Minneapolis–Saint Paul, commonly known as the Twin City, is a metropolitan area
in the Upper Midwestern United States centered around the confluence of the
Mississippi, Minnesota, and St. Croix rivers in the U.S. state of Minnesota.
Originally inhabited by the Ojibwe and Dakota people, the two cities were
settled by various Europeans. Minneapolis was strongly influenced by early
Scandinavian and Lutheran settlers, while Saint Paul was settled predominantly
by the French, the Irish, and German Catholics.
Getting there ...
We had a late red-eye flight to Chicago on 8/20, and then arrived in
Minneapolis–Saint Paul (MSP) at 9AM on 8/21. Our main destination for this
trip was the Voyageurs National Park in the
northern Minnesota. Before we headed toward the Voyageurs, we passed by
Saint Paul and visited a couple of landmarks.
- Cathedral of Saint Paul
The Cathedral of Saint Paul is a Roman
Catholic cathedral. The current building opened in 1915 as the fourth
cathedral of the archdiocese to bear this name.
- Minnesota State Capitol
Saint Paul is the capital city of the U.S.
state of Minnesota. The Minnesota State Capitol houses the Minnesota
Senate, Minnesota House of Representatives, the office of the attorney
general, a chamber for the Minnesota Supreme Court, and the office of
the governor. The present building was designed by architect Cass
Gilbert and completed in 1905. There was some tribute to memorize the
congresswoman Melissa Hortman. Hortman and her husband were shot and
killed at their home by a man impersonating a police officer in a
"politically motivated assassination" on June 14, 2025.
- Driving to Voyageurs National Park
It's about 5-hour driving to Kabetogama in the Voyageurs National Park with
a quick nice lunch in a small town Hinckley. When we arrived at the
lodge at about 5PM, it started to rain hard and we had to retreated to our
room for the rest of the day.
Day 2 & 3 (8/22 & 8/23) ...
- We were back to Minneapolis in the late
afternoon on 8/23 (Saturday). After checked in to the hotel and had a
nice dinner (Owamni by The Sioux Chef), we walked to the Stone Arch Bridge
and Mill Ruins Park to enjoyed a relaxed evening with fantastic city views.
Day 4 (8/24) ...
- After we checked out of our hotel at about 9AM, we walked to the Stone
Arch Bridge again. Many people were walking/jogging on the bridge to
enjoy the perfect summer morning.
- Mill City Museum
Minneapolis originated around a source of energy: Saint Anthony Falls, the
only natural waterfall on the Mississippi. The city's two founding
industries—flour and lumber milling—developed in the 19th century nearly
concurrently, and each came to prominence for about fifty years. In
1884, the value of Minneapolis flour milling was the world's highest.
In 1900, fourteen percent of America's grain was milled in Minneapolis.
Through its expanding mill industries, Minneapolis earned the nickname "Mill
City".
Mill City Museum was built within the ruins of the Washburn A
Mill, the flagship mill of the Washburn-Crosby Co. (later General Mills). It
was the largest and most technologically advanced flour mill in the world
when it was completed in 1880. After World War I, the milling industry
in Minneapolis began to decline. Federal import-export regulations led mills
to move to cities better situated to process Canadian wheat. As the
industry moved out of Minneapolis, the old mills fell into disuse. Many were
abandoned and subsequently razed. The Washburn A Mill closed in 1965.
-
Foshay Tower
Foshay Tower was the lifelong dream and namesake of
Wilbur Foshay, an art student turned businessman who amassed his fortune by
building up three utility company empires. Modeled after the
Washington Monument, the tower has 32 floors and stands 447 feet (136
m) high, which made it one of the tallest buildings in the Midwest for 48
years. The building was completed in 1929 (John Philip Sousa wrote a
march, "Foshay Tower–Washington Memorial March," for the opening ceremony on
Labor Day weekend of 1929), months before the stock market crash in October
of that year. In October of 1929, when the stock market crashed so did
Foshay's empire. Foshay's "Ponzi" scheme backfired. In
1932 he was convicted of conducting a "pyramid scheme" with shares of his
own stock. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison (but Foshay only actually
served three years in Leavenworth because of "good behavior."). Today,
the Foshay Tower is now the W Minneapolis – The Foshay hotel, which retains
the 30th floor observation deck.
- Minneapolis Sculpture Garden
The Minneapolis Sculpture Garden is an
11-acre (4.5 ha) park located near the Walker Art Center. The
centerpiece of the garden is the Spoonbridge and Cherry (1985–1988) fountain
designed by husband and wife Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen.
- Mall of America (MoA)
Opened in 1992, Mall of America is the largest mall in the United States,
and the largest in the Western Hemisphere. There is an indoor theme
park, Nickelodeon Universe, in the center of the mall . Its total
retail floor area is 5,600,000 sq ft (520,000 m^2) with 520 stores and
services. The Mall of America's 42 million annual visitors equal
roughly eight times the population of the state of Minnesota. We found
a quiet cafe to have some coffee and snack, and then did a little shopping
before we left for the airport (only 5 minutes away).
Going Home ...
We were back to the Minneapolis–Saint Paul (MSP) Airport at about 4PM and
learned our flight to Denver was delayed by more than an hour (luckily we still
had enough time to catch our connecting flight from Denver to SFO). Summer
in Minnesota is a pleasant time to enjoy both city and nature (be aware of
mosquitoes). But if we are coming back, I will definitely want to try to
visit in the winter time to enjoy the cold :-)
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