For this past #engagetheweekend adventure, we headed out for a night to meet up with my brother and sister-in-law and my nieces and nephews. Wanting to keep it simple, we opted to meet up in a “waterpark” capital of sorts…Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin. Our destination? Well, the Kalahari Resorts, of course!
We managed to reserve one, two bed room for one evening at the water park/resort. This, honestly, is the first time Liza and I have stayed in a “hotel proper” since COVID. It was also the first hotel that our daughter stayed at. Not knowing what to expect, we decided to go with the flow and enjoy the weekend away from home. Masks, be damned...
For starters, it’s the Kalahari…which is a Dells term for “a big resort with lots of high priced stuff.” After checking in to our room, our first stop was to find a table to sit at in the indoor water park, and being a Saturday afternoon (and being a vacation type day, I guess), I searched for an adult beverage. Lo and behold, I found the bar and ordered a 12 oz can of my favorite pale ale, Psuedosue for $9 USD. Outrageous!
Beer prices aside, and more importantly, this was Hattie’s first time at a water park. Did she love it? Yes, she loved it!
She was a bit timid at first, but a few times down the smaller water slides made vacation that much more fun. Believe it or not, she actually going down some pretty big slides on her own; she's must more of a water daredevil than her dad...
We had another first for our family in some time…a night out at a restaurant. We haven’t been opposed to eating out in restaurants, but have become so used to getting takeout once a week, we never think to head out to eat elsewhere. Thanks yet again to the magic that is the “Wisconsin Dells,” we walked over to the resort's Wisconsin Brewpub and ordered a few drinks, some mac and cheese, and a prime rib dinner. The beer was very good, but the prime rib was not. Hey, I’m not picky and ate my meal just happy to be in a restaurant with my family again. It’s the little things in life, you know?
And the deep fried cheese curds were wonderful!
I have a sort of love/hate relationship with the Wisconsin Dells. Years ago it was a proper "amusement town." It had haunted houses, wax museums, fantastic mini-golf courses, go-karts, homemade ice cream, water ski shows, Wisconsin Duck rides (old WWII amphibious vehicles converted into tour craft), and world-famous salt water taffy. My family would take us there every summer for a weekend to enjoy the town. My brother, my cousins, and I could never get enough of it.
Today, it's all about massive outdoor and indoor waterparks. It almost feels like Las Vegas; every resort area has hotels, multiple restaurants, bars, and amusement parks. Everything is designed to a) keep you in it and b) spend a premium dollar on everything. It's not the same for us old folks...we used to have to drive to places to see wax Frankenstein monster figures...but it's what the people want. I guess.
Still, I did have a better time than I expected. No doubt thanks to Hattie and her first experience with water slides. I mean, I had fun too, you know? Getting bashed around on an intertube by tidal waves, all the while trying to hold on to Hattie...I can't blame it all on our daughter!
So before we left Sunday morning, we all made a wish in the wishing well, hoping for a better future for everyone. After last year, how can we not? And if this past weekend speaks to anything, even for this old curmudgeon, things are going to be alright. At least I think so!
Thanks for checking out my #weekendengagement adventure. Until next weekend, hoping everyone else had a great weekend too!