Thursday, January 10, 2013

Light Rail in Minneapolis

There are many things that make traveling with children difficult. Tantrums. Picky eaters. Nap schedules. Bulky strollers. And on and on. But one of the things I find that make taking on all those challenges so worth it is the joy kids find in the simplest things when they're traveling. Experiencing the commonplace, like taking the light rail around Minneapolis, through the eyes of your kids is pretty awesome.

First, you help your uncle buy tickets from the fancy machine. Lots and lots of buttons.



Then you wait. Watching him peer down the tracks and ask repeatedly, "Is it coming? Is it coming?" was beyond cute.



Then you board. And you get a little cranky when no one comes to take your ticket like you've seen on movies and tv shows. (Minnesotans: apparently, a very trusting people.)


Even your little brother seems to like the ride.


My husband and I took the light rail in Minneapolis several years ago when we were in the city for a wedding. To be honest, I barely remember it. But having now taken a little ride with my children, my eyes were once again opened to the wonder of simple travel experiences like this.

Even if you have a car to use while traveling, I encourage you to explore public transportation options with your kids when you travel. It just might be one of their favorite things, and it is relatively cheap. Here are a few other posts you might like:


More information on our trip to Minneapolis is here.

This post is a part of Photo Friday at Delicious Baby.

9 comments:

  1. It is so true....public transportation is a popular part of traveling for us, too! It was always the highlight of my son's travel memories and we all love telling each other "Mind The Gap" in reference to to our time in London together. Now that we are back to living in the United States we haven't used as many forms of public transport as we did in Asia and Europe...but an overnight Amtrak trip this past summer was fun for all of us.

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  2. Where we live there is virtually no public transportation at all, so buses, subways, trams, and trains were always a thrill for us when we traveled when the kids were little (and kind of even still now when they're older!)

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  3. My kids have always loved public transport too! When we were in London they pleaded with us all the time to take the tube because they loved inserting the ticket and having it pop out the other side - we could have done nothing but ride the tube all day to entertain them!

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  4. Totally! When I'm stumped for adventure, it amazes me that even just taking the bus somewhere and back is a big deal for my guys. What great pictures:)

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  5. I actually rode the light rail in MSP a few years back heading from downtown to MOA - surprisingly good system (especially since there looked like 10 feet of snow on the ground, and it ran without delay).

    Our son is the same way...little things (often the free ones too) he enjoys the best. If you are even near Kenosha, Wisconsin be sure to ride their electric streetcar. The drivers are very friendly, the cars vintage & heated, and our son loved it (rode it 3 times round trip just for fun).

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  6. Just getting caught up on my ASF reading...such great posts! I especially love this one. Your pictures are so sweet.

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  7. I so love your point about children finding joy in the simple things. One reason I love working with children is that they constantly teach me to see things with new and fresh eyes. By the way, in Seattle, nobody ever verifies that you actually purchased a train ticket either. I suppose there are camera everywhere so if they wanted to check up on people, the transit cops could. But then, I did not see any transit cops.

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  8. I so love your point about children finding joy in the simple things. One reason I love working with children is that they constantly teach me to see things with new and fresh eyes. By the way, in Seattle, nobody ever verifies that you actually purchased a train ticket either. I suppose there are camera everywhere so if they wanted to check up on people, the transit cops could. But then, I did not see any transit cops.

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  9. We haven't been on the light rail for a few years, and my kids are asking to go back. It's been great for me, as I know the MSP area well but still get lost driving in downtown Minneapolis. It's a very family-friendly system.

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