 |
| From Madison, WI |
We flew in Sunday to get a head start on things and stayed at the Doubletree Hotel, where we were greeted with a warm cookie and pleased to find out the beds were COMFY!
Because we didn't look at the NCMPR conference brochure carefully enough, we missed a cruise on Lake Monona, but did get to explore on our own, wandering onto University of Wisconsin's campus where we had the perfect view of Lake Mendota and down State Street where we spent lots of unnecessary but fun money. My favorite stores were one called "Sunshine Daydream" and another that had really cool retro and vintage items.
The weather was very cold and wintry, so I bought a Wisconsin hoodie (although I'm told by an Illini fan I shouldn't have), a hat and gloves with the fingers cut out.
Our shopping trip was cut short when it started pouring on us, but we hurried back to the hotel in time to dry off a bit and watch some TV before hitting the Nitty Gritty for dinner. We seriously regretted not lying about it being one of our birthdays. Apparently the place is known for that. They have great burgers too.
Monday we woke up early and caught a shuttle to the Monona Terrace Convention Center for a day of work-related learning. We learned A LOT, but only one speaker really stood out, Dr. Pam Cox-Otto from Interact, who had a really fun personality and taught us all about Gen Y (which really hit home for Korin and I, being that we are Gen Y'ers). The food wasn't fabulous but the view from the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed building was.
 |
| From Madison, WI |
We skipped out on the awards dinner because Lewis and Clark hadn't put in any entries. Instead, we hit State Street again for some more shopping. It started raining again, but we got back to our hotel safely and rested before taking a ride back to some Italian place, Tutto Italian Bar e Grill, or something like that. It was recommended to us by one of our shuttle drivers, who was young and seemed fun and friendly. On the way back, we gave a bum our leftovers, bc we didn't have a fridge or microwave anyway, and called it a night.
Tuesday wasn't as eventful, but we hit State Street for yet another go, only this time we wanted to see the free local exhibit at the art museum. One of the exhibits was all about the Earth and recycling and the other about lists. I'm not sure I got the lists one right, but it spoke to me about how people are so busy these days that it can become overwhelming pretty easily.
 |
| From Madison, WI |
We ate at the hotel's Badgerland Bar and Grill, and they gave us another warm cookie although Korin's nervousness about the flight home got the better of her stomach.
So good news all around - I had a lot of fun, found a place a really enjoy, got to know a coworker a lot better, got two great nights of sleep, learned a ton and the week was half over by the time I got back. And Brian's coming in this weekend so there will be fun to be had by all!
No comments:
Post a Comment