I had the pleasure of visiting Minneapolis for the first time last weekend and was pleasantly surprised by one of the famed Twin Cities. My attendance at a card game convention kept me indoors for the majority of my 3 ½ days in town, but my free time yielded some great tidbits of knowledge.

MSP airport is located about 10 miles south of town and is accessed via light rail on Metro Transit’s Hiawatha Line, opened in 2006. This route is perfect for tourists as it connect downtown Minneapolis (25 minutes from the airport) with the behemoth Mall of America in suburban Bloomington (10 minutes from MSP). The Twin Cities are similar to Seattle in their light-rail infancy - a second line geared for commuters just opened on Nov. 16.

Open since 1992, the Mall of America consists of over 2 ½ million square feet of retail space – or about as much as three typical malls combined. Over 500 stores are squeezed into a rectangular building with four anchors (Macy’s, Nordstrom, Bloomingdale’s and Sears) at each corner. 20,000 cars can park here, even on the blackest of Fridays. The mall does, in fact, have everything … there were multiple game shops, including two that sold special disc golf Frisbees (must be a big thing in Minnesota).

What sets the mall apart, however, is that is also contains the largest indoor amusement park in the country, the Nickelodeon Universe (formerly Camp Snoopy). Three roller coasters, a log flume à la Disneyland’s Splash Mountain, and a 60-foot vertical dropper makes this park a winner for the 10-and-under crowd. Older kids can go shopping or explore the undersea world underground, where a 300-foot-long tunnel placed within a 14-foot water tank gives visitors a unique perspective on aquatic life. The mall’s owner is in the initial stages of planning Phase II across the street, which would triple the mall’s size and add an indoor water park. Holy cow!

Minnesota and the Twin Cities have a long history of serving the U.S. military – the Hiawatha Line passes several of those markers on its journey into downtown Minneapolis. Appearing silently but forcefully at the entrance to MSP’s Humphrey Terminal is a sprawling national cemetery. Once past the airport, stops en route to downtown include Fort Snelling and a large VA hospital. It’s nearly impossible to escape overhearing some conversation about orders or leave on the light rail line.

Once across I-35W and into the downtown core, Minneapolis reveals its professional side. All of Minnesota pro sports teams play in stadiums along the rail line. The pillow-top roof of the Metrodome is about recognizable a landmark as there is here. Retail powerhouse Target’s corporate headquarters are nearby and its presence is felt in the Target Center (for the NBA and NHL teams) and brand-new Target Field, set to open for Minnesota Twins baseball in April 2010 (as a sports fan, may I just say, brrrrrrrrr!).

The main drag downtown is Nicollet Avenue. As the light rail approaches Nicollet, Government Plaza looms and dominates the city center – one would swear it appears hewn from a single hunk of limestone! After stepping off the train at Nicollet, I am immediately surprised to see something I’ve only previously seen in Spokane – a network of skybridges crossing every street and avenue. It is, in fact, the world’s largest continuous network of this type, connecting 69 downtown blocks and extending eight miles long. It is also, in a word, circuitous – even geographic superstars can find themselves confounded by the lack of a ‘You Are Here’ sign.  The skyway connects professional office buildings with shopping (Nicollet Mall, home to more upscale boutiques) and dining.

For those who brave the elements, an eclectic blend of architecture awaits. A church that looks like the Vikings themselves (the civilization, not Brett Favre’s current team) created it abuts a drab piece of 1960s corporate functionality. Poke your head around the corner and you’ll be surprised to find Minneapolis is the Third City of Theater (behind only New York and Chicago). Bookworms and technophiles also find a home here, as the city ranks either first or second in literacy, education and Internet use.

My three-night stay was comfortable at the Hyatt Regency at 13th and Nicollet, just two blocks from the convention center. The Hyatt is also advantageously placed for foodies, as two blocks south lies a coalition of international restaurants known as Eat Street. Everything gastronomically awesome is walking distance from the Hyatt. My local friends’ choices for dinner during our stay included the Market BBQ (a 60-year pork institution and a great spot to watch football), the Newsroom (a relatively new American food joint with walls replicating famous newspaper headlines), and the always reliable Buca di Beppo (Italian favorites served family style).

Overall I got a lot out of Minneapolis in a short stay and I’m looking forward to bringing the family through the Twin Cities on a future road trip.