An excellent showcase of Frank Lloyd Wright's talent and abilities. While the school is not…read moreparticularly large, it is consistently interesting in its vision and style and therefore can give you a great deal to think about. His use of broken symmetry, contrast in elements, infusion of Asian art, and references to his family abounds here. Archetypal organic architecture indeed. Remarkably the school still functions as a school for architecture students summering from Taliesen West. The gallery showcases many of his great designs, and the theater is a lovely place to visit. Sadly the main curtain from said theater is not on site at the moment. It is currently on loan to the Guggenheim. But if you are in Manhattan, right now, you can see that! Go check out his work -- he was quite the genius.

Discovered this nice , small waterfall in the Galena Illinois area. You don't need to spend much…read moretime here , maybe fifteen minutes tops. If you're in the area , it's worth a quick stop for some nice photos. The parking area is located very close to the falls. Maybe a two hundred yard walk. The terrain is a little bit bumpy for elderly people to walk on, but you can still view the falls from the road above if you don't want to get out of the car. The water empties into a beautiful , slow moving stream , surrounded by wildflowers. This attraction is free to view.

I meannnn... the waterfall was dry when we went so that was a bummer. Not much of a trail to walk…read morearound either. It's nice to visit but definitely probably better to go in the spring or summer when the water fall is actively running. There are a few posts that provide information about why Thunder Bay falls is important to the area. Still pretty cool to check out and get some fresh air.

I visited Tinker Cottage today because I am writing a paper on it for a school assignment and I…read morehonestly loved learning everything about this family who lived here. The lady who gave the tour was super kind and made the experience very try fun. This is definitely a must see if you visit Rockford. The library was so beautiful inside and I loved learning about the secret sparkly mirrors that were used back in the day.

A very old beautiful mansion from the mid 1800's that is a museum now. All the furnishings were…read moreowned by the Tinker family. It's very nicely renovated and preserved. It is also haunted. A must see in the Rockford area.

This is, hands down, my favorite art gallery in Madison. They have an incredible selection of…read morejewelry, glass, ceramics, and wall art. The owner, Brian Farrell, is not only extremely kind and attentive, he also has one of the best eyes for quality art that I have ever seen. I might not like every artist he brings in, but there is not a boring one in the bunch. The selection is eclectic, and truly unique. There is also enough of a range in price points that almost anyone will be able to find something here that can fit into their budget. It is always a pleasure to come in to this gallery.

We drive past this place daily and stopped in on a whim last weekend. There is a ton of variety and…read moreeven more that isn't on display. We ended up really liking a piece but it was a bit out of our price range. This was our first experience buying art and Brian was so kind, patient, and helpful. After we thought about it for a few days and we returned to purchase, he remembered us and our taste. He even brought the piece to our house to be certain we liked and hung it for us! We are really glad we stopped in and I am sure we will be back in the future.

I woke up this morning to find an alert in my email: "Daily Diversion: 10 Wisconsin towns you've…read morenever heard of before" from the Kenosha News. Joke's on them perhaps, but I have heard of three of them. But, being bored due to lots of retail shutdowns, I mapped out several of the towns that looked semi-interesting, and settled on one that was not too far away: Hyde. It's near Spring Green and Prairie du Sac, but the real draw for me was an 1800s wooden water wheel mill. Hyde's Mill was built in 1850 on Mill Creek. The mill burned in the 1870s but was rebuilt. We noticed we were coming up on a road named Mill Road, so we took the turn and lo and behold, there was the mill. There were just a few people at the site: four eating Bob's Bitchin' BBQ carryout from Dixie plates sitting on the ground and a couple standing on the bridge overlooking the mill. It was a picture perfect day with blue skies and fluffy white clouds floating by, and when I stepped out of the car I could hear the rush of water coming over the stone dam. I took a perch behind the bridge on the sloping support and sat in the sun looking at the dam and listening to the water. This visit was good for my soul, and I could have sat there for two to three times as long as I did. It ranks up there for me with lunch hour visits to the Joan of Arc chapel in Milwaukee to sit by the fountain in the sun. Not much going on in Hyde otherwise, but I would definitely go back for this.

It's not a business, just a photogenic nineteenth century mill. There's a small area to pull off…read morebut no real parking area. Can't find a place to park? Just wait, most people do not stay long.

We stopped here during our cross-country road trip as a place to stretch our legs, and it turned…read moreout to be a fun surprise. The museum is free to visit and, while it's not very large, there's much more to see than we expected. The basement features a fascinating collection of mustard-related memorabilia and exhibits that showcase the history and culture surrounding this unique condiment. It was surprisingly interesting and added a lot of character to the visit. The main floor is home to an extensive selection of mustards from around the world, along with complimentary tastings. The staff member leading the tastings was exceptionally knowledgeable and took the time to explain the different varieties while letting us sample quite a few of them. Overall, it's a quirky and enjoyable stop that's well worth a visit if you're passing through the area. It's the perfect place to take a break from the road and experience one of the more unique museums you'll come across.

One of the most unexpectedly fun stops I made while in Middleton, Wisconsin? The National Mustard…read moreMuseum. And yes... it's exactly what it sounds like. Inside you'll find thousands of mustards from every U.S. state and countries all over the world, all displayed in this massive wall of jars. There's also a mustard tasting bar where you can sample tons of different flavors -- from classic yellow to sweet, spicy, and some seriously unique combinations. Beyond the tastings, there's a whole museum section dedicated to the history of mustard, plus plenty of quirky displays and memorabilia that make it a surprisingly entertaining stop. Whether you're a mustard lover or just looking for something different to check out while in the Madison area, it's definitely worth popping in.

We are in the Dells quite often and were looking for different things to do so we decided to check…read moreout Baraboo and came across the mansion and brewery. Walking into the brewery was awesome, such a cool place and quite large. The girl at the spot were I believe you can order food wasn't too friendly but the bartender was awesome! Bartender was super friendly, I wish I could remember his name. We told him how we were looking for things to do and he was more than happy to write down some recommendations for us. I thought that was super nice because I feel like sometimes, at least in the Dells area, it seems like they get tired of us tourists and aren't always as friendly as I feel they should be considering they know they're working in a tourist area. We happened to be sitting next to the lady that does the tours so we thought, awesome, we love seeing old buildings and hearing the history so we signed up! It's $20 per person and about 50-60 mins. It was super cool to see, informative, the lady was friendly, and answered any questions we had. It was pretty amazing to hear that people actually live on the 4th floor, I wasn't expecting that for some reason. After the tour was over she played the large organ for us which was great. We sat down for another beer, listened to the awesome music the bartender was playing and set up our next tour at the Driftless Glen distillery. This was on our list plus it was one of the recommendations from the bartender. If your in the area and looking for something different to do, I highly recommend checking this place out!

I'll be honest, I didn't have high hopes. While I do like architecture, touring a house really…read moreisn't my thing. But I remained open minded. The house was built between 1905-6 and must have looked like a warehouse compared to average sized houses of the period. The history of the home is pretty extraordinary...I don't want to give away spoilers. In short, there are 24 rooms, many of which are being renovated. The basement isn't part of the tour but I hope once they complete it, that it will be, as I'd come back to see that as well. If you're hungry or in the mood for a beer, the brewery attached to the back is a nice stop. I tried a couple of beers and enjoyed them both. The tour gives the answer as to why they built the brewery as well (sorry, no spoilers here either). The tour is cash only and on specific times, so be sure to check those before coming. Cheers.