More work travel: Minneapolis
Spent the latter half of last week in the Minneapolis area, to do another node installation. The install went as well as could be expected, and we got in and out in about 5 hours, meaning we had a pretty good amount of free time before and after.
The flight both ways was on an Embraer E175. That plane’s a bit smaller than other planes I’ve ridden, but pretty comfortable given the extra inch of seatroom over a 737, with a bit better than 18 inches of width. Only a 31 inch pitch though, so not all that much legroom… but wasn’t bad all in all. Remembering to bring the PSP with helped pass the flight time, too.
We stayed at a Marriott right across from the Mall of America, but I opted not to go into it because I didn’t want to add to the stuff I’d be taking back home. The hotel was nice, and one of the guys traveling with us has the whole “elite” status thing that got us into the concierge lounge for freebie breakfasts and desserts, which was nice. I’ve started thinking about maybe signing up for some sort of meaningful rewards/elite program myself, based on the experience…
The first night we were there we went into downtown Minneapolis, right during rush hour and through a construction area. It was a bit rough, traffic-wise, but nothing compared to DC at 5 pm on a Friday. Apparently there was a Timberwolves game that drove the traffic levels up a bit. We ended up eating at this place called JD Hoyt’s, which is apparently fairly well-known, and is the home to an in-house charcoal grill and a ridiculous 2 inch thick porkchop. It’s insane, and was insanely good. I think that was about a $60 meal, between the beer and the food. We all definitely overate a bit, though, and I was definitely feeling a bit overfed and sluggish after that.
Second night we were there, we went into Saint Paul, and ate at a place called Great Waters brewery. Reasonably good food and pretty good beer, and it was cheaper and less overeating-inclined. I was pretty happy with it… think it was about a $35 meal with a couple beers.
We also had lunch at a pretty nice little place a mile or so away from the datacenter we worked in that was also a brewpub, but I wasn’t in the mood for beer so I couldn’t say how it was. I think overall on the trip I spent about $110 on food. Perdiem rate for 3 days is like $165, so I came out ahead still … even after adding on the cost of snacks, internet and my Friday night dinner at home I’m still coming out a bit ahead. That’s pretty nice.
Minneapolis and Saint Paul aren’t bad cities, as far as parts of the country I’ve been to go. A couple of nice highway vistas, reasonably nice friendly people, and a lot of brewpubs. I wouldn’t mind spending more time there…
Next trip: 3 weeks away, we’re going to Phoenix for yet another node installation.