M for Midpoint

Even in the progress of a goal, there are important benchmarks worth noting.  I've often told people that one of my goals is to visit all 50 US state capitols.

I recently reached the midpoint of that goal, in an aptly named place.

On the evening of Friday, August 18, I started the journey toward reaching that midpoint.  I journeyed from Oak Park to Madison, WI, where I spent the night with my good friend Matthew.  I was so glad to reach his place after encountering a literal parking lot due to an incident on the US 12-18 Beltline.

The next morning, I was awake a few minutes after 7 AM. After having a light breakfast, I was in Avila by 9 AM and on my way. Google Maps had me drive on US Route 12 for a while headed northwest from Madison.  It was lovely to drive through farm country.  Near Wisconsin Dells, I got on I-94, headed in a northwesterly direction.  Between noon and 1 PM, I stopped at the Culver's in Baldwin for a quick lunch of a beef pot roast sandwich along with some dried seaweed I brought with me.

Right before 1 PM, I encountered a major traffic jam in Hudson, just east of the crossing into Minnesota.  I pulled off and checked traffic using Wifi at a Starbucks.  I managed to find a way from a frontage road onto I-94 and then over the St. Croix River into Minnesota, and then off at the first exit and onto another frontage-type road until I got past the point of construction on I-94 that had funneled traffic into one westbound lane.

Around 1:45, I arrived in St. Paul, taking in splendid views of the impressive domes of the Minnesota State Capitol and the Cathedral of St. Paul.  After winding around for a few minutes, I found a suitable parking spot a couple blocks from the Minnesota State Capitol.  As I got closer, it looked even more stately, especially in its position on a hill.

Here's the Minnesota State Capitol as viewed from the northwest looking southeast across University Avenue.  Please note that all photos in this post are mine unless otherwise stated.

I made it inside in time for the 2 PM tour, the last Saturday tour time.  Right before the tour started, I walked into the gift shop and got the stamp in my capitol passport booklet as I announced that I had reached the midpoint of my goal.

We started by looking around in the rotunda of the capitol.  On the floor was a star.  Our tour guide pointed out that Minnesota is the only state with a motto in French.  Nearby in one of the hallways was a model of the capitol composed of Lego pieces.

Looking up into the dome from the rotunda

The Star on the floor of the rotunda

Toward the top of this photo are murals higher up in the rotunda.

Lego model of the capitol

Next in our tour, we visited the State Supreme Court Chamber (please see photo below), and learned more about the court's work and the design of the room.  After years of build-up from cigar smoke, the paintings were restored to their original glory.

Subsequently, we went to the gallery of the state House of Representatives Chamber--please see photo below.  Featured above the speaker's chair is an Abraham Lincoln portrait.  While sitting in the chamber, I recalled that a former member of the Minnesota House was the son of a couple who lived on the block where I grew up.

The last part of our tour went to the outdoor observatory deck.  Featured prominently was the "Progress of State" sculpture, made of copper and covered in gold leaf, also known as the Quadriga, because of its four-horse chariot.  Many people in our group posed for photos by it.  There were great views all around, toward Minneapolis, toward the Mississippi River, and, of course, the Cathedral of St. Paul.

Looking west toward Minneapolis, with the skyline off in the distance

This view looks south toward the south side grounds of the capitol, and the Cathedral of St. Paul appears to the right.

The Quadriga statue

We were done shortly by 3 PM.  I looked around a little more inside before heading out to the grounds back into the hot, sticky day. There was an Asian food fest and market past the south lawn of the capitol. 

Directly above is a view from the glass elevator, and the shaft of the elevator is directly below.

The Minnesota State Senate Chamber

Looking down at the rotunda floor from one level above

Outside the Minnesota Governor's Office

A fellow visitor got this photo of me with the ground level of the rotunda appearing behind me.

Another fellow visitor photographed me outside the south side of the capitol.

Asian Food Fest and Market

The Minnesota State Capitol, as viewed from the south looking north

Another close-up view of the Quadriga

I then walked back to where I parked Avila and drove to the Minnesota Science Museum, which has a visitor's center for the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area--please see the photo below.  I got a stamp there for my NPS passport.  

As I wound around the nearby streets to head west, I saw the George Latimer Central Library of the St. Paul Public Library, and I stopped inside to refill my water bottle and admire the spaces.

Exterior of the George Latimer Central Library

Inside the George Latimer Central Library

View from the Central Library looking south toward the Mississippi River

Around 4 PM, I was at the Cathedral of St. Paul--please see the photo directly below.  The Cathedral is quite an impressive building from the views I got of it at a distance, and just as much so being there.  It doesn't have a long nave, and perhaps that feature of the building makes its dome even more magnificent.  I was truly in awe approaching it and then being inside.

The inside was splendid with lots of ornate features.  I was particularly drawn to verses from the Psalms inside the bottom rim of the dome.  Behind the main altar were side chapels dedicated to different saints.  And there were plenty of statues, including the four evangelists, and St. Paul, of course.  Since Mass was at 5:15, I had plenty of time to wander around admiring the interior of the Cathedral.  The Mass had a very elevated feel to it that matched the grandeur.  Following Mass, I lingered outside so I could find someone to get my photo by the Cathedral.

Interior of the Cathedral of St. Paul

Close-up of the high altar

The organ is behind the high altar.

I am unable to recall which saint is at this smaller altar behind the high altar.  There were many other smaller altars behind the high altar.

Looking toward the south transept

St. Joseph side altar

Side altar for the Blessed Virgin Mary

Here I am near the statue of St. Paul, in the photo above.  In the photo below, I pose with the altar appearing behind me.  I thank the fellow visitor who took these photos of me.

IN the parking lot outside the Cathedral to the south, the dome of the Minnesota State Capitol appears to the right, off in the distance.

Here I am outside the south side of the Cathedral, in a photo taken by a fellow visitor.

Then I wandered along Summit Avenue, with many resplendent homes, including the home of James Hill, a railroad tycoon--please see the photo below.  

Realizing that it wouldn't be a quick walk to the Mississippi River, I went back to Avila and then drove to the Smith Avenue Bridge across the river.  Once I found a parking spot, I decided to walk over the bridge to get the views, and I ended up crossing over and back, the first time I walked over the Mississippi River.

Looking downstream, in a northeasterly direction, over the Mississippi River on the Smith Avenue Bridge

The Smith Avenue Bridge, looking in a southeasterly direction from the northern side

The upstream view of the Mississippi River from the Smith Avene Bridge

The sunset over the Mississippi River

Here I pose with the St. Paul skyline, photographed by a biker who kindly took my photo. You can see the domes of the Cathedral of St. Paul and the Minnesota State Capitol.

It was after 7 PM when I finished my walk, and I was ready to meet my friend Kassie and her husband Sean.  I first met Kassie three years ago as part of a faith-sharing group when they were in Chicagoland.  I drove about 15 minutes to an area west of downtown St. Paul to their apartment.  Once I got settled, Kassie and I went out to eat at Shish, a Middle Eastern/Mediterranean restaurant.  

My chicken wrap for dinner

The exterior of Shish

I hadn't seen Kassie in person since she and her husband went to the Twin Cities when she started graduate school last summer, so it was great sharing a fabulous meal and catching up.  After visiting for a little bit back at their apartment, I went to sleep.

The next morning, on Sunday, August 20, I joined Kassie and Sean for 9 AM Mass at their home parish, St. Mark, which was about a mile away from their residence.  There was a marked difference in temperature and humidity from the day before as we stepped out.  The Church had a rather medieval look.

Inside St. Mark's Church

Outside St. Mark's Church

Back at their apartment, we had breakfast, featuring French toast and bacon.  It was a continued time of good fellowship with them, and their cat.

My breakfast, with French toast topped by a berry topping, bacon, and hash browns

The St. Paul neighborhood where Kassie and Sean live

Shortly past noon, I got myself packed up and into Avila, and I departed for my return to Chicagoland.  I stopped at a Dollar Tree in a shopping area near I-94 where I successfully found something I hadn't been able to find in Chicagoland.  After mailing some postcards at a nearby post office, I got on I-94, which would be my route for a while.  I drove through downtown St. Paul, admiring the buildings.  And then it was on to the rural areas east of the Twin Cities, and then, at the St. Croix River crossing, I bade farewell to Minnesota as I headed into Wisconsin.  I continued an audiobook with speeches of First Ladies.  Around 4 PM, I put my phone on speaker and visited with my friends.  Around 5:30, I stopped in Edgerton to get a sweet creamy drink at the World's Largest Culver's--please see the photo below.

It wasn't too long after that stop that I reentered Illinois.  By 7:30, I was back in Oak Park, and when I saw an ice cream truck, I pulled over to get a treat from it before returning to homebase shortly before 8 PM.

While pursuing a goal, it's important and certainly worthwhile to take note of benchmarks along the way, because the process is just as important as achieving the goal itself.  I have so much to reflect on now that I've reached the halfway point of seeing 50 state capitols.  I had thought it would happen elsewhere earlier in the year, and yet I realize reaching this benchmark in St. Paul, MN, was so apt.  And while reaching this midpoint is great in itself, I have a lot to celebrate when I think of what I've gained along the way.

Each capitol is like a museum showcasing what's unique about that state, and a working museum at that.  It's great to visit each capitol and consider what's special about a particular state and how it contributes its part to making the USA what it is.  Many capitols, like Minnesota's, are grand, domed buildings perched on a hill, although some I've visited don't have domes.  Even with all the domes, there are certain idiosyncratic architectural touches that set them apart from others.  During many of these visits, I've gone on a guided tour, and I appreciate what the guides share that helps me learn more about that particular state.  I'm glad that I did a guided tour on this trip, because it gave me the opportunity to take in the spectacular views from the observatory level of the Minnesota State Capitol.  Furthermore, taking a walk by the Mississippi River later in the day gave me a new view of a river that is an important geographical marker of the USA, and certainly for Illinois.

It's notable to ponder the progress I've made in this goal, especially considering that it took some effort to visit some of those state capitols.  Often, I could include a visit to a capitol while en route to somewhere else, like several capitols I visited during a family road trip to Colorado over 20 years ago, or even when I visited Roy in the Pacific Northwest.  I have also included state capitol visits as part of sightseeing in a certain area, like when I visited Austin or Lansing.  I owe a lot of credit to my family for their willingness to stop at some of those state capitols on our family vacations in my pre-college years.  In the past 10 years, the vast majority of those capitol visits have been on my own.  Some of the hectic parts of this trip, like the two traffic jams on the way there, speak to the amount of effort I've put into visiting these capitols as a way to appreciate what they showcase.

Considering that I've pursued this goal since elementary school, it's only appropriate to think of how it speaks to my path through life.  I became intensely interested in geography back in 2nd grade, reading lots of books about the states from the library, and traveling all over the country virtually in the Where in the USA is Carmen Sandiego? Amtrak version computer game.  (The site for Minnesota in that game was in St. Paul.)  My interest in geography has continued, motivating me to visit other places and connect with what's unique about them, both the sites and certainly the people.

Furthermore, I think about the relationships I've forged throughout my life.  I met Kassie in a faith-sharing group that was part of something Ascension Parish did during Lent 2020.  That relationship has continued now that she's pursuing a new opportunity for graduate school in the Twin Cities.  Having the chance to reconnect with her and Sean during this trip gave it a special personal touch, as well as my overnight stay with Matthew.  Reconnecting with people I know has been a common part of so many of my travels in the past few years.

And, of course, in the past 10 years, I've sought to actively incorporate spiritual elements into each trip.  It was only fitting that I visit the Cathedral of St. Paul, which not only speaks to me on a personal level, but also speaks to what faith is about and what the Church is about and how I can take my part in upholding it as I consider one of its foundational figures in a place named for him.

Regarding capitol buildings, I've heard the story that President Lincoln insisted that construction of the dome on the US capitol in Washington, D.C., continue even in the midst of the Sectional War of the 1860s.  He remarked that if people saw the dome's work progress, they would have faith the USA could withstand the difficulty of war.  A columnist in The Chicago Tribune reflected on how capitol buildings reflect something about us.

Upon reaching this midpoint, I realize that in visiting 25 state capitols, I have gained new perspective about each part of this country through each visit and, even more so, on the whole of the nation, and even on myself and my place in the USA.

Everyone in my capitol tour group was posing for photos by the Quadriga statue.  I eventually decided to relieve the tour guide and be the photographer.  One of those fellow visitors offered to photograph me.  So here I post with part of the Quadriga to the left and the Cathedral of St. Paul to the right.