Here's the text of an e-mail that delegate Muriel Crabbs sent me on Friday, along with a photo she took. I spoke to her tonight, and she told me more are on the way.
There is a significant rivalry between the twin cities of Minneapolis and St Paul. St. Paul can be described as quaint with lovely old neigorhood whiles its neighbor across the river is a bustling skyline of fabulous skyscrapers. One writer said that if the cities were coffee, St. Paul would be decaf and Minneapolis expresso. The prairie home companion Garrison Keillor lives in St. Paul. The edgy comedian/politian, Al Franken has his home in Minneapolis. The cities are seperated by the mighty Mississippi and connected by a series of bridges, each no longer than a few city blocks. From down town to down town is a mere ten miles. Having arrived a few days early, I am staying with a friend who lives in Minneapolis and works in St. Paul. The drive takes her about 18 minutes, 20 minutes if during rush hour.
The Republican convention is technically in St. Paul, the capital of Minnesota but attendees to the convention are filling up all available space in both cities.
Everyone in Minnesota says "you betcha" in that norwegianie accent. And the folks in the twin cities are saying it alot in preparation for the onslaught of Republican conventioneers. The concourse of the Minneapolis St Paul Airport is decorated with legions of basketball sized red white and blue balloons. A gigantic American flag painted on a hillside greets travelers motoring along the thoroughfare from the airport to the twin cities. And most welcoming of all, the town councils of the two cities have voted to allow the bars to stay open until four in the morning during the week of the convention. You betcha!
Attached is a glimpse of the Minneapolis skyline. More photos to come. Muriel Anne Crabbs
Leave a comment