Loving Madison

Love WI

I recently visited Madison, WI and although I feel like I barely explored it, there was a lot to love!

Here are a few of my favorite things:

  • A local described Wisconsin as “the Silicon Valley of cheese” and I think he was right – so much cheese! Cheese everywhere! The little cheese shop just a couple of doors down from where I stayed was like stepping into cheese lover’s heaven so it’s probably a good thing I didn’t visit until I was on my way to the airport…
  • The Madison B-Cycle program has 35 B-cycle stations with 350 bikes throughout the downtown area – people can sign up for a membership and enjoy unlimited bike rides whenever they want! Plus, the bikes are cute: red with baskets.
  • A very vibrant downtown filled with young people enjoying the end of the semester.
  • The capitol building is beautiful and surrounded by grassy lawns that people lounge on in the sunshine.
  • Lots of good restaurants: I tried Peruvian food (fried quinoa with plantains – so good!) for the first time, grabbed lunch at a restaurant serving only locally grown foods, and sat at a charming restaurant bar sampling the bartender’s favorite dishes.
  • Randomly, a couple on stilts in fancy clothes were wandering the streets one night.
  • Lakes and trails every where!
  • I woke up to a saxophone being played outside my window one morning – apparently it signaled the opening of a huge, awesome farmer’s market overflowing with flowers, produce, and…. cheese!

There were a few things I didn’t get to do: Visit Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin, have a beer on the terrace outside the memorial union building, or see a covered bridge. Next time – I definitely hope to return to Madison for more exploring someday!

I’ll leave you with a Madison cheese poem from the sidewalk sign outside cheese shop paradise:

Sweet dreams are made of cheese

Who am I to diss a brie

I cheddar the world and the feta cheese

At Fromogination we celebrate Wisconsin cheese!

Author: Gretchen Fauske

I love Anchorage. I love what it is, what it's been, and what I dream it will be. I share my adventures with DJ (my husband), my fabulous family and friends, two frenchies named Grover and Teddy, and now, all of you. If you love Anchorage too, get in touch - guest posts are welcome!