Naomi Litman-Zelle

Minneapolis is a time machine, a city conflicting between two eras—holding onto the glamorous city of the 20^th century while steadily adjusting to whatever trend is taking the cities by storm.  Nowhere else can you enjoy such traditional city life in such a modern environment. I am so fond of Minneapolis; it has class, a certain edge that makes it slightly off-beat relative to other cities. Minneapolis has the swanky nightlife of a cosmopolitan town without the seedy underbelly I find so apparent in other places. It’s a city stuck somewhat in the past, still holding onto that romanticism cities used to have before. The skyline glitters with the old, giant Gold Medal Flour marquee. Massive barges parade down the Mississippi river, embarking on journeys to bring goods to the rest of the Midwest.  Throngs of couples, young and old, stand on the balcony of the Guthrie Theater in their silk evening gowns and sip their glasses of wine during the intermission of The Importance of Being Earnest. The spirit of the city illustrated in works such as The Great Gatsby still lives in those glittering marquees and runs in the ageless water of the Mississippi. It is sewn into the silk of the ties worn by the theatergoers. It seems to be a city unchanged by the passage of time. Yet the architecture is modern. Flashy, new restaurants—the kinds with the chrome light fixtures and the blasting music where everything you order comes on ceramic, square dishes and mashed potatoes become a “potato puree”—line the streets. The abundant bike paths allow for hipsters to flock to Minneapolis, inevitably creating a need for the coffee chops furnished with antique armchairs and sofas that now appear on each street corner. Like Calvino, I find myself Minneapolis to be a museum, incorporating rich history with the ever-changing city life. Upon leaving the hot, new restaurant that the Star Tribune absolutely raved about, you can return to your apartment, look outside, and gaze out at almost the same skyline your grandparents saw from their first apartment in the quaint little river town that once was. There is something just magical about that. It is the closest thing to time travel I’ll ever experience.