This past summer I got to spend five days having a little reunion in Milwaukee with my friends, Trisha and Dani. We met when we were living in Japan and the last time all three of us got together was in New York four years ago. Dani, who is British, has spent the last year on a work assignment in Portland so we took advantage of her being state side to visit Trisha in Milwaukee.

We decided to go at the end of June/beginning of July so that we could go to Summerfest. With eleven stages and lasting for eleven days it is the world's largest music festival. We went every night while we were there seeing a crazy variety of acts including Pitbull, Cake, NKOTB, Far East Movement and Boys II Men. It was a great atmosphere and we had an awesome time dancing and enjoying the performances.

View of Summerfest from Marcus Ampitheater

We spent a great deal of time relaxing in restaurants and chatting. We made an art out of eating brunch as well as making frequent stops for afternoon appetizers. I definitely did not go hungry while we were there.

Bloody Mary Trio at The Comet Cafe

While we were in Milwaukee the three of us decided to go skydiving at Skydive Milwaukee. Trisha and her husband had done a Level 1 AFF jump recently and Trisha was excited to go again so Dani and I went with her to do tandem jumps while she did a Level 2 jump. I had never gone before and it was a really neat experience. I couldn't believe how beautiful it was to look over the landscape with an unobstructed view. It was very surreal.

Me Tandem Skydiving Over Milwaukee (picture from Skydive Milwaukee)

We stopped at the Milwaukee Public Market twice while we were in town. We headed there a for wine tasting at Thief Wine which was a lot of fun. We each got a different flight of red wines and tried each other's selections. While we were at the market for the wine tasting we saw the $13.95 lobster dinner special at St. Paul Fish Company so we decided to head back there for dinner a few days later. Delicious!

Milwaukee Public Market

Since Harley Davidson was founded in Milwaukee we had to stop at the Harley Davidson Museum while we were in town. Starting from the power cycle that William S. Harley and Arthur Davidson built in 1903 the museum traced the company's history through the decades. Not being a motorcycle rider I learned a lot of interesting things while I was there. One if the coolest unexpected things for me was that a lot of the very early motorcycles had white tires.

Dani, Me and Trisha at the Harley Davidson Museum

No visit to Milwaukee would be complete without taking a brewery tour so we headed to Lakefront Brewery. Started in 1987 by the Klisch brothers, the brewery has grown over the past twenty-five years reaching a production of over thirty three thousand barrels of beer last year. The tour was very relaxed and fun and we really enjoyed the beer as well.

Filling Kegs at the Lakefront Brewery

On not one, but two afternoons, we relaxed in the sun at Bradford Beach. The beach had a tiki hut with drinks and food and lots of volleyball courts as well. We rented chairs and a cabana and had a great time soaking up the beautiful weather, taking naps and reading. I wish Ann Arbor had a beach! (and a tiki hut!)

Bradford Beach on a Sunny Day

Trisha and I felt it was our duty to have Dani try some classic things that she as a Brit had never tried before like Wisconsin fried cheese curds and PBR. Isn't she lucky to have Trisha and I as friends?

PBR Tall Boys

One of our afternoon stops was to visit the Milwaukee Art Museum. We saw a great special exhibit, 30 Americans, which featured contemporary African American artists and then wandered around the permanent collection. My favorite thing was the Quadracci Pavilion itself. From the outside with its moveable, wing-like sunscreen to the inside with 90-foot-high glass ceilings and lovely views of the lake, it is really a stunning piece of architecture.

Quadracci Pavilion's Windhover Hall at the Milwaukee Art Museum

Although all the sights were awesome we really enjoyed the city itself. We walked all over the place clocking between six to nine miles each day. The Historic Third Ward was especially lovely with its beautiful brick buildings.

Mural on the Mercantile Building in the Historic Third Ward

All in all, the three of us had an awesome time together. It's no wonder that Trisha loves living in Milwaukee. Now we need to make some plans to visit Dani in Portland before she is done with her work assignment!