Sunday, August 28, 2005
Gerardo's Salsa Recipe
Quick Recipe for Salsa by Gerardo:
A couple of tomatoes, Roma are best because they have less juice.
An Onion.
Lime Juice (prefer fresh) to taste.
Fresh Cilantro to taste.
Salt and Pepper to taste.
Put in food processor and grind just a little bit, don't make a puree!!!! Just touch that button, don't hold it down!!!!
Ingredients.
Machine Loaded
Another view before processing.
That's enough, take your finger off the button and stand back!!!!
Finished Product.
8/26/2005 St. Paul Science Museum
This Friday it was raining so we decided to visit the St. Paul Science Museum. On the way to downtown St. Paul, we stopped at Mickey’s Dinner for a late breakfast. It was an interesting experience.
At the museum we found that every parent with children in the area had the same idea. The place was packed with unruly little kids pushing the buttons and running to the next exhibit before they had a chance to see what the last was about.
This is the view over the atrium inside the entrance to the museum. The ladder like device is a Xylophone that played music. We looked to see if we could figure out the mechanism but did not see how it was controlled.
We spent some time in the Lake Pepin area because we had just seen the Lake for ourselves the week before. The bird displays were very nice.
This was an actual tugboat from the Mississippi on display at the Museum. 
Of course we had to see the Grossology exhibit. We thought Kazin would enjoy understanding the phenomenon of 'hairballs'.
Then it was off to the collections.
Of most interest was Dr. John's 'vibrating' chair in the Quackery section. The fellow in the lower left of the picture was one of his clients. The two headed turtle is of course smarter than some of the people we know.
Fred found a 'penny' machine and it was one of the few displays that you didn't have to fight off the children to experience.
Kathleen enjoyed the cottonwood trees on the opposite shore of the Mississippi. The Museum had a chart showing the location and historical views of the area.
Because we found no Winery this trip, we had to stop at the St Paul Library across the street from the Museum. By this time the sun had come out giving us beautiful view of the river front.
The St Paul Cathedral.
Sunday, August 21, 2005
Touring Rural Southern Minnesota
For this week's adventure we started down the Mississippi on our way to Harmony, MN. These are some bluffs just north of Winona, MN.
At a rest area beside the Mississippi.
The Locks on the river and a map of the waterway.
A view of a tug boat on Lake Pepin
The Indians called it the 'Lake of Tears' because it was the route to their burial grounds.
We stopped in Lanesboro, MN; a small town and enjoyed watching some vacationers tube down the Root River underneath the dam. It was a very picturesque little town.
The town was a pleasant surprise because we found another Winery.
The Amish settlement in Harmony, MN was a big disappointment. We promised we would have some Amish ice cream and it was very good.
As we were driving home our last stop was at "Assisi", the Motherhouse of the Sisters of Saint Francis in Rochester, Minnesota.
Sunday, August 14, 2005
The Ventura Train 8/12/2005
Last week on our adventure we saw the Light Rail Train and thought it would be a good Friday adventure. This week we had a reason to go to IKEA and the Mall of America so we decided to ride the train and shop all in one day. The train is a legacy of the Jesse Ventura's adminstration and one of the highlights of Minneapolis.
The reason is that we wanted to get a 'housewarming' gift for Kate and Gerardo as they are moving into their own apartment at the end of this month. More to come on the particulars.
We got on the Light Rail at the Government Center and paid $9.50 for parking. This wasn't to save money as much as experience the trip. To do it again we would park at the Metrodome for $3.00 all day and take the train from there.
Kathleen waiting for the train.
A view of the inside of the light rail. There are bike racks and we had an eclectic crowd of people riding with us. A lot of people said that no one would ride the rail but on both trips there was standing room only. It was not a surprise on the way home because it was during rush hour but in the middle of the morning it was surprising how many people were on the train.
Here we are at The Mall of America. I had some concerns for Kathleen's foot but she held up like a trooper.
Here we are at IKEA. We walked through all the showrooms looking at all the displays. Kathleen asked an associate about an item she saw in the catalog and was able to tell him the page number it was on, he looked it up and told us where to find it.
Fred with the packages. Yes we did get Kate and Gerardo something.
Sunday, August 07, 2005
Una autentica cena Mexicana preparada por Kate y Gerardo
On the Road Again, Friday August 5, 2005
We found another small Minnesota Winery. This one is in Hastings. It has gotten so that we find one every place we go and have to stop in for a taste and to buy a bottle to bring home.
Our next stop was Red Wing, Minnesota the home of Red Wing Work Boots and Red Wing Pottery.
Kathleen walking in Red Wing. We should have gotten one of those boots for Kathleen's foot later in the day!
This is the Barn Bluff outside of Red Wing. It has a 2.7 mile walking trail at the top. Fred went up to scout around but by this time Kathleen's foot had started to swell and she stayed in the car. It overlooked not only the Mississippi River but the town of Red Wing.
This is the view of the train bridge in Prescott Wisconson overlooking the junction between the Mississippi and the St. Croix Rivers.
This is a nice view of the Mississippi River somewhere between Red Wing and Prescott.
Dinner on the way home in North St. Paul.
This was a hole in the wall place that was recommended by a popular Minneapolis Magazine. The food was excellent, we had the signature 'fish and chips' but the ambiance was awful to say the least. We would go again but it would only be for take out.
