My OperaThe Wonders of SoDak, Part One
Saturday, June 17, 2006 4:39:59 AM
From: Minneapolis
To: Mitchell, South Dakota
Miles: 400
MPG: 44.1 (not sure what happened here – only twice as good as the average car)
The World’s Biggest Ball of Twine
You knew it was coming. It turns out the World’s Biggest Ball of Twine resides in Darwin, Minnesota. We’re not exactly sure that Darwin himself would have to say about state of human evolution based on the desire to twist tons of tons of twine into a ball, but after a winter or two in Minnesota, it probably makes more sense.
The International Vinegar Museum
Leaving the land of 10,000 lakes behind after regretfully only seeing a few hundred of them (and yes, Jon proposed visiting all of them), we ventured into SoDak and the raison d’etre for the trip. The International Vinegar Museum in Roslyn! Not sure what to expect, we (or at least one of us) were prepared for a rather anticlimactic visit. Boy howdy, were we wrong! (Note from Jessica: “boy howdy” was Jon’s idea of a local expression. I’m convinced no one ever says that.) Lawrence Diggs, The Vinegar Man, (who is African American and came to Roslyn via San Francisco and the Peace Corps) moved to town in search of a quite place to continue his vinegar research. In an effort to spread his message of peace, racial tolerance, and vinegar, he and his wife (the Vinegar Woman) started the museum several years back. We knew we would like them when they did not even bat an eye at the flamingo. No visitor to SoDak should miss this site. Seriously. It was interesting, educational, and just a tad off-beat. Just like Jessica! Learn more at www.vinegarman.com
On the way out of town, we stopped at the ice cream shop for a tequila lime vinegar flavored ice cream shake. It was phenomenal. Expect to see them at the next BBQ!
Little House on the Prairie
Having forced her mother to “read me just one more chapter” of the Little House on the Prairie series by Laura Ingles Wilder well past many a bedtime, Jessica was very excited to see the homestead of the Ingles family in DeSmet, South Dakota. I won’t bore you with all the details, but if any wants to know whatever happened to Laura, Mary, Carrie, and Grace, you know where to go. The real highlight of the tour, however, was when the tour guide commented, without a trace of irony, that Carrie had once moved away from DeSmet (a metropolis of a few hundred people surrounded by a lot of grass) to an area out in western South Dakota that was “pretty desolate.”
The Corn Palace
Built on the notion of “if you build a Kremlin knock-off covered in corn husks they will come” back in the 19th century, the Corn Palace is one of the more bizarre sites we have come across thus far. There is no reason for this place to exist except to attract rube tourists and, well…here we are, blogging from 50 feet away.
As an aside, the “Welcome to the Corn Palace” promotional brochure proudly states that “we are often referred to as the ‘Boston Garden of the Midwest’!” Not too sure where that came from.
Stay tuned, true believers, for more from what we are affectionately calling, "The Dak"
To: Mitchell, South Dakota
Miles: 400
MPG: 44.1 (not sure what happened here – only twice as good as the average car)
The World’s Biggest Ball of Twine
You knew it was coming. It turns out the World’s Biggest Ball of Twine resides in Darwin, Minnesota. We’re not exactly sure that Darwin himself would have to say about state of human evolution based on the desire to twist tons of tons of twine into a ball, but after a winter or two in Minnesota, it probably makes more sense.
The International Vinegar Museum
Leaving the land of 10,000 lakes behind after regretfully only seeing a few hundred of them (and yes, Jon proposed visiting all of them), we ventured into SoDak and the raison d’etre for the trip. The International Vinegar Museum in Roslyn! Not sure what to expect, we (or at least one of us) were prepared for a rather anticlimactic visit. Boy howdy, were we wrong! (Note from Jessica: “boy howdy” was Jon’s idea of a local expression. I’m convinced no one ever says that.) Lawrence Diggs, The Vinegar Man, (who is African American and came to Roslyn via San Francisco and the Peace Corps) moved to town in search of a quite place to continue his vinegar research. In an effort to spread his message of peace, racial tolerance, and vinegar, he and his wife (the Vinegar Woman) started the museum several years back. We knew we would like them when they did not even bat an eye at the flamingo. No visitor to SoDak should miss this site. Seriously. It was interesting, educational, and just a tad off-beat. Just like Jessica! Learn more at www.vinegarman.com
On the way out of town, we stopped at the ice cream shop for a tequila lime vinegar flavored ice cream shake. It was phenomenal. Expect to see them at the next BBQ!
Little House on the Prairie
Having forced her mother to “read me just one more chapter” of the Little House on the Prairie series by Laura Ingles Wilder well past many a bedtime, Jessica was very excited to see the homestead of the Ingles family in DeSmet, South Dakota. I won’t bore you with all the details, but if any wants to know whatever happened to Laura, Mary, Carrie, and Grace, you know where to go. The real highlight of the tour, however, was when the tour guide commented, without a trace of irony, that Carrie had once moved away from DeSmet (a metropolis of a few hundred people surrounded by a lot of grass) to an area out in western South Dakota that was “pretty desolate.”
The Corn Palace
Built on the notion of “if you build a Kremlin knock-off covered in corn husks they will come” back in the 19th century, the Corn Palace is one of the more bizarre sites we have come across thus far. There is no reason for this place to exist except to attract rube tourists and, well…here we are, blogging from 50 feet away.
As an aside, the “Welcome to the Corn Palace” promotional brochure proudly states that “we are often referred to as the ‘Boston Garden of the Midwest’!” Not too sure where that came from.
Stay tuned, true believers, for more from what we are affectionately calling, "The Dak"
