Day 7 - VIKES WIN, VIKES WIN, VIKES WIN!

12:00
Asleep not that long after 21:00 means awake by 06:00. I’ve slept well, aided by a wonderful Zopiclone. I mooch around the hotel for a couple of hours, then head out for a wander. My main focus today is to watch the Minnesota Vikings game in a Minneapolis sports bar. I want to be amongst my people, cheering the highs, commiserating the lows.

The game doesn’t start till 12:00, and I’m peckish. There’s an AMAZING hot dog place in Minneapolis, called The Wienery. Very good quality frankfurters, excellent choices of toppings. My personal fave is a Warsaw - dog, topped with German mustard, and sauerkraut cooked with a little sour cream. I’m starting to drool just thinking about it… The Wienery is a good couple of miles outside of the downtown area, and I decide to walk it - partly to pass the time, and partly to build up an appetite that will be deserving of my hot-dog. They open at 11:00, and I’ve even managed to time my walk so that I’ll arrive just a few minutes after opening time.

My excitement reaches fever pitch levels, until I arrive at the restaurant location, to find it closed. Not ‘still closed, but opening soon’ but closed, and not opening any time today. Turns out they’re refitting the restaurant, but failed to mention it on their website, or any of their socials. Merde.

Dejected, I jump on a train over to the Warehouse district, where I’ve found a couple of sports bars to check out for the game. I pitch up at Runyon’s, apparently famous for their chicken wings. They have 7 TV screens tuned to the Vikings game. I think I could flourish here…

17:00
VIKES WIN, VIKES WIN, VIKES WIN!

Within 5 minutes of arriving at Runyon’s, some local Vikings fans are buying me a beer. I think I’m something of a novelty value for them. Suspect there’s not too many Brit followers of NFL that pitch up in their local bar to watch a game. The crowd in the bar is highly partisan. There are perhaps a couple of folks that are not that fussed about the game, but anybody watching it is here for the Vikings. Every successful play attracts whoops and hollers. Every unsuccessful play garners sighs and shouting. I’m delighted. The Vikings are having an unexpectedly successful season. They’re 8-2 (won 8, lost 2) when most pundits expected them to win 5-6 games all season. The Chicago Bears are having a fairly sub-standard season. 4-6 going in to today’s game. The Vikings *should* win, but the NFL is an incredibly competitive league, where pretty much any team can beat pretty much any team week to week.

Midway through the second half, the Vikings are looking fairly comfortable. I order some chicken wings. They are, I think, the best wings I’ve ever had. Crispy, juicy, hot without being stupidly spicy. Banging. The Bears mount something of a comeback. Going in to the last minute of play, they’re only 3 points down, and score a field goal (3 points) with the last play of the game. Now, the Americans don’t do draws/ties, so there’s a period of overtime. The tension mounts. A generous (and I think somewhat pissed) young man at one end of the bar buys a round of shots. For everyone. Good lad. Chicago fail to score on their possession, and the Vikings score a field goal on theirs. VIKES WIN! The bar erupts.

Conscious that I need to be on my game tomorrow for an early flight, and that I could VERY easily stay in this bar for the rest of the day, I head back to my hotel. It feels a lot later than 16:00. I’m unsure whether a short nap is in my future, or whether I’ll just chill and relax for a while. I’m conscious that I’ve been on the go all week, and some down time wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world…

21:30
I have my first afternoon nap in some time, and wake feeling if not quite refreshed, then at least rejuvenated. Dinner is a a room picnic with my leftover supplies, and a couple of glasses of wine. I watch a couple of late NFL kick-offs, but nothing can top the excitement of watching my Vikings win earlier in the day. I get myself a bit organised for the morning, and set my alarm for 06:00. It’s not all laying about fecklessly, you know…Read more