Backyard Adventures
Maria and I both saw it on TV. It was a video touting how cool Middleton, Wisconsin is. And though it was convincing, we've seen this type of commercial before. Our little Hartford has a slick presentation that gives the impression that you may want to pay us a visit someday. And you should! Like I said, every place can be cool. We weren't risking much since Middleton isn't far from us--it's in our "backyard."
"Let's go check it out," Maria suggested, and I was happy to oblige. We consulted the map and noticed that it wasn't one of those stand-alone hubs of a farming community featuring an ancient main street with old storefronts and a solid, presumptuous bank building on one corner. My phone map showed Middleton, Wisconsin as a suburb of its big sister, Madison.
"Yeah, why not?" I answered. We may discover something new, I thought, and hey--it's near Madison anyway; we can go there if Middleton is a bust. The ride to Middleton is less than 90 minutes from Hartford, a smooth trip that takes you through beautiful farmland with corn and soy fields, barns and silos, and slows you down as you pass through one of those old hubs (Columbus), and roll down its ancient main street with all the trimmings,
We arrived in Middleton and weren't surprised that the area was a typical suburb of a larger city. We were a little disoriented, and after a couple of left and right turns through some pretty neighborhoods, we pulled into gas station and asked a woman and her son where the "old downtown" might be. "Follow me," she said, putting her car in gear. "I'll take you there." We followed her to the city center where they waved goodbye to us at a stop light. We parted ways and set out to explore Middleton.
After lunch, we explored, and we discovered a few other interesting places--a pretty fountain in a square and a historical site. We poked our heads into the Longtable Beer Cafe and marveled at the "wall of beer" that held different brews for sale in bottles--local brews as well as beer from around the world.
"Just looking," we told the friendly man stocking the case, and we snapped a photo of the massive display.
R. Westbrook Mercantile is a quaint clothing and accessory shop for men, and while in there, I tried on a nice Stetson hat that caught my eye. We had a pleasant conversation with the owner while we were there, as well.
We were drawn into the Hubbard Street Bakery and decided to sit down for a slice of pie and some coffee. My Colectivo brand coffee was delicious; Maria selected an Irish variety (with a wee bit of extra something), and we both shared a hefty slice of caramel apple walnut pie. The Art Deco interior of the cafe fascinated us, and I was certain the place had been a drugstore at one time; I could tell where the soda fountain was located. I was wrong, though. We asked around, and the young lady at the counter informed us that the interior was created in 1999. They had me fooled.
Maria and I finished our new city exploration by stopping at The Regal Find, an eclectic gift shop with very friendly staff--the owner, Jessica Regele, and the young lady at the register. We chatted, made a purchase of some earrings for Maria, and we were done.
Our visit to Middleton was a pleasant one. It wasn't Las Vegas, of course, not even close. But there was gambling nearby--the Ho-Chunk casino in Madison. Maria mentioned more than once on this trip that she wanted to stop there. It was on the way home, so we dropped in for a few minutes.
I have to give props to the Middleton promoters (perhaps the folks at Visit Middleton?) and the video that drew us to your community. While there, we also learned about the many other attractions your city has to offer, things we didn't have time to see or do on this visit: live music, arts fests, and beautiful nature areas for hikes. That's OK, though, because we'll be happy to return.