Minnesota Day 1

Well...I am actually in Minnesota as I am typing this. I know it's hard to believe...and I must say it is very evident that I am a Southern girl through and through. There's no sweet tea here, it's cold, and the people certainly aren't hospitable as I am used to. However, I have enjoyed what I have seen so far, and I am looking forward to meeting good people tomorrow at my interview. Here are pictures from my first day:

I flew from Birmingham to Minneapolis and then down to Rochester. When I arrived at the Minneapolis airport, I was excited because this sign said it was 20 degrees. That's above zero, folks, compared to the below zero temperatures they had here last week!

Check out the snow they've pushed to the side of the road. This is more snow than I have ever seen in my life!

New white snow and old dirty snow on the way to Downtown Rochester

More snow. Alright, I got a little happy with the pictures of the snow, just in case I don't ever make it back to Minnesota.

According to the shuttle bus driver, Rochester is in the Guinness book of World Records because they have the largest ear of corn. That's actually a water tower. I thought it was cool. The people on the shuttle were looking at me like I was crazy for taking pictures. Oh well.

This place is called "Goonie's," which I thought was super-cool because of the movie. The line underneath the name is even cooler: "This place is no joke." It's a comedy club. :)

These are called "pedestrian skyways" here. These skyways link most of the downtown buildings together, so you don't have to go outside in the cold. It's really nice for people staying in local hotels that need to go to the Mayo Clinic.

So, this is inside the bathroom at my hotel room. Never before have I seen a kleenex box attached to the wall, nor have I seen a bottle opener in a hotel room on the door jamb. Thought these were both worthy enough to share, along with my lunch from today:

This pepperoni pizza slice was awesome. It was hot and gooey and cheesy. The water was free...check out how small the cup is. :)

Along with the yummy pizza, I looked around at some of the local shops close to my hotel and read the gossip mags at Barnes and Noble. Dinner was also yummy - a chicken quesadilla in one of the restaurants at the hotel. What can I say? It was COLD outside...it got down to 8 degrees tonight. The interview at Rochester is tomorrow morning very early. More tomorrow!