Climbing Eagle Mountain |
 The phrase “Minnesota nice” is part of the lexicon of America. It is said that the state’s “cultural characteristics … include a polite friendliness, an aversion to confrontation, a tendency toward understatement, a disinclination to make a fuss or stand out, emotional restraint, and self-deprecation.” These traits are often attributed to the state’s Scandinavian heritage. Given my academic interest in the Nordic countries and, more significantly, the fact that I have family and friends in Minnesota, it’s no wonder I think Minnesota’s nice, and in 2004 I went to Minnesota for the fifth time. |