Duluth, MN '09

Our big trip north began bright and early as we all met at LEEP around 7:00 am. We arrived in Duluth shortly after lunch and got right down to business getting settled into our hotel rooms. Our first big adventure was hitting the Omnimax Theater to watch the "Mysteries of the Great Lakes". Everyone was amazed by how large the screen was! Day 2 was spent at the Lake Superior Zoo where we were able to see all sorts of animals! After a bit of shopping we headed down to Canal Park to do a little more shopping and then watched the Aerial Lift Bridge. Some of the crew was even brave enough to dip their toes in the FREEZING water! We finished our stay down at Canal Park by eating at Grandma's Restaurant.

The next day we woke up and the weather was crappy so we decided to go do some indoor shopping. Our lunch was going to be aboard the Vista Fleet Lunch Cruise and did a nice Duluth Harbor tour. To finish out our day we headed over to Glensheen Mansion where we were able to take in lots of really awesome art and architecture. We were all sad as the day came to a close because we knew we would be heading home. It was a great vacation and we all had an awesome time! We can't wait to

Indianapolis Speedway '09

On this trip traveled to Indianapolis, IN for one of the most exciting races of the NASCAR season! Our trip started with a nice drive across the Midwest en route to our final destination. On our first day in Indianapolis we went to the Brickyard and did a little shopping, ate, and then watched the practice runs. Our group was completely amazed by how fast the cars whipped by! Some of the guys even had their hats blow off in the wind! Day 2 the weather wasn't really cooperating too well so we headed over to the Indianapolis Zoo where the group enjoyed all of the animals and were even brave enough to touch the small sharks in a pool. We also got to watch a few movies in the IMAX theatre which was really cool! On our final day in Indianapolis it was finally time for the big race! We headed over to the Brickyard 500 to see our favorite drivers compete. When the race was over we did a little shopping, took some more pictures, and even kissed the brick finish line like the winning driver does after the race. It was a really great experience and we all agreed we couldn't wait to do something like this again!

San Diego, California '09

Our trip began with a nice long flight out to San Diego. We took off from the Minneapolis Airport at 9:15 am and landed out in California around 11:30 Pacific time. The group headed off to the hotel to see if we could check in early. Unfortunately our rooms weren't quite ready so we decided to head down to Mission Beach for a little rest and relaxation! After soaking up some rays we did a little walk up and down the boardwalk. Everyone was really hot so we enjoyed some ice cream and cooled off with a nice treat. The next morning we got up bright and early and caught the shuttle over to the San Diego Zoo. While we were there we took a bus tour on a double decker bus where we could see the majority of the animals up close and personal. Some of the animals we saw were: elephants, lions, cheetah, giraffes, a giant panda, and SO many others. After we enjoyed a fun filled day at the zoo we headed back to the hotel to jump in the pool and cool off.

The next morning we headed out to Sea World where we got to see the well known Shamu show. It was quite an experience that everyone seemed to enjoy. We were also able to experience a dolphin show where we saw them doing lots of flips and tricks! Some other fun stuff was touching the starfish, touching the sting rays, and getting to see all of the sea creatures the park had to offer! We headed back to the hotel for the night and enjoyed a fun pizza party where we could all relax! On our final day in California we were lucky enough to drive out to the Wild Animal Park about 35 minutes from the city. We were able to see wildlife in their "natural" settings so that was lots of fun! It was sure hot out there but everyone liked it just the same. Before we headed back to the hotel we took the van over a HUGE bridge to do some site seeing over on Coronado Island. Everyone did a little shopping and got some great deals. We grabbed a quick bite and then headed back to the hotel to get packed and ready for the big trip home the next day. Everyone enjoyed their time together and no one could stop talking about how much fun they had!

Madison, WI '09

We hit the road early for Wisconsin this morning. We had so much to do and not a lot of time to get it done. Our first stop was at the Ho Chunic Casino where we had an AMAZING lunch. We even tried our luck at a little gambling, one of the group members even left with a $29 winning! Since we had been traveling all day we decided a pizza party sounded like the perfect way to end the evening. On our second day we went to the Capital Brewery to see how beer was made. That was really cool! Later that afternoon we headed down to State Street for a little shopping. Everyone made out with some really neat things so we headed off to Cheeseburger in Paradise restaurant! The next morning the weather was a little questionable so we changed plans and headed to the state capital for a nice tour. We had high hopes for hitting up the winery but unfortunately it was raining so we headed to House on the Rock instead. That was a pretty neat place to check out since there are so many memorable things there. One thing we all were impressed by was the carousel with 20,000 horse heads on it! On our final day out in Madison we headed to the zoo for some much needed animal interaction! We saw rhinos, camels, flamingos, as well as lions, tigers, and BEARS! Before calling it a day we finally got to check out the winery! This was an awesome experience for everyone and we even got to sample a few of the wines. Since it had been such a long day we headed back to the hotel and enjoyed a super fun pool party! The ride back to Mankato was a little sad since we all wanted to stay on vacation but we were thankful for all the fun we had while we were on vacation!