One of the better things about living in a larger city is all the stuff that is around to do. Concerts, sporting events, museums, shopping, etc. The best thing about living in a larger city is all the free stuff that there is to do. City parks, zoos and museums that only charge by donation, neighborhoods you can walk around and check out the cool way too expensive houses you'll never be able to afford. You know, fun time killer things.
One place we have found is the Minneapolis Institute of Art. They do have a gallery you pay to see, but the main gallery is all by donation. The first time we went, we figured we could get away with not giving a donation. We have been there a couple of times since and thrown five dollars into their donation bin and it makes us feel good about ourselves. I'm not the biggest fan of art. After a while it all starts to look the same. There is more than art in the sense of paintings, which is nice. There are several rooms set up like, well, rooms. From different time periods with all kinds of artifacts that would have been around at the time. There's pottery, textiles, a few weapons here and there. Enough to keep you occupied for an afternoon. And right across the street is a nice park if you are so inclined to have a seat and soak up the late afternoon sun rays.
There is also Como Zoo and Conservatory. Another place that takes donations only. So, throw in five bucks and you don't feel bad walking around for a couple of hours. Zoos are always weird to me. I feel bad for the animals because they are inside their containment areas, but it's not like they are being mistreated. I think that nature shows give us a skewed idea of what wild animals do all day. If you watch a nature show and they focus on lions, they aren't going to show you a pride lying around all day. No, they show the hunt, the kill, and the feast. When you go to a zoo, you see lions taking naps in the sun. Do they always do that? If they are like any other cats, most likely. But you can't help but feel bad because they are in such a small, fenced in, pen. Well, small compared to being out in the wild. At the same time it's great because you get to see animals that you wouldn't see if zoos didn't exist. So there is the trade off. Como is geared towards family, so if you have kids or visitors in town and want to do something on the cheap, this place was nice. Open, clean, and they have seals. What reason isn't there?
Along with those places, there are tons of parks around the Twin Cities. One thing we noticed when we moved up here was all the green space for such a large metro area. I haven't lived in a ton of metropolitan cities, but I would think that amongst the urban sprawl there are plenty of parks to make the citizens feel better about themselves. The closer to the cities you get, the more cool things are in the parks. Statues, plaques and the like. Out in the suburbs, it's a little different. The few we have been to consist of a walking path and maybe a small playground for the kids. I don't expect much from the parks so knowing what to expect keeps you grounded. Now is the time of year to take advantage of the parks. It's sunny on plenty of the days and still cool enough where you won't be dying from dehydration when walking around for the afternoon. As summer approaches and the humidity of July and August kick in, I may be changing my tune, but for now it's great.
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