Ken Nelson

Location: Roberds Lake, Wells, MN

Only one picture, from my cell phone (below)

Today we woke up around 6 and decided “way to early”. So we hit the imaginary snooze button and didn’t wake up again until 9:48! 

We had seen the breakfast menu at Perkins Family Restaurant (a chain here) and we decided to try it instead of cooking and cleaning up after it in the RV (to save time). Their breakfasts are terrific. Tasty, good portions and well priced.

Then, off in the Jeep to just south of Minneapolis, to a little place called the Mall of America.  It has changed a lot since I was there 17 years ago. Mainly in the surroundings. When I visited on a business trip long ago, I drove and could see it from quite a distance. I then parked in a big mostly empty parking lot.  This time, you couldn’t see it until you were there do to other structures and new parking garages.

The Mall seems to be doing just fine in these “troubled times”.  It is very large. Basically, 4 sides wrapped around an interior covered amusement park:

The picture doesn’t do the scale right. It is big. We shopped. Then Brian and I did “Aces” a 1/2 WWII fighter aircraft simulation. That was fun. When we finished we met up with the ladies and they did a “mirror maze” that took about 10 minutes to get through (and unfortunately gave Paula a headache).

Then we all raced two Nascar races on the very real simulators.

They had little webbed window cars – I had the #5 Kellogg’s Corn Flakes car, Paula the #29 Havoline (only Ford). Brian had the Tracker (or as we called it the Crasher) car. Jenny drove the Cheerios car. The simulation is good. The car goes up down, bumps and so forth.  Paula won the 2nd race. I was in the race but the fool in the Tracker car kept taking me out when I lapped him. Pretty fun. I would have done a few more races but lunch called.

After that, lunch at Raves – a place with a very broad menu. Very good. 

Then time for the amusement park. We bought the kids passes and watched them on a couple rides. The rides seem very good. Like an entire Lagoon crammed into a small space. Everything was well calculated to fit and all areal space was accounted for by something moving rapidly!

We quite liked the amusement park. The rides were fun. The lines short or non-existent and the entire place was air conditioned and comfortable.  After verifying cell phones, stay together and if separated instructions, Paula and I headed off to shop.

We returned after doing the 1st floor of the mall and found the kids blowing their funnel cake $ in the arcade (Jenny is very good at Deal or No Deal). Then crepes for them and a funnel cake for me and we were off to Northfield, MN.

Northfield is a small quaint town with a HUGE Malt-O-Meal plant right in the middle of it. It is the home of St. Olaf college and also Carleton College (which came very highly recommended by a trusted source).  We drove around the college.  I could easily imagine skiing it, which is why I’d never go there!    Jenny however thought it nice and liked the rustic downtown. We explored there too and visited the eastern most bank that Jesse James ever robbed. 

Then back to Faribault/Roberd’s Lake for a calm evening of computing and Kindling.