St. Paul 2018

Before leaving the State of Minnesota, I wanted to spend a few hours in St. Paul, the State’s Capitol before heading back to Chicago. My first stop was downtown at the Pioneer Press Building, which is home to the Minnesota Museum of American Art. And displayed over Robert Street is Laura Brown's “New Ideas Need Old Buildings” skyway installation. This installation is temporary, and there are others like it throughout downtown. Of course, no visit to St. Paul is complete without a stop at the Minnesota State Capitol building. The last time I visited St, Paul, the building was under construction and most of it was covered up. So this was indeed a worth while stop for me. One of the highlights at the Capitol building is “The Progress of the State”, usually referred to as “The Quadriga”. “Progress of the State” sits above the south portico, at the main entrance to the Minnesota State Capitol. The pineapples emerging from the hub of the chariot wheels are a symbol of hospitality. The forward motion of the group suggests the future progress of the state of Minnesota. Also on the Capitol grounds is the Hubert H. Humphrey Memorial. For those who don’t know, Humphrey was an American politician who served as the 38th Vice President of the United States from 1965 to 1969. He twice served in the United States Senate, representing Minnesota from 1949 to 1964 and 1971 to 1978. He was also the Democratic Party's nominee in the 1968 presidential election, losing to Republican nominee Richard Nixon. In the distance I spotted The Cathedral Of St. Paul, which I photographed.

My next stop was over to Landmark Center and Landmark Plaza. Inside Landmark Plaza are “Peanuts” sculptures of Linus Van Pelt and Sally Brown, Schroeder and Lucy Van Pelt and Charlie Brown and Snoopy. The sculptures are the works of Tivoli Too, and they honor “Peanuts” creator Charles Schulz, who was born in Minneapolis and raised in St. Paul. My last stop before leaving St. Paul was Harriet Island Regional Park. At the entrance to the park was a LimeBike dockless bike. I actually saw quite a few of them outside and around the park. As I entered the park, I spotted the Target performance stage to my right. The tall towers adjacent to the stage almost blends in with the downtown skyline. Further into the park, I work my way to the Riverwalk where I spotted the Minnesota Centennial Showboat sitting docked. The “Plaza De Honor” stands along with walkway with various flags representing the U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Army, U.S. Air Force, America and POW*MIA. Seeing this was the perfect end to my St. Paul visit.