That was happening just halfway through our visit to Madison over the weekend. It was just a couple of days, but what a few days!
My wife and I had talked about visiting Madison this summer--we originally talked about Duluth (where we visited in '04) but then got interested in Madison--and I had mentioned this in an e-mail to K. She got excited at the idea and invited us to visit and stay at her place. A few e-mails later, we decided it would be that weekend. This only started a few days before, so plans were very haphazard. It was a free-form visit.
We stayed at K's place. She insisted we sleep in her bedroom, despite our protests. So she can be with her dogs, she said, while sleeping on the couch. We arrived at about 3 p.m. Friday, talked for a while and then made the first of a number of downtown Madison trips. First, off to a top pizza place, the Greenbush Inn, located in a former Italian-American hall.
The ceilings were low, but the pizza was great. Loved it, but we had to move on.
Next stop was the botanical gardens--both my wife and K are big on flowers. We enjoyed walking through the lovely blooms as the sun got lower in the sky.
But K was saying there's something you've got to see! She led us down paths, until finally, through an opening, I could see our destination ...
It is a Thai garden palace, one of several kinds they have. And look at that roof! It shines like gold because it is. The palace was a gift from Thailand to an alumni association, and it was erected a few years ago. The plane that took the materials to Chicago was one of the last to land on 9/11.
Lovely. Alas, I had dawdled too long, taking pictures along the way, and the palace was just slipping into the shade when we got there. Still time to look it all over and (of course) get a few pictures.
On the way home, we saw some unusual cows in a park along the lakeshore. The first of many we would see during our visit. Much, much, much more on cows later.
Went home and watched an episode of "You Bet Your Life," Groucho Marx's TV show from the '50s. Then, part of a Rolling Stones concert DVD. But we were getting tired and called it a day. Friday was just the start. In the morning, it would be Saturday and more amazing sights.
(to be continued)
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