Cows on the Concourse

June is Dairy Month. And so on Saturday we brought the dairy to downtown Madison so lots of people could share in the cow experience.

“Cows on the Concourse” is a Madison tradition celebrating Wisconsin’s dairy industry. The state is known as “America’s Dairyland” and for good reason.

Cows Ahead

Cows Ahead © 2008 Bo Mackison

Yes, there are real cows and calves in a place of honor on the street only a hundred yards from the State Capitol building.

Cows Really ARE on Madison's Concourse

Cows Really ARE on Madison’s Concourse © 2008 Bo Mackison

Cameras were everywhere as people documented the event. Lots of kids were getting “up close and personal”, petting the cows and their babies.

Cow - Up Close and Personal

Cow – Up Close and Personal © 2008 Bo Mackison

Though at least one mama cow wasn’t too keen on the idea.

Moo-ving Milk

Moo-ving Milk © 2008 Bo Mackison

The milk was really moo-ving. At a buck a bottle, you could enjoy your favorite drink – yummy!  Though not quite fresh from the cow, you did get your choice of chocolate, strawberry or regular.

Grilling Cheese Sandwiches by the Dozens

Grilling Cheese Sandwiches by the Dozens © 2008 Bo Mackison

And to go with the milk? Why grilled cheese, of course. Another buck deal, and at a dollar for a sandwich, the lines were phenomenal. I went home and made my own.

Grilled Cheese

Grilled Cheese © 2008 Bo Mackison

What’s in the pots in the middle of these gigantic grills?  Butter, of course. Wisconsin isn’t the Dairy State for nothing!

Reflections of Two Buildings

Reflections of Two Buildings

Reflections of Two Buildings © 2008 Bo Mackison

While walking the square around the State Capitol, I noticed this reflection in the Manchester Place building. I love the lines. My photo-Sherpa thinks I should entitle this photo the “Squiggly Building”, but then he was born and somewhat bred in Chicago and thinks it a suitable rhyme for the Wrigley Building. (The gum guys’ building – and that building is cool, but you probably wouldn’t know how cool unless you roam the Miracle Mile on Chicago’s Michigan Avenue.)