A Brief Glimpse of Downtown Minneapolis

05.20.10

International Quilt Market this Spring is being held at the Minneapolis Convention Center in, you guessed it, Downtown Minneapolis!

I’m staying at the Best Western Normandy Inn & Suites with my two roomies, Donna Morales-Oemig (FollowThatThread.com) and Jeanie Sumrall-Ajero (KalCollections.com).

As hotels go it’s certainly not the swankiest, but it’s comfortable – and it has free Wi-Fi in the room which is a big plus in my book! I wasn’t sure when I first saw the building if the plaster missing from the outside walls was by design or because it fell off. Apparently it is by design – trying to imitate Old English Tudor styling.

This morning Donna and I took a walk to find some breakfast and got a glimpse of Downtown Minneapolis. It’s a mixture of old and new – towering glass sky scrapers next to ivy-clad brick buildings.

The reflections in the glass are quite spectacular, especially in the early morning sun.

Tomorrow will be a busy day – the first “official” day of the trade show. More photos to come!

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5 Responses to “A Brief Glimpse of Downtown Minneapolis”

  1. Emily Schroeder Orvik says on May 21st, 2010 at 4:46 am :

    Welcome! The Normandy is a shock on the eyes at first. Downtown is an amazing place. If you get a chance – enjoy the skyways. A lot of people compare them to hamster habitrails, but they are a great way to get around in bad weather. And you never know what restaurant “treasure” you might find.

  2. Sarah says on May 21st, 2010 at 4:53 am :

    Thanks Emily. I’ve heard about the skyways – and have seen a few while out and about. Haven’t figured out yet how to get into/onto them though.

  3. Meet Minneapolis says on May 21st, 2010 at 7:22 am :

    From the Convention Center, you can take the escalator on the east or west end of the building up one level and you’ll be right in the skyway system. Today may be a good day to explore them with potential for a little rain.

    Glad you’re enjoying Minneapolis so far! We hope you’ll explore a little more of the city while you’re here. Have a great show at the MCC!

  4. Emily Schroeder Orvik says on May 21st, 2010 at 6:26 pm :

    Oh Sarah – in a lot of cases you can go into the lobbies of the various office buildings and take the escalator to the second floor – usually they have back lit map signs (kind of like store directories at malls) and you can kind of figure it out from there. I also use the landmarks outside (so I often check when I am crossing above a street to see where I am). Wish I didn’t have a neighborhood event tomorrow otherwise I’d come back down and help you out. Have fun – it was a great show.

  5. Nicole Eastmann says on November 4th, 2011 at 6:06 am :

    Astonishingly revealing many thanks, I reckon your readers might just want even more blog posts similar to this continue the good work.

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