Winter Carnival Trip Day 4

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Monday February 6 – Day 4
Today the plan was to go to the Cathedral of St Paul and then go to the Mall of America. I caught the #21 bus over to the Cathedral of St Paul. There is a bus stop right next to the cathedral where I got off. It was a very impressive Cathedral and patterned after the one in Rome. After touring the Cathedral I got on a very crowded #21 bus and headed towards the Lake Street Midtown station where I intended to catch the #55 Hiawatha Light Rail train south to the Mall of America. I would have done better if I had gone back into St Paul and caught the #94 express to the Nicollet Mall Station in Minneapolis and then went south from there on the Hiawatha Line. The #21 which I was on turned out to be a bus that stopped constantly and was jam packed. For some reason the people who design seats for busses think that only slim teenagers ride them. The people I always seemed to jammed up against take up some of my seat and I am a bit hanging off into the isle. Still for a ride that only cost $2.25 to go from St Paul downtown to the Mall of America or the Airport I can deal with a bit of discomfort.
The Mall of America was huge and I walked all around it taking tons of pictures as I went along. And I took a lot of the amusement park in the mall. So many that security stopped me and questioned me thoroughly about why I was there and taking so many pictures ( I’m a tourist who came to see the Winter Carnival and was seeing the Mall of America as well), How did I get there (On the Hiawatha line ), What was I carrying in my bag( Snacks, gloves, a bottle of water, etc.), Do I mind if he looks at the pictures I took ( yes I mind but you can look at them), Why did I take a picture that had a support structure for the building in it (I was trying to take a picture around the structure of the Ferris Wheel beyond ), May I see your Identification(Yes, here it is), Excuse me while I call it in( OK). At this point a woman who had been sitting nearby grabbed her children and ran away in terror looking at me like I must be either a terrorist or child molester. After he called my ID in and I guess was assured the world was safe from me for the moment he thanked me for my cooperation and asked if I had any questions. I asked if since he called me in would I be entered into some computer data list of people who were questioned as a person behaving suspiciously and it would pop up on me somewhere else. He said they only use it there but I don’t believe him a bit on that. I’m probably in some stupid computer data file somewhere now as some one who was questioned for “suspicious behavior”. Geeeeez. Who would have imagined that in the United States it would come to this that a man taking pictures at an amusement park gets grilled over it. Its not like I was taking pictures of the Pentagon or something….geeeze. To his credit the man was extremely polite and professional…still I couldn’t believe I was being questioned like that. I’m usually the guy that gets waved through at security checkpoints.
I also let him know that I had eaten at The Bubba Gump Shrimp restaurant as well…..didn’t want to be accused of withholding information. I forgot to tell him I was going to Macy's to buy a pair of houseshoes......Oh well.
After my interrogation I walked back over to the other end of the Mall (Taking some pictures of the Ferris Wheel again…) and went to the Aquarium downstairs. It cost $22 with tax and was worth seeing since I was there anyway although I don’t think I would go out of my way to see it as I would to see the aquarium in Monterey, California.
Then I took the #55 Hiawatha Line into Minneapolis and got off at the Nicollet Mall Station and took another look around at Nicollett Mall. It has a skyway running through the buildings like in St Paul.
After I looked around the mall a bit I caught a very crowded #94 express (2.75 since it’s an express) back to St Paul and got off at St Peters Street thinking I would look around a bit but it was pretty cold and I ended up just finding a way up onto the Skyway and going back to my hotel
I rounded out the evening with some George Killian’s Irish Red beer and some nachos I made in the microwave.
It had been an eventful day and looks like I have seen all I set out to see when I came here. The Winter Carnival had been a disappointment being no more than I have seen at County Fairs back home. But coming to the St Paul Winter Carnival has been on my list of things I wanted to do so now that is done. And I guess while I usually save maps, bus schedules etc. of places I have been I don’t think I will do it for here. I don’t see coming back here again. For about the same money I could just go to New York again. Or San Francisco, or Colorado, or any of dozens of other places with more to see and do.















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Photos

Cathedral of Saint Paul
This cathedral was patterned after the one in Rome. The #21 bus stops right next to it.

The Mall of America
The Mall of America is massive and has several stories. It also has an amusement park and an aquarium. The Aquarium cost $22 with tax to visit.

the picture that got me into trouble
I was leaning out off the patio of the food court trying to take a picture of the ferris wheel around this structure whatever it is an I got questenioned about it.