Rewind Activity Time: Museum of Fine Arts

Earlier in the summer, I was able to check a key activity off of my Boston to-do list: visit the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA). Especially on some of the hottest days around the City, it seemed like a logical activity. Beat the heat and take in some art. Overall, the experience ended up being only so-so. Here’s why.

MFA

1.  The line on the weekends is insane.

I waited outside in the heat for an hour an a half just to get into the actual ticket line. Granted, I probably could have been a jerk and just jumped into the inside line by faking my membership status. However, I don’t approved of that. So I waited.

2.  The air conditioning inside the museum was not on full blast.

I guess it was just an assumption on my part to think that the MFA would have the air on the coolest setting. It wasn’t hot but it wasn’t cold. Some of that may have had to do with the crowds. I’m sure that part of that was just my previous experience in museums in Texas, where the air has to be on high.

Part of the Chihuly Exhibit

3.  The special exhibit was a zoo.

The biggest selling point for a visit to the MFA on the weekend was the special Chihuly exhibit. I had heard great things, and the exhibit was about to end. Now, this particular exhibit was so popular that the guests were given times to enter it, to reduce crowds. Managing the crowds is especially important for an exhibit that is all handblown glass sculptures. Unfortunately, people did not move the through the exhibit as expected – and bottlenecks in the exhibit area were incredibly uncomfortable. I would love to see this exhibit again if it’s at another museum. Maybe I’ll have more time to take it in because what I saw was incredible.

Overall, I thought it was an interesting museum and I didn’t get through even half of the exhibits. Although my best advice after this experience is to either get a membership OR visit on a weekday and get there when the museum opens. I’ll be sure to note how my next visit goes….

How I Re-Met My State: Minnesota State Fair

A few weeks ago, I headed back to my homeland Minnesota to visit family and friends. While I was there, the State Fair was just finishing up it’s 12-day tour. Every year since the 1940s, Minnesotans gather at the Fair Grounds to eat the best food, see some exciting shows and ride the ferris wheel. It’s a prime event to try some insanely weird food as well. While I’ve heard the East Coast has something called the Big E, I couldn’t miss my chance to really connect with my roots (and eat some greasy fair food).

And eat I did!

The official list of the items I sampled or ate in whole include: pork chop on a stick, sweet martha’s cookies, bacon on a stick, deep fried gator, turkey jerky, homemade lemonade, pickle dog, fire dog, cheese curds, birch beer, funnel cake, popcorn, deep fried oreo, carmel apple sundae, fajita burrito and roasted corn.

It was an epic taste fest – and out of everything I was able to try, I would say that my favorite food was the fried alligator. It tasted very similar to Burger King chicken nuggets. Or at least it had the same seasoning and batter.

The one item that I was surprised about was the fried oreo. I think oreos are ok; they are much better with milk. However, my family and I got a batch straight out of the fryer and it was warm, soft and sweet. I could only handle one but it was delicious.

Besides the food, the Midway is fun for kids but definitely not as magical as an adult. I have a very different memory of the rides from when I was a kid. The horse show area was fun with a group, mostly because we played betting games on the different competitions. Big winner got a whole bunch of quarters!

Honestly, there was so much to do and so much food to try, there was no way I could do it all in one day. It was a great chance for me to really get back to feel at home and remember why I like Minnesota.

If you ask me in the winter, though, I might have a different story. When else can you get hot dish on a stick besides the summer?

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