Camp Randall - Madison, Wisc.

MADISON, Wisc. - One of the best parts of my road trip to Minnesota two weeks ago was that I was allowed to go on the patio at the University of Wisconsin bookstore. A patio that was right on the field level of Camp Randall Stadium, the home of the Wisconsin Badgers football team. I stayed there for a few minutes trying to think of how great this place must be in the fall.

The people of Madison were very friendly, waving to my friend and I even though they did not know us and that it was clear we were not regulars or students on the campus.

It seems like a nice college town and I could see why it would be ranked on the top five college football atmospheres. I would love to go there in the fall when the Badgers have a home game.

Both of their main sports venues, Camp Randall and the Kohl Center, are without a doubt better than what they currently have at the University of Illinois.

Madison is also the capital of Wisconsin, with a huge U.S. Capitol-like building marked as the city's center.

2010 Travel season about to begin

Outside of trips weekend trips to Indianapolis, Springfield, Northwest Indiana and Southwest Michigan, I really have not traveled anywhere in 2010. I have not left the comfort zone of the midwest.
I will still be in the midwest this weekend, but in a major city that I have yet to visit, Minneapolis. From Friday to Sunday, I will be embarking on the first road trip of the 2010 travel season.
As are nearly all of my summer road trips, a baseball game serves as the centerpiece to this weekend getaway in the real twin cities. And who would have thought that the White Sox would have been ahead of the Twins when they play at Target Field this Friday in downtown Minneapolis. When I planned this trip two months ago, it looked like Minnesota would be ahead. One month ago, it was almost certain. But an incredible 15-5 run has put the White Sox in first place, with the Tigers (1/5 game back) and the Twins (3 1/2) looking up at them.
I am looking forward to being the enemy Friday night, rooting on the White Sox against their archrivals at the newest stadium in baseball.
Staying downtown, I will also be able to take a ride on the Minneapolis Queen, go to the observation deck at the Foshay Tower and go inside the Basilica of St. Mary.
Before I leave back for Chicago on Sunday, I will spend a few hours at Mall of America in Bloomington, the largest in the country.
On the way to Minnesota, I hope to spend an hour and a half in Madison, Wisc.; seeing the University and the state capitol.
This Minnesota trip is just the first of a few weekend travel ideas I have planned for this year. A possible Washington DC trip in August and a likely visit to Philadelphia in November to see the Colts are other ideas I have in motion.

Planning trips for 2010

Watching the Weather Channel with my mother this afternoon just wet my appetite for traveling and planning trips. It seems like each time I watch the Food Network or the Travel Channel or see a feature on another part of the country on the Weather Channel, I feel like having an adventure.
So I took a few minutes to think over where I may go in 2010. I have been a consistent traveler since 1992, but have only been planning trips since 2007. I've been to a lot of places over the last two and a half years and even though nothing is in motion yet for 2010, I'm sure I will find my way to interesting places I've never been before.
My main goal for 2010 is to visit Texas for the first time in my life. I'm thinking of a week and a half long trip from Chicago to Houston and back. On the way there, I would stop in Memphis, TN and see Graceland because I am a huge Elvis fan. I would also stop in Dallas, TX and go to a Texas Rangers game and hopefully a Dallas Cowboys preseason game. I hear the new Cowboys Stadium is suppose to be the best in the NFL. I hope to get a chance to find out if it's better than Lucas Oil Stadium. In Houston, I'm looking forward to going to Galveston and seeing the Gulf of Mexico as well as, od course, a Houston Astros game.
On the way back, I will come back through Louisiana and Mississippi because I want to see as many areas of the country as possible.
I also want to take a few short trips as well. But not sure about the destinations.