FOREVER YOUNG

FOREVER YOUNG
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Hometown Visit (Part 4)

 

Monday, 9/2/2013

Lake Le-Aqua-Na State Park

Lena, Illinois



On Sunday, 8/18, Terri and I went to the demo derby at the Winnebago County Fair in Pecatonica, IL.  We’ve been to this derby several times, most recently two years ago in 2011.
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Of course there was a lot of crashing and smashing.  Something the promoter didn’t count on was this damage to the wall from a very hard hit from one of the cars.
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Their solution was to place one of the cars that had dropped out of competition next to that part of the wall and instruct the remaining drivers to stay away from that area.  Luckily the derby was almost over, and there was no additional damage to the wall.  As usual, we had a lot of fun and will try to get back again some time.

On Tuesday, 8/27, we drove up to the quaint little village of New Glarus, WI.  It has a population of almost 2,200 people and is located about thirty minutes north of Monroe.  Nicknamed “America’s Little Switzerland,” New Glarus is known for its Swiss heritage and is a wonderful place to visit!  We went to the New Glarus Hotel Restaurant for dinner.
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We’ve been here several times before, so we knew that the entrance is actually located on the side of the building.  The Balcony Dining Room on the second floor, where we were seated, overlooks the street.
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This is the dining room located next to the Balcony Dining Room.
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There’s also a dance floor where live bands play weekly.

Even though we arrived later in the afternoon, they allowed us to order off the lunch menu.  For an appetizer we had a real Wisconsin treat of fried cheese curds.  Terri ordered the Reuben Sandwich, and I enjoyed the Bratwurst Platter.
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With our bellies full, we headed outside for a stroll around the downtown area.

New Glarus celebrates dairy products with beautifully decorated cows!
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Many of the buildings display Swiss-style architecture.
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New Glarus has several shops downtown including a bakery, a meat shop, and a chocolate/cheese shop.  We both really love this area of Wisconsin.  I highly recommend a visit to both New Glarus and Monroe if you’re ever in or near Green County, Wisconsin.

On Friday, 8/30, we went back to downtown Freeport to the Union Dairy for sundaes!  Because, as Terri says, “You CAN’T go to Freeport without going to Union Dairy!”  Terri had the Turtle Sundae, and I had a Hot Fudge Sundae.
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And, YES, they were as tasty as they looked!

We thought of our friend Sherry when we spied this sundae on the menu.
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We know how much she LOVES COCONUT!!!

We returned to the Union Dairy the very next evening for the 1st Annual “Cruisin To The Dairy” car show.
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Many of the same cars were at Freeport Cruise Night two weeks earlier.  They had a photographer taking pictures of cars in front of Union Dairy.  I took a couple pics myself.
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Here’s a few more from the parking lot.
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This 1948 International is “For Sale.”
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If you look closely in the picture below, you can see the window crank on top of the dash that is used to open the windshield for ventilation!  (You may want to click on the picture to enlarge.)
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He’s only asking $32,500 for it.

We’ve really enjoyed our time here the last 25 days.  Tomorrow, Tuesday, 9/3, it’s time to start heading toward Richmond, VA, with a few stops along the way.

9 comments:

  1. Wow, lots of cars! What a great little town. I love the Swiss towns, Solvang in California is a Danish settlement and is similar.

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  2. Having been a Midwesterner most of my life, and a frequent visitor to Wisconsin, it's kind of amazing that I've never tried a cheese curd. Guess I'd better do that one of these days.

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  3. This is a great post and yessiree I want that sundae! I want those sandwiches too. Reubens and bratwurst were my two pre-vegan favorite sandwiches. You are making my mouth water. The cow statues are great too. I think I'll put these places on my list for Wisconsin. What fun for you two - cars at the beginning, food in the middle, cars at the end. You sure are having fun, well done. But how did no one get hurt if they actually broke the wall playing adult bumper cars?? :-))

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  4. I've always wanted to try cheese curds. The cherry red truck sure is nice. Ron enjoys olde car shows like this too.

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  5. Now you've done it. We may have to go back to my home state and spend awhile :) Also, I need one of those coconut sundaes!

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  6. I'm surprised you didn't jump on the chance to buy that truck. Terri would look really stylish following you down the highway.

    But I see there was no CD player so she'd have to sing her favorite Donny Osmund tunes herself... :cD

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  7. Looks like you had great hometown visit. Haven't had ice cream since we left VT, toasted coconut is one of Dave's favorites so now he's looking for ice cream.

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  8. You two find the best food;o)) Love the demolition derby...thought we were in one driving I-84 through Connecticut this summer!!

    Safe Travels and Happy Trails.....

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