Deviant Dispatches

We left for Canada, and maple syrup was on our grocery list. We returned, and we still need syrup. How did that happen? Especially when I was so surprised at it? Syrup is served with freakin' everything there. You can get it with sweet or savory crepes, in beverages, on your burger, as a dipping sauce for fries ... . These people love their syrup. I was surprised at the taste, because I've never liked maple syrup before - it has a bitter aftertaste. But none of the fresh syrup I had in Quebec was like that. So I ate a lot of it. Apple and swiss crepe, and a mushroom/egg/asparagus crepe, at Casse-Crepe Breton . Possibly our favorite place on the whole trip. Mushroom and parmesan poutine with cheese curds This was dinner for us several nights. The brie was much more creamy in the middle. I didn't like it at first because it was so different, but now ... Le Croquembouche  was a feast for the eyes and the stomach. Raspberry brioche, croissant, cho...

We saw a lot more stuff than I'll mention here, because I don't want to bore you all with crappy pictures and long histories. So these are the really cool pictures. Chateau Frontenac , above our heads. There's been a building there since the 1600s, but it burned down multiple times. (Like most buildings in Quebec.) This chapel is part of the Musee de l'Amerique Francophone. Gorgeous (and burned down several times in the past.) Skyline at night, from across the river. The Haitian exhibit in the Musee de la Civilisation was very intense. Art focused a lot on the 2010 earthquake and other recent disasters, so it was very death-focused. They refer to the earthquake as "that thing" because it was too terrible to be named. Also at this museum: an extensive First Nations exhibit. Pas de deux  is part of their lifestyle; it refers to hunting and means there is no distinction between humans and animals (literally, there are not two). M...

Our farewell sunset I write this from the airport in Toronto, which is far nicer than any airport I've ever been to (based solely on the lounge, with its uniform tan chairs divided into small cubicles in a meager yet still existent attempt at privacy). For the first time, I actually stepped down off an airplane and onto the tarmac before walking into the building, and it's a bit like I've stepped into a movie. (Except young traveling ladies in Hollywood movies most certainly do not belch like sailors after having ginger ale. They get cute hiccups instead.) Spousal Unit and I are headed to Quebec City for a delayed honeymoon - after getting married , we visited Door County, but this is the first real vacation we've taken together, and so it is the honeymoon we've been meaning to take. Tonight we'll go to see A Midsummer Night's Dream in French, with a live orchestra, and we'll pay slightly less for tickets by virtue of being young, at least by Can...

Spousal Unit and I enjoyed a good, wholesome weekend with the family. Sorry, I mean a good, wholesome half hour. We were drunk for the rest of it. First things first: We went to Drammen Lutheran Church in Mondovi for a family reunion. I was excited to see some people I hadn't seen it a while. Unfortunately, by the time we got there, the reunion was over. All that was left to see was the church. That still worked for me - my great-great-grandpa who came over from Norway built this church. Here I am being silly in front of it. (I doubt he would have approved.) Then came the less wholesome and more fun part of the weekend. It wasn't spent at the bottom of red Solo cups, but it was close enough. I saw a cool barn door while drinking. You are all shocked to know there are barn doors in Wisconsin. Amazing camera point: This was taken in pitch dark. You can almost see a face peeking out of that window, can't you? But from there on out, the night w...

This weekend, Spousal Unit and I went adventuring. We drove out on Highway 18, with the overall goal of somewhere on the Mississippi, but moving at a snail's pace compared to our usual holy-crap-why-aren't-we-there-yet speed. On the way, we stopped at the Rural Route 1 popcorn emporium, where you can get a bag of the delicious stuff for 75 cents. We also brought a couple of pounds home with us - there's nothing like a bowl of popcorn to satisfy a mild hunger or make it feel like the weekend on a Tuesday. We saw this rather magical tree, all by its lonesome. Once we reached Prairie du Chien, we found Narnia. Narnia turned out to be a place called Villa Louis . We didn't get to visit, because it was closed for the winter. Visiting places that are closed seems to be our thing. We also saw this lovely old building. There's something about the way things fall apart that is very poetic sometimes - especially with such a different facade beneath. ...

This weekend, we went to Chicago for the veterans' parade. I was amazed at how many floats, bands, and families marched in this thing. In the rain. The gentleman in the motorized chair, following the motorcycle brigade, is carrying a hand-colored American flag on a piece of computer paper. It was neat to see them take down the gigantic flag at the end of the parade. They put it straight in the clear bucket so it wouldn't touch the ground. But the man who totally won at parade watching was the Puerto Rican guy. He has a Puerto Rican flag around his neck like a cape, and he said thank you to every person who marched by. Many soldiers (who I'm guessing were either friends or also Puerto Rican) stopped to take pictures with him. After, we went to a delightful little bakery called Toni's . They had awesome cookies.