Essential Estrogen

First and above all else, my deepest gratitude, respect and appreciation to our nation's veterans and the men and women serving our country today. We celebrate our nation today with full knowledge that, without you, there might not be anything to celebrate.

When I think about patriotism, I think of helping others, sustainable neighborhoods, a sense of belonging and enjoying the bounty of our country. In this post I'll be focusing on the latter.

This past weekend our family headed out on a mini-vacation. The destinations of the trip were some of our favorites. The picture above was taken in the cemetery behind the Grotto in Dickeyville, Wisconsin. My husband saw it and said, "I know there's some sort of political or religious message in that one, but I'm not going to attempt it."

We arrived at the grotto as the sun was lowering on the horizon. The light was absolutely stunning, lighting up the pieces of glass and rock within the grotto walls. The grotto is composed of a main structure and at least two significant additions. All of the pieces are set closely to the Holy Ghost Catholic Church.

Dickeyville Grotto was shaped and built by Father Mathias Wernerus, who is buried in the cemetery behind the church and grotto, between 1925 and 1931. The structure is unique because it incorporates both religion and patriotism. On the left of the main grotto is a walkway with a pillar and cross marked "religion." On the right, there is an American flag inscribed with "patriotism."

The grotto is not a commercial attraction. The times that we've visited it has been quiet -- sometimes eerily so -- and beautiful.

We spent the better part of the day at one of the most unique places we've ever had the pleasure of visiting -- the House on the Rock.

The attraction, located in Spring Green, Wisconsin, was the vision of a Mr. Alex Jordan, who is described in several biographies (both official and non-official) as being someone who didn't seek the limelight. From the looks around what he built, I have a difficult time meshing what I've seen with what I've read.

The photo above is of a section of what probably is the most prominent feature of the house -- although I doubt it is the most discussed. "The Infinity Room" stretches out across a ravine with no solid structure linking it to the ground below. When you enter the room and look forward, it really does appear to stretch into infinity -- it also shakes. This last observation is why I've never been out to the end of the room. This time I made it roughly three-quarters of the way before my heart felt as if it would beat right out of my chest and my lungs refused to function.

The contents of the house and the out-buildings are about as eclectic as they come. There is a display known as "Streets of Yesterday" that features a recreation of an early 20th century town (woe be to you if you needed to visit the dentist back then) and another huge nautical display that features a 200-foot statue of a whale and squid in a battle. What most people remember and can't get over are the carousels.

The pictures above are all from one of the three working carousels within the attraction. I have no idea what the fascination was with nude mannequins or why some of them have their heads removed in favor of animal ones. While the House on the Rock often has the feel of a museum, there are no signs with information about the exhibits.

The two photos below are of the main carousel -- the world's largest working carousel. It has over 20,000 lights, lives under a vast umbrella of angels, and does not have one horse.

The doll carousel (two photos below) is my youngest daughter's favorite part of the place. She could sit all day and watch three levels of dolls go round and round.

In addition to the carousels, there are many unique collections throughout the house and out-buildings. The photo below shows just a small fraction of the doll house areas. I'm one of those people who loves to drive around at night and catch glimpses in people's windows. I love to see how they've decorated. Needless to say, the doll house collection is one of my favorite parts. Another of our family's favorite places to visit and look and look and look is circus world, which features several models of circuses, trains and even a large stack of elephants.

The house, and most of the displays, aren't at all in museum style. As the pictures evidence, it is very dark throughout. You'll often see something and have to fight back an urge to go and fix it -- a cracked window, a deck with a plywood floor instead of expensive wood and sofa cushions in need of a good wash. I found myself drawn to the many bookcases and the piles and piles of books (which, remarkably, are real and can be removed and flipped through). My heart ached to find many with water damage or other neglect.

This is also one attraction where you'll want to visit all the bathrooms. There are even collections of knick-knacks and other such novelties in there! You'll also want to bring some dollar bills to feed the token machines. There are many large displays which feature automated musical instruments. Tokens (one or two) are required to make these displays play.

This is only a small sampling of what both the House on the Rock and the Dickeyville Grotto have to offer. Our family highly recommends your family visits both. We do, however, offer a warning to those with severe dust allergies about House on the Rock. To say it is dusty, especially in the main areas of the house, would be an understatement. Also, the price tag associated with House on the Rock isn't inexpensive. To take all three tours (which you should) costs $26.50 for adults and $15.50 for children ages 4 to 7. Children under the age of 3 are free, but this is not a stroller-friendly environment.

Many more photos, including ones with our family, have been posted on my facebook account for those who are interested.