Minnesota - Day 2 and 3

It got to a balmy 17 degrees here today! It's been hovering around 5 or 6 degrees mostly. Tonight, we're staying in Mankato, where there's actual civilization - or rather, suburban-looking commerce districts. Minnesota accents are pretty funny, it's almost like another dialect. I had one woman repeat herself, cause I had no idea what she was saying. I met a few people from Lake Wobegon for sure! It gets so rural out here. Road names are mostly numbers, but they're called Township Road 123, or something like that.

I like the names they give everything, they're either Native American or something like Blue Earth County, which is where I'm at now. So eco-friendly! We're near the Minnesota River Valley, and the river is frozen over. You can see where the snow mobiles have been driving up and down. It's really beautiful. I think I'd come vacation here in the summer.

It's very Lutheran here, although I've seen some Catholic churches. There are some cute churches, and then some dilapidated ones that we've passed by. I couldn't get any good photos of them. Anyways, I have a ton of work to get done. We have really long hours when traveling...

Check out my photos: http://flickr.com/photos/yummymuffins/sets/72157613098332840/

Minnesota - Day 1

Ok, so they weren't kidding when they said it was cold here. It is *freaking* cold!!! It was about 5 degrees Fahrenheit on our drive from Minneapolis to Fairmont. On our way out of the parking deck at the airport, the woman who checked us out said, "Minnesota is where penguins come and say 'It's cold!'" ... not funny. But really, I haven't experienced this in a long time. You breathe in, and it pretty much freezes your insides.

Apart than that, Minneapolis seems like it'd be a neat town to visit when it's warmer. There are so many amazing design agencies here that I may consider coming back to take a closer look at them and the graduate program at MCAD (Andy?...). We're going to the Mall of America on Thursday night, since it's a 'must see' when we're here.

The drive to Fairmont - a little tiny blip of a town in Southern Minnesota where we're staying for 3 nights - was pretty uneventful and flat (I guess my job takes me to the flattest places on earth). The ground is covered in snow, with some snowbanks about 4-5 feet. The roads are completely clear, so no worries on that. We've got trusty Garmin with us too to take us on these long straight stretches of road.

We start doing our interviews tomorrow, so we'll see how that goes!

Good night! (Yay for English!)