town. The houses where he, Huck and Becky lived in are all there and you can really feel the atmosphere of his famous (autobiographical) books coming alive. I reread The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn while being in Hannibal and was actually surprised how good and funny this book actually is. I vaguely remember old movies about Sam and Huck and when home I have to try to find those too.
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Lemme see him, Huck. My, he's pretty stiff.... ;-)

 Norman Rockwell - The Adventures of Tom Sawyer...
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Michel Bras in St. Louis

We had dinner at restaurant Niche where chef Gerard Craft created a very interesting tasting menu for us with a mashed potatoes dish that seem to come right out of Michel Bras' Kitchen way back in Lagiuole. And sure when I asked Gerard about it - it was this what he intended to make :-) - and he succeeded. According to Eddie it was even better because of the consistency....
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Other treasures at the Mississippi

Real Dutch windmill at the border of the Mississippi at Fulton

Inside the Wells Fargo Bank in Davenport

The first Mormon "Temple" in Nauvoo - we were not allowed in...

John Woods; Mansion in Quincy
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Galena - US Grant hometown


US Grant was the 18th President of the United States (1869–1877) and lived in Galena, a town that became wealthy because of the (lead rush mid 19th century) It was at its time the biggest city of Illinois and still has a nice authentic look and feel.
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And down south we go...


Lot's of bald Eagles along the river - hunting for fish - awesome view!

Pikes Peak

Me and Mark Twain discussing literature
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Stcckholm och Amsterdam ligger bara 10 mil från varandra

66 invånare?
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Some stuff along the river



White Eagle eating a rat at the American Eagle Center
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Along the River Mississppi




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The Apple - Microsoft Store battle

OK logo

Left Apple - Right MS
Where are the customers? - those tables look familiair



Packed the whole day long...
Funny - the Microsoft store Store looks like a copy of the Apple stores - without the buyers that is and the materials are crappy...
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This doesn't look good for Obama in a election year...


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The Mall Of America



The claim to be the biggest mall in the world. With an indoor theme park and more then 500 stores it is easy to believe - this is HUGE. (As is the transformer on top of the Lego store, completely build of lego)
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Holidazzle

Every season the colorfull parade will pass by on Nicolett Mall in Minneapolis: the Holidazzle. Young and old are wating in the sky walk (outside is to cold with temperatures of about 5F and a chill factor of even lower temperatures) to get a glimpse of the dozens or so fluorescent cars and people coming by.
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The Swedish American Institute



Här i Minnesota bor många amerikaner från Svenska ursprung. Det finns svenska byn (St. Olaf!) och människor ser skandinavisk ut. Så där det är logiskt om det Sedish American Institute är här också.  
Tyvärr ingen person talade Svensk... :-)
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At the Minneapolis Institute of Art




If you ever want to study the History of Art you must come to the MIA. Here they have a perfect example of all the great art in the world. And if I say ALL, I mean ALL. Van Gogh, Rembrandt, Mondriaan, Picasso, Rodin, Greek, roman, Japanese you name it: they have it. And most of the time a very best piece as well.
It was really fun to wonder around and to rediscover some historical perspective. The MIA is huge so even I needed an hour or two to see it all :-)
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At the Walker art center


The walker art center is well known for its innovative presentations. It has a groovy building and in it is an adventure to discover art in at it forms - print, sculpture, video, fashion you name it. This is how a modern museum should be - it also has an excellent restaurant with a great view on the Minneapolis skyline.
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