I have lived in Wisconsin since 1978. Coincidentally enough, that was also the year of my birth. I have driven cars since 1994, and have willingly driven rear wheel drive cars with slippery tires since 2001. For the first several years of my rear wheel driven odyssey, I managed to spin and steer my way through gentle Wisconsin winters. There were select days when I couldn’t drive my traction-less cars, but my wife has long employed a four wheel drive vehicle, so I was able to commandeer her car for those treacherous days. Those days were few during the winters of 2001 through 2006, but with the introduction of a new rear wheel drive car during the summer of 2007, my free skating luck finally ran out. Lake Geneva winters grew, well, more winter like. There was more snow, more ice, and more days when my rear wheel drived mistake would have to sit in the garage, or in the driveway. There was a snowy day in Geneva National where my car, presumably securely parked at the top of my driveway, ended up at the bottom of the drive, across the road, and into the ditch, narrowly missing my neighbors mailbox. There were other events like this as well, and last winter was the breaking point for me and my sexy, but slippery, real wheel relationships.
Finally, after years of tenuous winter driving, I went out last month and bought a vehicle that should stand up to whatever this winter has in store, even though it stands to reason that this winter will as a result be mild and snow-less. My new found snow-packed-road-confidence might not be put to the test for a while, but the light snow falling outside my office puts me in a bit of a mood for all things winter. Thankfully, it’s a Lake Geneva weekend engineered for scratching such a developing Holiday itch, as Lake Geneva kicks off its winter festivities with all sorts of Christmasy tomfoolery. Here’s your unofficial guide to all things festive in Lake Geneva this weekend, December 3rd and 4th…
Friday night you should probably be at Caribou Coffee downtown to listen to some guy who I don’t know read The Polar Express. That’s happening at 6 pm. After that, find your way down to the Riviera for the tree lighting ceremony. Santa will be there, no word if it’s the Tim Allen santa or the Edmund Gwenn one, but regrettably it won’t be the Leslie Nielson one. Caribou will be providing free drinks, and cookies will be served. If the weather is decent, which it’s supposed to be, this might be a nice little night along the lakefront.
Saturday brings more santa, this time appearing with his real reindeer. He’ll be walking around town, as will some musicians and carolers and the sort, popping in and out of downtown stores and Starbucks. If I were you, I’d come to do some shopping downtown, as our stores are quite a bit cooler than they used to be. Back when I was a kid, downtown Lake Geneva was pretty much only good if you wanted to buy t-shirts or fudge or trinkets, but the 2010 version of downtown is filled with cool stores like Estreet Denim, The Bootery, Haberdapper, Abbellimento, Clearwater Outdoor, and more. Boatyard Bagels is opening downtown today, so be sure to stop in there as well. As a side note, look for my Friday post about my visit to the new, very cool, Lake Geneva bagel shop.
After you’re near death from a day of shopping, stop and sit for a while (at 5 pm) and take in the wonder that is the Lake Geneva Electric Christmas Parade. Ryan Braun is apparently the grand marshal of the parade, so look for him. If you don’t know who he is, don’t feel bad. He’s a player on the Brewers, which means most people don’t know who he is. Zing! He opened a new restaurant in town earlier this year, so the parade may or may not end conveniently in front of his restaurant at around 6 pm when you’ll be starving from all that shopping and santa dodging. I’m purposefully not capitalizing the s in santa. Take that, santa.
The Grand Geneva has their Christmas in the Country festivities running now through Christmas, so be sure to stop out at their magnificent property to witness the spectacle. As with all things, the Grand Geneva knocks it so far out of the park, Ryan Braun is left standing in left field, eyes to the sky, wondering how the good folks at Marcus got out of hosting the Christmas parade. The lighting display at the Grand is impressive, and even more impressive is the fact that if you stop into the Spa at the Grand Geneva you just might get a glimpse of me crushing concrete under each step as I try to play tennis after a nearly two year hiatus.
Lake Geneva is a beautiful town in summer, but if you’ve never experienced it in the winter, you’re missing out. The Holiday season shines at the lake, and with all these event this weekend, and many more throughout the winter, you’d be foolish not to take a trip up to experience it for yourself. Or just come up and skip the whole downtown thing and buy a vacation home from me. Either way. With the introduction of four wheel drive into my life, at least this year we have less of a chance in dying in a snowy ditch.