mequon to madison. miles 1147-1237.

i have to say, of the cities i've visited so far, madison has by far surpassed my expectations. i've always kind of dismissed it, noting the rave reviews of friends and family who have either lived there or passed by, but not really paying too much attention - i mean, it's wisconsin. how great could it really be? and university of wisconsin at madison? talk about huge. way too many students - and just too far away from home to really consider seriously.

so imagine my surprise when i find myself sort of bumbling into the city, without any real plan or direction, hoping that the touristy signs will be enough to get me to a place where i can stop and maybe look at a map. or ask for directions. or something. originally i'd planned on heading to taliesin (to fulfill my american studies/ frank lloyd wright obsession) and/or the house on the rock - who can pass up a chance to see a giant sea monster singing the beatles? seriously? - but i decided to pass through madison to get a sense of the city before heading back to meet dan later that evening. the wills had highly recommended "the terrace," so i had a starting point.

well, i DID find the terrace - monona terrace - but managed to miss the parking lot (um, don't ask me how. i was a bit overwhelmed.), then found myself on one of the highways circling the lake, and oh! look! a park! with parking! i'll just stop here for a minute and check the gps. well, once i stopped at the park, i realized the car was pretty happy there... and i could actually just take my bike off the back, and ride back into town. thus fulfilling my dream of what this trip might be like - driving from city to city, parking the car, and exploring by bike! whoo!

madison from across lake monona.
you can just see the terrace - the big white building on the shore.

first stop: monona terrace. i had a better look at it as i rode back along the lake, and couldn't help but think it looked familiar. kind of like a frank lloyd wright. yeah, well, funny thing: it is a frank lloyd wright. good job erica. (i was a rather embarrassed amst major for a moment or two there.)

yeah... not one of my prouder moments.

it was a perfectly gorgeous day, though, so i didn't want to stay inside for long - after exploring the roof deck for a bit, i wandered up the road to the capital building (and the starbucks across the street that lured me in with their new chocolate banana smoothie thing that is simply heavenly for banana-chocoate aficionados), then rode back around the lakes a bit, over to the university, and back to my car just in time to be my typical fashionably late to meet dan!

roofdeck views from the terrace.


capital building, clearly.


i think it's required of big universities to have a hall with a statue out front.
not sure exactly why they chose abraham lincoln as their statue, but he's pretty cool so i'm cool with that.


don't forget, anyone can be a hoofer.

i'd told dan he had one night to convince me of madison's amazingness. i will admit, he presented a pretty solid argument, at least gastronomically :) scrumptious dinner at the weary traveler (complete with key lime cocktail! and wisconsin cheese plate. mmmmm.), followed by a trip to a coffee house (escape? dan? help?) with delicious tuxedo mocha and a dazzling array of distracting art for the easily distractable. though i did my best to focus on conversation, the art did manage to steal my attention a couple times. sorry dan :) the next morning, dan took me to lazy jane's for undoubtably the best nutty scone i've ever had (scones, the breakfast pastry of the gods) and an eggplant, zucchini, tomato, and goat cheese egg scramble. now, those of you who have lived with me and know my obsession with ALL of those ingredients know that that's pretty much my ideal breakfast. (with the possible exception of swedish pancakes and lingon.) amazing. very good job, dan. don't worry, i'll be back.

rum wench & captain dan

oh, dan also made me hold his fish.

no, really.