I flew into Wisconsin a day before the Club Scrap Retreat began to do some sightseeing. We had a wonderful drive from our hotel in Neenah out to the Wisconsin Dells. It was a beautiful drive through farm lands and quaint small towns - including Ripon which boasts being the birthplace of the Republican Party. It was amazing to us California gals to have these farms with barns and silos just outside of town. I could imagine myself living on one... but it's probably a lot harder than I imagine, especially after the snow falls! Wisconsin Dells seems to be a big tourist town - a zillion amusement parks and water-slide parks and the usual tourist type shops. We did eat lunch at a really great little place that seemed more California than Wisconsin! The Ducks take you on a tour through woods and on the Wisconsin River - it was quite entertaining. My friend Ruth Ann took most of the photos since she has a better camera and sat on the outside edge of the Duck. She's going to share those with me... she even got a shot of the Piggly Wiggly market for me -- OMG they do exist!
If you look close in the little rear-view mirror you can see our driver/tour guide. He was great - and serves in the National Guard and drives Ducks in the summer months. Click on the photos to see them bigger!
Thursday before Retreat registration we hit the scrapbooking stores in the Appleton area and then Wilmar Chocolates (even the sugar free varieties are delicious) and finally out to Simon's Cheese Factory for grilled cheese sandwiches and a whole bag of yummy popcorn for only 25 cents! Heaven. Ruth Ann has my photo at the cheese factory... sitting on a cow (just a fake one)! The photo below is of the candy room at Wilmar's. The gal is getting the mold ready for the custom chocolate bars - you pick out your own ingredients and get it custom made. The smell in that room is to die for doncha know?
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