Greater Madison Convention & Visitors Bureau 615 E. Washington Avenue Madison, WI 53703 (608) 255-2537 (608) 258-4950 (fax) Population 191262 Time Zone Central Latitude/Longitude 43.07° /-89.37° Today's Forecast HIGH: 54 LOW: 38

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Attractions

Occupying an isthmus between Lake Monona and Lake Mendota, Madison's compact downtown is only eight blocks wide, its skyline dominated by the imposing white granite of the State Capitol. Take an elevator to the fourth floor and then climb the stairs to the observation deck for a sweeping view of the city and lakes from above the capitol rotunda.

The city's stunning Overture Center for the Arts encompasses the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art and multiple performance spaces including the state-of-the-art Overture Hall, the Playhouse of the Madison Repertory Theatre, and the 1928 Capitol Theater, all of which have been brought into a single structure by architect Cesar Pelli. On the shores of Lake Monona, visitors can also see another notable public structure, Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center. Proposed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright in 1938 and built in 1997, the building hosts many events including live tapings of Michael Feldman's "Whad'Ya Know?" National Public Radio show.

On the northwest side of Capitol Square, the Wisconsin Veterans Museum tells the story of the Wisconsin men and women who have served in the nation's conflicts from the Civil War to modern times. The museum's dioramas and displays are complemented by a submarine periscope offering a unique view of downtown. Nearby, the Wisconsin Historical Museum features an extensive exhibits on state and national history from prehistoric days to the present.

Connected to the capitol by State Street, a thriving pedestrian mall, the University of Wisconsin sprawls on hills overlooking Lake Mendota. Major attractions on campus include the Chazen Museum of Art, which in addition to a fine collection of Egyptian, Greek, and Roman antiquities, also houses a sizable permanent collection of paintings and sculpture. The university's Geology Museum has interesting minerals and rocks, including a roomful that glow in the dark. Its fossil collection contains a few surprises, including the skeleton of a small saber-tooth cat. Especially popular with the public are the large skeletons of the duck-billed dinosaur and mastodon. While you are on campus, also visit the University Arboretum and Washburn Observatory. And don't forget to stop at Babcock Hall to try the ever-popular Babcock ice cream, produced at university dairy farms.

With so many parks and miles of shoreline, Madison offers no end of outdoors activities. When not rooting on the UW Badgers, sports fans can cheer on the Madison Mallards baseball team of the Northwoods League, who play at the "Duck Pond" in Warner Park. The fine Henry Vilas Zoo on the shores of Lake Wingra houses rare and endangered animals, big cats, and other large African species. Along with 16 acres of flower, rock, and herb gardens, Olbrich Botanical Gardens is the site of the impressive Bolz Conservatory, a 50-foot-high glass pyramid filled with tropical plants, reptiles, canaries and quail. On the north shore of Lake Mendota, the very popular Governor Nelson State Park has boating, fishing, swimming and picnicking within sight of the capitol. A little bit further afield, the Cave of the Mounds, a national natural landmark with colorful stalagmites and stalactites, is 20 miles west, near Blue Mound.

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