Get a head start on St. Patrick’s Day with Milwaukee’s annual parade, which takes place this Saturday at noon. The celebration features Cleveland bagpiper John Coleman, who enjoyed 40 seconds of fame when he was suspended from his bagpiper unit for waving at President Obama during the inaugural parade.

If St. Paddy’s isn’t your thing, there are plenty of other reasons to check out Wisconsin’s largest city, including a visit to architect Santiago Calatrava’s magnificent Quadracci Pavilion at the Milwaukee Art Museum. For more tips, click here for the Star Tribune’s weekend guide.

I’m fresh from a weekend in Grand Marais, where I warmed up with decadent pesto-shrimp pizza and succulent short ribs at Chez Jude on Friday night. As I scooped up the last of the sage ice cream (delicious, a play on mint), I picked up this little nugget: Judi Barsness, proprietor and chef of Chez Jude, treats guests at Bearskin Lodge on the Gunflint Trail to her cooking on weekends. For Chez Jude neophytes: Barsness creates a changing menu based on what’s fresh and available nearby and what’s growing in her garden out the door (or what was grown; the sage of the ice cream came from her own crop). No surprise she took an internship with a kindred spirit, the famed Alice Waters of Chez Panisse in Berkeley, Calif., a few years back. Chez Jude is open through February 15; the restaurant opens again for the summer season on Mother’s Day weekend. Barsness will be cooking at Bearskin throughout the winter season.

The September issue of Coastal Living magazine named Duluth the third best B&B town, after Santa Barbara, Calif., and Troncones, Mexico. Our northern city beat out such B&B icons as Key West, Fla. and Kennebunkport, Maine. The magazine singled out the Firelight Inn for being a place that’s particularly great for birders. The other B&Bs mentioned were Olcott House and Solglimt.

What do you think of these choices? Do you go to Duluth for a vacation, or is it a quick stop on your way to the North Shore or beyond? What are your tips for visiting Duluth?

With the Travel story on Madeline Island (Sunday August 24), the last in a series on islands of the Midwest, I did what many travel writers are reluctant to do: I told you about one of my favorite places.  You understand the impulse to keep mum, right? If a place is overrun with tourists, the thinking goes, it’s ruined. The truth about Madeline, though, is that it already gets boatloads of tourists — literally — and they don’t impinge on the charm one bit. Now I want you to return the favor and tell me about your favorite island.One reader, David Darr, already has. “If you want to visit a truly unique set of islands; try the Bass Islands (particularly South Bass Island) in Lake Erie for some memorable experiences,” he wrote.  A subsequent e-mail explained why: “There is a lot of history connected to these islands.  Official claim to ‘fame’ is Perry’s Monument which is the third tallest (over 300 feet) federal monument in the United States.  The monument celebrates the Peace (after war of 1812) between the USA and Canada and is located on South Bass Island.  Some decisive battles were waged in Lake Erie. Middle Bass Island (Isle de Fleurs) supposedly was one of the Northern ends of the ‘Underground Railroad’.  In addition, Presidents kept cottages on the islands for summer enjoyment. I could go on but you get the picture. One other thing you will remember is the summertime ‘night life’ of Put-in-Bay; the village that is on South Bass Island. Easiest to fly in to Cleveland Hopkins, Darr added. Thanks David. Any other islands of the Midwest out there we shouldn’t miss?Â