This is a little late but I have to post it anyway. A couple of weekends ago, I went on vacation with some friends to the Minneapolis area. The original idea was for Pat, Marie, Kelly, and I to go to Marie's grandpa's cabin and just live it up from Thursday to Sunday. It turns out that the cabin had been promised to her uncle so we had to improvise. We got some good deals on hotels and we decided to go to Minneapolis and Eden Prairie. Thursday, we met up at the Radisson and complained about the the drive there. They carpooled from Chicago for 6 hours and I drove from Cedar Rapids for 4 hours.

We wasted no time. Pat and I showered and we hit the streets. The drinking started at 4:30 p.m. We originally planned on going to dinner but we said screw it and we just decided to get drinks and appetizers from various bars. The so called happy hours weren't that happy. We still had a blast. We started near the U of M campus, went to Dinky Town, and ended up in Downtown Minneapolis. We went to Sally's Saloon & Eatery, The Big Ten, Downtime Bar & Grill, The Library, Drink, and finished at Bootleggers. We're professionals so we stayed out until the bars closed.

Friday started off with some disappointment. Rockvam Boat Rentals said they were all booked. We were really counting on going there. So once again we said screw that and drove there anyway. It turns out they had one for us and we hit Lake Minnetonka at full force. Note to self... wear sun block next time. I got burned and I'm just now starting to peel. It was fun though. Our drinks consisted of Seagrams Gin and vitamin water. We got a boost of energy while we got drunk. After that, we went to Marie's parents' house for some ribs and cheesy potatoes. I didn't want to leave. After they drug me from the dinner table, we checked into the Hyatt Place in Eden Prairie where we stayed for free thanks to Kelly. It came with a 42" Plasma TV. Our Friday night was all Downtown Minneapolis. We met up with PJ and Nick at Lone Tree Annex. After some creative dancing by PJ and one of Nick's friends, we went to Bootleggers to finish off the night.

Since Pat and I haven't been to the Mall of America, we did the tourist thing on Saturday and went shopping there. We didn't ride the rides. We bought a couple of things and then headed back to the 'telly. Across the parking lot was this amazing Mexican restaurant called Don Pablos. Our waitress had some nice buns if you know what I mean. The food was great and set us up perfectly for an afternoon nap. We decided to go to Uptown Minneapolis that night and it didn't disappoint. We went to Williams Pub & Peanut Bar and got hooked up on drinks. Marie and Kelly left Pat and I but it didn't slow us down. We met up with some other Cornell alums at Stellas. They have a nice set up on the roof. After they kicked us out we went and crashed at the hotel. That was a much needed vacation. The pictures will come later.