Dec 10th Visit to MN w/ Dr. Maron

[RuthAnne Anderson]

Thanks to a doctor’s referral, and my friends at HCMA, my son and I will be going to one of the best in MN! My husband has just received news that he can have the few days off and will be staying with our other sons in Georgia while Brody (15) and I fly up to MN. We are staying at the Sheraton Hotel next to Abbott Northwest and flying in on the 9th, leaving on the 11th. I have never been to MN before and plan on visiting the Mall of America if Brody feels up to it. I don’t know if I should rent a car, or rely on taxis. I am excited but very nerves, I expect Brody to feel the same. He is missing school and I will be missing work, however nothing can be more important for us than to get out of this “gray” area and find out what really is going on with his health. Wish us luck!

[Reenie]

My thoughts are with you. I know you'll have a lot better answers to your questions in just a couple of weeks.

[BlueDevil]

RuthAnne:

You could conceivably get to the Mall of America on public transportation from where you're staying. The light rail station is not far from the Sheraton, but you would probably have to take a bus there. The hotel staff should hopefully be able to point you in the right direction and you can look at www.metrotransit.org for assistance.

If you get a chance, you should check out the Midtown Global Market which is a short walk from the Sheraton. I believe it's accessible via skyway so you can get there without having to go out into the cold (or at least only for a very short walk). It's a marketplace full of international foods and locally grown/produced foods. There are several good places inside for a meal. Take a look at www.midtownglobalmarket.com.

[anarad]

Hi RuthAnne,

I have HCM as does my 17yr old son. I live in St Paul and actually work not to far from Abbott-Northwestern and the Minneapolis Heart Institute.

You were wondering about taxi's vs a rental car. I'd say it depends on how much you plan on doing. I'd guess that a taxi from the airport to Abbott-Northwestern would be about 25-35 dollars. It's probably about 10-15 miles. A mid-size rental car for two days thru Alamo is about $100 total.

If you plan on visiting the Mall of America, you might want to try and stay at one of the hotels by there(there's a ton of them). Most if not all offer shuttles from and to the airport and Mall. The mall is only about 3 miles from the airport.
That way, you'd only need a taxi to get to Abbott-Northwestern and back to the hotel.
If you have any questions, I'd be happy to try and answer them. I'll pm a msg to you with my cell phone number. Feel free to call....

Good Luck

Kent

[Benjamin]

Thanks to a doctor’s referral, and my friends at HCMA, my son and I will be going to one of the best in MN! My husband has just received news that he can have the few days off and will be staying with our other sons in Georgia while Brody (15) and I fly up to MN. We are staying at the Sheraton Hotel next to Abbott Northwest and flying in on the 9th, leaving on the 11th. I have never been to MN before and plan on visiting the Mall of America if Brody feels up to it. I don’t know if I should rent a car, or rely on taxis. I am excited but very nerves, I expect Brody to feel the same. He is missing school and I will be missing work, however nothing can be more important for us than to get out of this “gray” area and find out what really is going on with his health. Wish us luck!


Hello RuthAnne,

My name is Benjamin. My family and I were just up there in October. The service was great all around. The Sheraton is perfect b/c it's right next door, and has a nice underground walkway to the hospital. Make sure you leave in plenty of time to get there though. Or you can just take the shuttle. The rooms have flat screen televisions. If you stay on the top floor they have a nice spread of coffee,tea, cookies every evening for a couple of hours. We went to a awesome Italian restuarant called Boca de Beppo (double check the spelling). The shuttle will take you around to different places within a 5 mile radius. I was able to meet with Dr Maron. He was very patient and explained things very clearly. His nursing staff is also excellent. Let me know if you have any more questions. Thanks and take care.