Fast Five: Small towns, big personalities
Earlier this year, Oprah’s “O” magazine introduced “60 charming American towns you haven’t heard of but should visit,” and not one Wisconsin locale made the […]
Offbeat
Wisconsin meat raffles fill taverns on wintry days
At least 30 years have passed since my husband and I walked into a small-town tavern one wintry morning, in search of a beer and […]
Christmas movie props/costumes, holiday windows fill Castle Noel in Ohio
Mark and Dana Klaus love Christmas. Big time. You’ll find them at Castle Noel in Medina, Ohio, where the Christmas spirit lives all year. Big […]
LEGO artist brings 400,000-piece city to Wisconsin Dells
New at Buffalo Phil’s Pizza & Grille, 150 Gasser Rd., Wisconsin Dells, is a massive LEGO® masterpiece that was created by a full-time LEGO artist. […]
One glide of a lifetime, in hot air ballooning epicenter
Paul Petrehn flies like the wind, and in one hour I catch the drift about how, where and why. “Welcome to my office,” he says, […]
GEMmy Awards: for excellent, under-the-radar travel stops
“Outstandingly good or special in some respect.” That is how my dictionary defines the word “gem,” and I am a proud member of an organization […]
Cheesehead tours: See where they’re made
Word of the day is “schmivitz,” and there is no dictionary definition. Yet. The term comes from the same guy who cut couch cushion foam […]
Offbeat bars: Le Tigre, John Bryant’s, Cleo’s, more
Inside a plain-jane strip mall, between a hardware store and compact ethnic grocery, is a cat house of sorts. One with low lights, cash-only transactions […]
Take Ten: World of Guinness
The coming and going of St. Patrick’s Day is reason enough to hoist a Guinness, the Irish-made stout that has been around at least 260 […]
Lake Winnebago sturgeon flashbacks, folk art
Mary Lou Schneider, thanks for the flashbacks. On a wintry Sunday morning in the 1960s. I walk two blocks from church to the little general […]
Take Twelve: Halloween haunts, carnival to saloon
Time for another ghoulishly good time as the approach of Halloween brings out goblins and gore galore. Haunted houses aren’t the only option for scaring […]
Spy-themed SafeHouse opens in Chicago
Two blocks west of Chicago’s Magnificent Mile, a red door with understated signage is our introduction to international espionage. Plus lunch. What we step into […]