With nearly 100 miles to Detroit Lakes in front of me Friday, my body automatically rose early so I could push off at 6am. Googled a high-potential coffee/breakfast place in Park Rapids, which was about 30 miles into the ride, and my gut told me to get there. Bella Caffe, unassuming from the outside, was among the warmest places I’ve experienced. It’s as if I stepped right into this little town’s morning “hub” of social activity. I was immediately befriended by ‘regular’ Justin, who kindly bought my espresso and proceeded to introduce me to others around the cafe including the owner Cathy, who modeled her coffee house after places she and her family visited in Italy. There was back room where a dozen older men were doing a bible study group and I’m sure the bocce ball court is out back! In addition, the Thor Tour sparked a genuine connection. Turns out the town has tremendous pride for a local named Scott Freitag, a stage IV prostrate cancer patient who completed a 10,000 mile cycling/fundraising trip in June. Scott was featured on ESPN’s Outside The Lines (“If Time Was Running Out”) for riding the ENTIRE PERIMETER of the lower 48 states while fighting terminal cancer and raising funds to fight cancer and schizophrenia, an affliction that ended his son’s life. [Exhale!] That’s heavy and substantive. The episode I since watched is inspiring and moving. On the tail end of my day, I landed in beautiful Detroit Lakes where I found a spectacular cafe facing the Lake with incredible espresso and treats called Mi Cartagena. The owner Kerlis, who left Colombia to marry a Minnesota man, brought the colorful beauty of her native home on the equator to this Minnesota lake town. The pictures in my blog won’t do it justice as Kerlis transformed her shop and patio into a Colombian beach and garden getaway. And, yes, I stopped again Saturday morning before heading to Fargo!
