Finding Friends and Fun in Minneapolis: How?

[beamjockey]

Two Chicago physicists in love are moving to the Minneapolis-Saint Paul area.

Mary writes a fine blog, A View from the Corner, and she's wondering what life will be like in the Twin Cities:

I'm a science fiction fan -- where can I meet and hang out with other fans in the Twin Cities? How about writers groups?

What are the fun parts of downtown, for when you just want a day of pizza, beer, window-shopping and people watching, amateur photography, maybe a free concert or festival in the summer? Ken and I used to take the train to downtown Chicago or Lincoln Park for days like that, but I wasn't so impressed with Nicolet Mall. There must be a park people gather in, no?

For that matter, where is the good pizza? So far as Chicagoans we've been very disappointed.

I'm looking for things to be excited about, in other words. So far we're most excited about the five drive-in theaters in a reasonable radius, but they obviously aren't open this time of year. What else is there?

And if anyone mentions ice-fishing, by the way, they will get a withering glare. I don't ice-fish. (I was pretty sure, until I started going to Minnesota, that nobody did. I interpreted the first couple of suggestions as sarcasm.)

(Summer camping recommendations are welcome, though.)

A number of Minnesotans, and others with firm opinions about Minnesota, may read this posting.

Can you offer advice? I'll pass it along to Mary. (I did tell her how to find Minn-STF and a few SF conventions.)

Comments

[dd-b.livejournal.com]

The Minnesota Science-Fiction Society (That's the "Minn-StF" people mention) meets usually on the first and third Saturday, at somebodies house. See the Einblatt for information on that, and other events of interest in the area (not limited to Minn-StF sponsored events). We run Minicon, the oldest of the local conventions, and usually a fall relaxacon, lately called "Convivial".

Minneapolis has, er, six SF conventions or so a year. And if you're interested in fiction seriously (as writer or reader) you should consider coming to the revived 4th Street Fantasy Convention.

Downtown isn't where casual culture happens here; it's mostly big-venue events, and associated businesses. The neighborhood parks are where things happen.

Powderhorn Park May day is one of the big festivals (it's important to bring back the sun around here), and there's a some fannish connection to the Heart of the Beast Puppet Theater that runs it. There are a fair number of free concerts in various parks in the summer, and sometimes plays and things. There's quite a good local theater scene. Uptown, and a little west where the three lakes are (Harriet, Calhoun, and Lake of the Isles) is a great area for watching people.

I don't ice-fish either. Or any other kind.

For amateur photography I'm pretty active, and Geof Stone who you'll meet at a Minn-StF meeting eventually is doing some interesting stuff, and galacticvoyeur and guppiecat (who isn't local but I sometimes think might as well be) and timprov and fredcritter (first and last of those LJ names have been Rune editors, too). olegvolk isn't local, or amateur, any more. Apologies to those I don't remember the LJ name for or whatever.

On the pizza front, I'm a Green Mill fan, and then there's Pizza Luce. Fat Lorenzo's, as mentioned, is also good. Never been to New Haven myself.

Lois Bujold and other local full-time writer types are decently in touch with local fandom, but you're already directly in touch with a number of us here. sraun publishes the Einblatt! I referred you to, cakmpls hosted the latest Minn-StF meeting, Seth and Magenta and Mia and I are around various things when it suits our schedules, etc.