I have a friend in LA who wants to move to Minneapolis. I always thought he was nuts. Until I went there. It isn’t ranked the nation’s happiest places to live without reason.
Love city life? Minneapolis has a booming art scene. Culture is prevalent without having to search for it.
Love country life? Minneapolis is built around a ton of natural lakes. You can walk out your front door and take a jog around your nearest neighborhood watering hole. There are often more than one lakes to choose from, just steps from your home.
Love easy navigation? Minneapolis is built on a grid. Half the streets run in ascending numbers. The streets that run perpendicular to them ascend by letters of the alphabet. Feeling lost? If you’re at 1st and Apple St but need to get to 32nd and Hatha St, just count the blocks. (Those street names are made up, but you get the idea.) Everyone I met there was both happy and interesting. Win, win!
Looking for a place to stay? The hotels are reasonably priced, but were all booked by the time I bought by last minute plane ticket. So I went with AirBnB.com. If anyone is ever going for a visit in the twin cities, I recommend staying with Keith. His mom used to run a Bed & Breakfast while he was growing up, so he really has it down. Check out his place here: http://www.airbnb.com/rooms/27319
Here is a short list of some awesome people/places/things I saw & attended while in Minneapolis:
BareBones Puppet Theatre
live accompaniment by a skeleton orchestra
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America Dance Therapy Association (ADTA) Annual Conference
I attended a workshop hosted by Dr. Suzi Tortora & Dr. Martha Eddy: the 11th Early Childhood Forum: The Essential Knowledge for Dance Educators and Therapists
Lots of good review and a joy to meet Dr. Tortora. It was fun to listen to (and participate in) a story about being a rocket ship, blasting off into space, to accompany a developmental movement sequence she uses with kids.
Click picture to visit Dr. Suzi Tortora's website
Dr. Martha Eddy
I also discovered some new tools:
octaband
body sox
I also made some good connections. I didn’t get to meet her in person, but it was the first time Marylee Hardenbergh’s name was thrown my way. And ever since, people keep telling me I need to meet her. I’ll be excited when I finally do!
Click here for Marylee's Global Site Performance website!
After the Conference I moved on to a series of workshops, hosted again by Dr. Martha Eddy and Catherine Burns. We got to play with kids, review reflexes, and learn much more!
Visit Catherine Burns' website here.
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Walker Museum- Nathalie Djurberg
Last, but not least, I visited the Walker Art Museum and discovered artist Nathalie Djurberg. The entire room was filled with fantastical birds, claymation videos projected on the walls, while music reminiscent of a Tim Burton film filled the ears. This exhibit was one of the most inspiring things I’ve witnessed in a long, long time.
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If you’re interested in viewing a few snapshots I took on my phone, while wandering around, click here. Enjoy!
Celeste Ondreya 