The American Pasttime: Play Ball!

One thing I have observed while traveling in Minnesota is that folks here are the nicest folks I have ever met. Strangers are always polite, friendly and helpful. But that was before I saw them at a Twins game ..... but I digress.

When we went to "the cities" on Monday, we didn't see all the things we had wanted to see. We also wanted to catch a Twins game, so off we went, back down to "the cities". First stop was St. Paul and historic Fort Snelling, not to be confused with Fort Snelling State Park. Fort Snelling is on a bluff at the confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota Rivers. It was completed in 1825 and became a hub for fur trading and Indian activities. Over the years the fort was used by the army for various purposes, but was never involved in hostile action. It is perhaps best known as a training and processing center where over 300,000 soldiers were inducted during World War II. After WWII the fort was decommissioned. In the 1950s the fort was threatened by development and highway construction, and efforts were started to save the fort site. By that time, little of the original fort structure remained, and reconstruction efforts were started. Today the reconstructed Fort Snelling offers period displays and demonstrations with costumed characters.

Pets are not allowed in the restored Fort Snelling, so we weren't able to go in. But we did walk into adjacent Fort Snelling State Park. We hiked onto Pike Island to the confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota Rivers and later hiked along the trail upriver towards Minnehaha Park. At one point we saw a hen turkey with chicks. As we got closer to take pictures, the hen did not retreat. Actually she became aggressive and charged us. I can see the headlines now: "Tourists Mauled By Wild Turkey." Thankfully, we survived the attack.

Our next stop was the St. Anthony area for dinner and a Twins game. We chose Tugg's Tavern and had their stuffed Saloon Burger and a few brews. We ate on the patio so Matilda could be close, and we could look across the river towards the Minneapolis skyline. While dining the street in front of the pub was kinda like a parade. A group of about thirty folks on Segway transporters came by. Then along came a "PedalPub", a rolling bar, powered by the folks on the barstools. It looked like a good way to see the city. I hope they had a designated driver.

After dinner we walked to the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome to see the Minnesota Twins and the Chicago White Sox. The Twins and the White Sox are bitter rivals and are locked in a tight race for the AL Central division championship. The game was pretty dull until the 5th inning, when the home team had a big three-run inning. Things really heated up in the bottom of the 7th during a disputed checked swing/called strike on Twins batter Denard Span. Minnesota manager Ron Gardenhire stormed the field and argued with the 3rd base umpire for about 10 minutes. He was ejected from the game, and the Twins fans threw baseballs, hats and other debris onto the field. White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen pulled his team off the field, while fans booed and peppered the field with more debris. The PA announcer warned that if fans continued to throw things onto the field, the game would be forfeited to the Sox. It was great fun. Eventually things settled down and the players returned to the field. The Sox promptly walked Span, and the Twins subsequently scored 4 runs in the inning. The Twins won 10-6. It was a wonderful game.