Day 28 - The Circus World Museum, Laura Ingalls Birthplace & Frank Lloyd Wright's House


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Published: July 29th 2009
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We were so tired last night from all that walking yesterday followed by the mental aggravation of getting lost in Minneapolis we fell fast asleep after relaxing a bit playing Scrabble. I think I was asleep before my head even hit the pillow and boy did I sleep good. Tim must have slept pretty well himself because he got up this morning with a big smile on his face all ready to face the day. It was a beautiful morning here in Red Wing, Minnesota and I couldn’t wait to see what adventures today would bring us. My first thought as I glanced out the window was that this must be the only Wal-Mart for many many miles because it sure was packed out. We were scrunched in here like a bunch of sardines. There were motor homes and campers every where you looked and I’m sure Wal-Mart couldn’t be happier. Campers = Shoppers !! We had a few small things on our list to accomplish today but not a whole lot. Mostly we were going to spend our time crossing Minnesota and making our way on into Wisconsin. In case you were wondering, yes, this is the Red Wing as in the world’s famous Red Wing Shoes. I filled out more postcards while Tim was taking his shower and then we ate breakfast and did the dishes. Somehow Tim managed to squeeze Big Bertha out of the parking lot and onto the street down below and we were soon on our way. We headed into the town of Red Wing to ride by the original Red Wing Shoe Company which is the town’s oldest and largest employer. We stopped by but they wouldn’t let us in because it’s not open to the public. Oh well, at least we can say that we’ve been there and seen it. During all my research of Laura Ingalls Wilder, I found out that she was born in a small cabin in Alma, Wisconsin near Lake Pepin and it just so happens that it wasn’t that far away. Tim, being the wonderful husband that he is, did a little re-routing for me and we were now headed for the Little House Wayside. You know I was all excited to have the opportunity to see the house where she was actually born back on February 7, 1867. I could hardly wait ! Our drive over the state line and into Wisconsin took us across the Mississippi River and down some pretty rough roads. We also crossed Lake Pepin which is where many sources believe water skiing was invented. I don’t know how many of you remember the movie Grumpy Old Men but we drove through the town Wabasha too which is where it was filmed. We just never know where the road is going to lead us. We’re always finding the neatest landmarks and interesting little facts about places that we’ve never even heard of. This is part of what makes driving across the country so exciting and adventurous. We continued driving on Laura Ingalls Wilder Memorial Highway until we finally reached the Little House Wayside. Tim and I got out and went in to check it out and take a few pictures. It was so cute but very tiny too. It is hard to believe that Ma and Pa lived there in this small three room cabin with two little girls. I’m walking around acting all happy and excited and thinking how cool it is to be there and stuff but then things get a little sticky. As we are standing in the house, minding our own business, taking some pictures and reading all the information and stuff, these two ladies walk in the front door. Everything was going great until one of them says to the other “I don’t even know why I’m here, I don’t even like Laura Ingalls Wilder or her stupid books”, “I think she was too much of a goody goody and I just don’t like that, she should have been bad or something and then she wouldn’t have been so boring”. This woman went on and on and on dogging out my girl and I was getting madder and madder every time she opened her mouth. She just wouldn’t stop !! Tim could tell that I was getting upset and he made his way over to me and whispered in my ear “I think we need to leave now”. I reluctantly agreed to go but before I left I really wanted to ask the lady why in the world she drove all the way out there to see where Laura was born if she didn’t even like her, but of course Tim wouldn’t let me ask her so we made our way back to the motor home and headed on down the road. I must admit that I am very proud of myself because back in my younger days I wouldn’t have had enough self control to walk away. I guess the old saying is true that the older you get the more wise you become. My Momma is gonna be so proud of me ! I had a couple of hours to calm down before we made it to our next destination in Baraboo, Wisconsin. Hold on to your seat folks because we have just arrived at the Circus World Museum. I swear I don’t know how or where the woman that wrote this book comes up with this crazy stuff. Who ever knew that there was a museum for the circus world ?? Tim and I found a parking spot and then headed on inside to see what in the world this thing is all about. We didn’t get there until about 4:30 and the last live show was going to be over at 5:00 so we chose not to spend $40.00 to see the last thirty minutes of the performance. Instead we just opted to check out some of the stuff in the museum and walk around the outside grounds. It was pretty interesting but if you’re into the circus and stuff you would absolutely love it. It’s actually a 51 acre complex with all types of memorabilia on display, a tiger adventure area, an area where you can ride elephants and the world’s largest collection of circus parade wagons. I’m not sure why but the circus always kinda creeped me out so I can’t really get into the whole circus thing but like I said if it’s your thing then you would really enjoy this place. Well it was 6:00 now and the museum was closing so we made our way back to the motor home and headed towards Spring Green, Wisconsin. We were on our way to Spring Green to find the renowned architect and Wisconsin native Frank Lloyd Wright’s 37,000 square foot home. Tim was just dying to see it and he was really hoping that we would be able to take a tour. We stopped by the visitor’s center to pick up all the information and this is where we found out that they had suspended the tours for a short while because there were some architecture students that were actually living in the home while attending school in the studio on site. Tim was pretty bummed about this but we got a map and drove down the road until we found the 600 acre sprawling estate and we stopped to take a few pictures. We really couldn’t see that much of the main house because it was hidden on top of the hill in the woods but we got a pretty good look at the studio. I told Tim not to worry about it because this just gave us a really good reason to come back next year. It was time to get on down the highway and what better way to see Wisconsin than to follow the Cheese Country Trail. This is the stretch of roadway that takes you from Monroe, WI to Mineral Point, WI and it was in the book so we were going to drive it. If my memory serves me right Lynn, I believe this will make four more highlights in the book for me today ! YAY ! You know I have to rub it in just a little bit ! Don’t fret, you may get the last laugh on this one though because the Cheese Country Trail was about two and half hours of nothing but cows and pastures and some of the most horrific aromas you have ever smelt in your life. I mean you can’t hold your breath for two hours or you’ll die but if you smell what we had to smell for two hours your gonna have brain damage so it was a lose lose situation for us. I can honestly say that I have never seen so many cows in all my life and I have never smelt so much cow poo in all my life and if I never have to do that again it will be too soon. GOD BLESS ALL THE DAIRY FARMERS OF THE WORLD !! We were honing in on our destination for the night so we needed to stop and eat before we made it to camp. Tim located this really cute little town in Cheese Country so we made our way there and found the Suisse Haus. We parked on the side of the street and made our inside for some dinner. The waitress talked us into trying some cheese curds as an appetizer and I’m glad she did. They were delicious ! They were breaded and deep fried pretty much like our cheese sticks and boy were they good. We were really tired so we finished up pretty quickly and then headed on over to the Crazy Horse Campground in Brodhead, Wisconsin. Even though we hadn’t done much physically today we were tired from all the driving and riding but I still needed to do some laundry tonight. We got all checked into the campground and Tim helped me separate all the clothes and take them up to the laundromat. This is too funny and I swear you’re not going to believe me so I took a picture to prove it to you ! We got all the way up to the laundry room, with four loads of clothes, only to find out that the laundry room is not a room at all. Their idea of a laundromat is two washing machines and two dryers plugged up outside behind the wash houses under a covered awning. Now it was 10:00 at night, pitch black outside, and there was no light anywhere so me and Tim are out there with a flashlight trying to figure out how in the world to do our laundry outdoors in the dark. Oh yea, did I mention the fact that we were getting eaten alive by mosquitoes while all this was going on ? I’m telling you, every single day is another great adventure and we just continue to make memories that will last us a life time!! We didn’t get to do the laundry tonight but on a happier note, we did find a cute little pony and two billy goats with a sign that said “please feel free to feed the animals”. We made our way back to the motor home, dirty clothes and all, and decided to call it a night. Tim said we’re headed to Milwaukee tomorrow so I can’t wait to see what all we can find there. I gotta run because I need to figure out what I’ve got in this motor home that I can feed to the animals in the morning. We’re really missing everyone and can’t wait to get back home and see you again ! Love ya’ll, night, night.


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