Came Back to Minneapolis

Alpha Iota, University of Minnesota

My visit to University of Minnesota was a quick one but luckily I still had the chance to see sites. I hadn't visited this chapter in over year so I made a point to see if some new spots around campus. On my last visit to campus I didn't see much off-campus so I made sure to start there.

I stopped to see TCF Bank Stadium as I headed around the edge of campus. It is where the Golden Gophers play and is temporary home field to the NFL's Minnesota Vikings, while their stadium is being redone.

My next stop was Dinkytown. Strange as the same is, it's a pretty cool area. It is the main downtown area of campus, including restaurants, bars, and much of the social scene. 

On my first night, the chapter advisor, Jen, took me to Annie's Parlour in Dinkytown. It was a little place on the second floor of an old building, which gave it a cool vibe. They are famous for their burgers and fries, so of course I had those, and they did not disappoint.

The next morning I headed back to Dinkytown to find the famous Al's Breakfast. I heard that it was they had the best blueberry pancakes so I was sure to order those. They cooked them to order and served them hot off the griddle. Al's is truly a hole in the wall place, which is clear from both pictures below. But that is part of the charm because I could tell everything was so fresh.

 

I made my way back to campus through the fraternity row historic district. This is a true fraternity row, where every house (except for Hillel and the YMCA) are Greek houses. It was cool to see that this exists at a school that is so city oriented.

That evening was Alpha Iota's first informal recruitment event. We made cards and drank hot cocoa. I love getting crafty so I took the opportunity to make some cute valentines!

On Thursday I finally got to visit the Mall of America! I have wanted to visit ever since Mary Kate and Ashley's mall party video. My sister and I used to sing the songs repeatedly and dream of going to a mall so big it held a theme park. It was a great moment when I finally got to see just how big this place is. The president and I walked the entire mall, which is at least 3 miles. And then, of course, I had to go shopping. It took so long just to figure out which way to go that I probably ended up walking another 3 miles. The MoA has so many restaurants, which are mainly in one part made to look like a street. There are multiples of so many stores and the Forever 21 was so big it had a Coffee Bean in it. I had a great time seeing the theme park too, even though I didn't ride anything. The country music they were playing the whole time was a nice touch.

Christmas Card From A Hooker In Minneapolis by Tom Waits