I had planned to go into the office today but couldn't get into the building so I went on a little ride. My first stop was unplanned -
I rolled to a stop when I thought the bike had broken down. Fuel petcock was not turned to the on position. I can add that to the "Dumb Things I Keep Doing" list.
Right next to the park was this old historic covered bridge. No longer in use for traffic it is parallel to the road for walkers -
Both of these locations are north of the city. With that in mind I took a long ride back into the city. The first stop was along Lincoln Memorial Drive -
This is the road that wraps along Milwaukee's lakefront. This is a steep descent down to all the beaches, marina, restaurants, Summerfest grounds and museums that dot our Lake Michigan shoreline.
Next stop is the Milwaukee Art Museum -
This shot shows the new edition named the Calatrava with the wings extended. The wings close when the museum is closed or if the winds are too high. I don't know if the new edition is actually called the Calatrava but that's what all the locals call it. It is the name of the architect who designed it. I love the look of the building from the water.
This is part of the dancing fountains outside the art museum -
Connecting the art museum to the city is this skywalk -
Milwaukee is built on large bluff that overlooks the lake. Around here everyone calls Lake Michigan "the Lake". The skywalk lets you park your car in the city proper and walk over to the museum.
A view of the city skyline and a photo of our tallest building -
Not a massive cityscape for sure but Milwaukee is a very beautiful city especially in the summer. People are cooped up all winter long and when the warmer weather hits the lakefront and city is very active. The best view of the city is coming up from the south over the Hoen bridge. Not allowed to stop on the bridge so no pics to share. The tall building is the US Bank building. Sorry I don't have stats on how tall and I'm sure it would be just average to small in a major city but this is our best for now.
The lakefront -
This is just north of the beach. Too crowded today to get any closer for a photo of all the activity. What I like about living here is the city's lakefront is developed for public use. There are no private residences or office buildings on our lakefront.
The North Avenue Water Tower -
I'm embarrassed to admit that I don't know the history of this building but it is a famous landmark in the city. There is a plaque on the building, I should read it sometime.
Water Street -
This road is where I would've have taken you if you were my guest 15 years ago. It is where all the hoppin' nightlife occurred and where I would get my drink on. Picture this road closed off and swarmed with people and covered in snow. When the Packers won the super bowl I was part of the crowd. Fun memories. Don't know if is still the place to be anymore, don't go out on weekend nights so much these days.
The Bradley Center -
Home of the Bucks, Admirals and Marquette Warriors... I mean Golden Eagles. Used to be home to the Milwaukee Mustangs arena football team. If you've never been to an arena football game do so if you get the chance. Just don't be a football purist or you won't enjoy yourself.
Turner Hall -
After the game at the Bradley Center you can walk across the street to many different establishments for a late night meal or drink. One of my favorites is Turner Hall built out of cream city brick the building just oozes history. A bit of Trivia in the basement of Turner Hall is a gymnastics hall and rock climbing gym. It's where I learned to rock climb.
Old World Third Street -
Just on the river this street is home to Mader's Restaurant, great German cuisine. Note the old brick streets.
The Harley Davidson Museum -
Just south of the main city in a new development area is the Harley Museum. Haven't gone inside yet but the outside looks very cool and industrial. Serena and I briefly considered having our wedding reception here, very briefly.
Miller Park -
Here is the home of the Milwaukee Brewers. The stadium isn't too far from my house, a few miles at best. I would have gotten better and closer photos but there was a game on today and this is about as close as I could get without causing a fuss with the lot attendants. I'm not much of a baseball fan but I enjoy going to a game or two each season and this stadium is fantastic. A cool piece of trivia in the parking lot there is a small baseball stadium with bleachers for different local tournaments. The field for this smaller stadium sits where old County Stadium used to be until it got torn down to make way for Miller Park.
Miller Brewery -
Can't have a tour of Milwaukee without a brewery tour! While I'm no fan of Miller or Budweiser beers the impact of the brewery is huge to my city. This is just the tip of the iceberg as the brewery is a huge campus that snakes around many, many blocks. If you visit and are curious about brewery tours by all means take the Miller tour. Just don't forget to book tours for Sprecher and Lakefront brewery as well. Matter of fact take the Lakefront Brewery tour on a Friday afternoon and afterwards sit down for an authentic Friday fish fry in a large hall while a live polka band is playing. You can't get more Milwaukee than that!
This tour focused on the north and east parts of the city, there is much more to see and do if you every visit. Hope you enjoyed your visit!
