[Magdalen] Roger 2015 (was Re: Where to go? - update)

[Scott Knitter]

It's definitely a Milwaukee thing to do. I also like the Mitchell Park
Conservatory, which has three domes housing vegetation of three
different climates: arid, humid, and perhaps in-between. And I don't
know why I haven't mentioned first and foremost the magnificent
Milwaukee Art Museum, Calatrava's wonder on the lakeshore.

Churches to visit are plentiful:

The Episcopal church I visit most often...my parish in Milwaukee, I
guess...is All Saints' Cathedral on Juneau Avenue. Anglo-Catholic but
somewhat more open and friendly than in decades past. I always feel
very welcome whether for Sunday 10 a.m. High Mass or a weekday 5:30 (I
think) Evening Prayer and possibly Low Mass. Times are worth checking
on their website. The cathedral is in a wonderful leafy neighborhood
that's good for strolling. You could find St. Paul's on Knapp Street,
an Episcopal church that's oddly very close to All Saints' Cathedral;
the proximity is due to churchmanship: St. Paul's was the low-church
alternative in a Biretta Belt diocese.

Interesting churches also include Frank Lloyd Wright's Annunciation
Greek Orthodox Church (9400 W Congress), St Stanislaus (Polish RC
renovated and run now by the Institute of Christ the King, Sovereign
Priest, a Latin-Mass group...but go for the architecture):
http://www.institute-christ-king.org/milwaukee/

And again I am remiss in not mentioning first of all St. Josaphat's
Basilica, a magnificent domed baroque explosion that I try to visit
every time I'm in town: http://thebasilica.org/  It's at 6th Street
and Lincoln Avenue. Numbered streets in Milwaukee are north-south
streets that increase in number the farther west they are from some
point near the lakeshore. Address numbers with "West" indicate the
nearest numbered street, so 9400 W Congress means the intersection of
94th Street and Congress Avenue. Makes a bit more sense than Chicago's
grid (our numbered streets indicate how far south one is from Madison
Street, so there are no numbered streets at all on the north side).
Sixth Street in Milwaukee happens to be a major route from the airport
into downtown.

Anyway, St. Josaphat's Basilica has in its history a pastor called Fr.
Knitter. Apparently he drove the church into the ground
financially...not so good with the $$$...and the Franciscans swooped
in and rescued the parish. Don't know if that's 100% accurate, but
that's the story I've heard. I also don't know whether Fr. Knitter was
an ancestor of mine or not. Perhaps we'd be distant cousins many times
removed.

Other typical Milwaukee things besides refreshing cold beer include
frozen custard, which can be obtained at any branch of the Culver's
fast-food chain but is best obtained at Leon's Frozen Custard on South
27th Street, very near my late maternal grandparents' home (which is
at 3323 W. Lakefield Drive and owned by others now). I have an aunt
and uncle at 4323 S. Lenox Ave., near the airport, which I remember
chiefly because you just add 1,000 to my grandparents' house number.
But I digress. If you're near Leon's, might as well have dessert or a
meal at Omega Restaurant, a large and busy 24-hour Greek place with
multipage menu, snappy service, and great breakfasts (best meal to
have there). Or pie and coffee. 3473 S. 27th St. It was our standard
place for lunch after Mass with Grandma and Grandpa. And hundreds of
their neighbors.

The hip and happening crowd hang out at a number of bars and
restaurants off Wisconsin Avenue (Milwaukee's main street) downtown in
a section called the Third Ward. Also along Wisconsin are a few of the
posher hotels (the Pfister is the venerable best of these) with
posh-ish restaurants.

Karl Ratzsch's, which I mentioned, is near this downtown area but a
couple of blocks north, up a hill...www.karlratzsch.com. 320 E. Mason
Street. Very German and very Milwaukee. And old. Does sauerkraut
strudel sound bad? I actually loved this when I had it. And I don't
like sauerkraut. The Schlachtplatte (slaughter-plate) is very popular.
Not vegetarian, needless to say. I usually go for a schnitzel of some
kind.

For walking and pleasantness, there's the lakeshore (also see
architect Eero Saarinen's Milwaukee County War Memorial Center, on the
lakeshore), but don't miss Calatrava's M.A.M.). http://mam.org -
They've got some galleries closed for construction, but you can still
go in and visit parts of the place. Would be neat to be there when
they open or close the "wings" of the roof.

There's also the Prospect Avenue area north of downtown near the
lakeshore...upscale and the home of the University of Wisconsin -
Milwaukee, my parents' alma mater and my birthplace (although my
hospital isn't there anymore). Nice parks, hilly walkways, lovely
views.

Milwaukee, like Chicago, has North Shore suburbs that are pleasant to
drive through and maybe explore: Fox Point and Bayside are two of
these.

Anglo-Catholic seminary Nashotah House is about an hour's drive or a
bit more, west of Milwaukee along the I-94. I enjoy visiting the
wooded campus and especially the Chapel of St. Mary the Virgin, at
least to pray in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel. www.nashotah.edu

That's my list! Sorry to go on so long, but I wanted to at least
mention some areas of interest and that will yield more points of
interest via a short drive or a stroll.



On Sun, Jun 7, 2015 at 5:32 PM, Roger Stokes
<roger.stokes65 at btinternet.com> wrote:
> On 17/12/2014 01:03, Scott Knitter wrote:
>>
>> On Tue, Dec 16, 2014 at 5:20 PM, Roger Stokes
>> <roger.stokes65 at btinternet.com> wrote:
>>>
>>> Tue 09    Collect car and drive to Milwaukee
>>
>> Three days in Milwaukee! I shall have to assemble a list of
>> recommendations. They'll include German dinner at Karl Ratzsch!
>> http://karlratzsch.com/
>>
>>
>
> Time is running out.  I arrive Milwaukee on Tuesday.  Despite my preference
> for Real (Cask conditioned) Ale I understand that Miller Brewing is a "Must
> visit".
>
> Roger



-- 
Scott R. Knitter
Edgewater, Chicago, Illinois USA