Da Steakhouse-- Da Playoffs-- Da Pasty

Sunday, the 13th, we enjoyed the Don Q's complimentary breakfast sitting on some of the old barber chairs surrounding the huge circular fire pit in the lobby area.

One thing nice about the pool area is that we usually have it to ourselves. People in the Fanta-Suites aren't likely to venture out, and this is definitely not a place to bring your kids, so no screaming,yelling, and running.

Went across the street to Thym's for a delicious breakfast buffet for $7.99. Also enjoyed the $2 Bloody Mary. This place really decorates for Christmas and we were glad the decorations were still up.

Went to Jeffrey's for part of one playoff game. Much nicer today with fewer people and no euchre players. A little off subject here, but we find that another extremely unfriendly group are the little old ladies who play bingo. Don't get their ire up by talking. You wouldn't think they could be so nasty, but they sure are.

Got to sit at the bar and gab with the other folk. Saw the Chargers upset the Colts.

Then went to Dino's on, now here's truth in advertising, Diagonal Street, where we saw the start of the Giant-Cowboy game. Had a huge and delicious white cheese curd appetizer for $3.50. Would have liked to have ordered more, but we were still full from the breakfast buffet.

Watched the end of the New York victory at the room.

Da Pasty, Rhymes with Nasty

The next day, the 14th, we drove to Dubuque, stopping along the way for lunch at the old town of Mineral Point, the capital of Wisconsin when it was a territory. Much mining went on here in the 1800s and a lot of miners came over from Cornwall, England and settled. Of course, they bought their culture with them. Many of the structures in town and homes are Cornish. Several of the homes have been preserved in the Pendarvis State Historical site which isn't open during the winter.

Many of the Cornish settled in an area known as the Shake Rag, so named for the sound Cornish women made when they shook their cleaning rags to call their men home to eat.

We stopped at the Red Rooster Cafe which features fresh made Cornish pasties, the food the miners ate. You can get it either in the form of a big slice of pie or with the crust crimped over, the way the miners ate it. They'd best be described as a somewhat dry pot pie. The miners carried them to work, and would pull it out to eat without utensils.

Then, it was on to Dubuque, Iowa to see if the bald eagles were out and about. Continued.

Love This Cheesehead Land. --RoadDog

Da Q-- Da Pack

Continued to snow and flurry all the way to Dodgeville. However, the snow was sticking to the trees, nature was doing its painting. Absolutely beautiful.

Checked into the Don Q Inn and stayed in a regular room for $60. The place features numerous Fanta-Suites, but that's just not our thing anymore, after 34 years of marriage.

We stopped at a local Wal Mart to buy Packer apparel, but only found five tee shirts, despite the fact that just about everyone was in full Green Bay dress. Perhaps they had bought all the gear. Fortunately, we had Packer stuff with us, so blended in. Imagine a Wisconsin store with no Packer gear?

Drove to downtown Dodgeville, with the beautiful old Iowa County courthouse, the oldest operating one in the state and built in the 1840s. Across from it is a block with three Wisconsin bars. We hit all three. What better place to watch the Packers play than in a Wisconsin bar packed with Da Pack fans.

The first one was The Red Room. Nice bar, but an hour before the game, there were only about six people. We figured this wouldn't be much fun. After a drink, we went over to Jeffrey's Sports Bar. This place was so packed, we could only find seats at a table and would have had to go to the bar to get drinks. Even worse, there were quite a few unfriendly euchre players at the other tables. They were entranced with their game. Decided to leave.

Went to Jimmy's, and were the only ones in the place. Hey, what gives? This is Packer Country. Where are the Packer fans? A couple people came in and we watched the first five horrific minutes of the game when running back Hugh Grant fumbled twice and the Seahawks were up 14-0. What happened here?

Not much to cheer about, and not many folks to cheer with anyway. So we left and went back to The Red Room. Walking across the parking lot between the bars, we heard Jeffrey's erupt in cheering and yelling and figured the Pack must have scored. They had.

The Red Room was now full, but some folks moved so we were able to get a seats at the bar. From then on, we had a lot better time. Not only were the folks friendly, but also the Packers started dominating. Thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

Watched the first half of the New England game at the House on the Rock Inn and Thym's. The House on the Rock Inn is fairly new and epitomizes the North Woods with all the wood and exposed beams. In the bar area, there are three huge ship-of-the-line models hanging up by the ceiling.

Thyms is a traditional Wisconsin steakhouse, dating to the 1960s. This is always a definite stop when we visit the Dodgeville area. We didn't order anything, as were still too full from the meal in Mt. Horeb and all the snacking we did in the bars earlier.

Fun and Games in Cheesehead Land. --RoadDog