Green Bay, Wisconsin, the Packers vs. Vikings Game

November 22–24th

You read that right!! I was privileged enough to go to a Vikings vs. Packers game at Lambeau Field in the fall of 2025. Going to school in Wisconsin, just about everyone I knew told me I had to experience a game day at Lambeau, especially if I thought Badger games were fun, which they very much were when going with my big group of friends. So, I added it to my Madison senior year bucket list, however, with the busyness of school, I was unable to check that one off. Until this weekend.

The stars aligned for me to be able to go to this game. My best friend, Izzy, had an internship with the Packers this fall in their dietetics department, helping design meal plans for players to maintain proper nutrition throughout the season. Incredibly cool, and you bet I was incredibly proud. On our many phone calls, she told me I had to come visit her and we could go to a game together! As you know me best, I would never pass up an opportunity like this, an experience of a lifetime and to do so with my best friend, and in support of her!

There were only a few games that we could choose from, given I coached volleyball this fall and my team played every Sunday, along with her plans with her family coming up to visit her and other friends joining for games. So, of the games I had to choose from, it was the Eagles, Vikings, or Bears. And Izzy said the Vikings worked best for her, and it was perfect for me because it was the weekend before Thanksgiving, which is a very flexible time with work, and I grew up a Vikings fan, so it was meant to be. I was thinking her family would want to go to that game, but Izzy grew up in a Packer household, so they had zero affiliation with the Vikings, so that weekend was wide open for her. Terrific.

I was excited to watch the Vikings and Packers play, but I cannot say that I am a diehard Vikings fan. Growing up, we would have the game on the TV every Sunday afternoon, but as I got older, my attention swayed more towards volleyball, studying, and hanging out with my friends, so watching the Vikings was at the bottom of the priority list. Especially in college, when I did not have anyone to watch it with, but I sure did have exams to study for. So, having grown out of my Brett Favre t shirt from when I was in elementary school, I had no Vikings gear to wear, and Izzy so graciously offered to let me borrow her Packer gear. So, to not be confused, I did grow up a Vikings fan but have since been neutralized, and I chose to wear Packer gear to represent what I cared most about, supporting my friend.

Now to share about my time! I wanted to drive in the daylight, so instead of driving up after work on Friday, I left early Saturday morning and made the journey east to Green Bay. Izzy had to work Saturday morning, so truly it worked best for both of us for me to arrive Saturday afternoon. No rush to get there, I was well supplied with coffee, snacks, and friends queued up to call. I talked to my friend Chloe for almost my entire drive because she herself was driving home to Omaha for Thanksgiving with her family.

I arrived in Green Bay at 2pm, just when Izzy was getting off work! We met at her apartment building, and I gave her the biggest hug when I saw her. Of course, we had a million things to share, to catch up on, and to delve into. I never felt more myself or closer to a person than when I am with my friend Izzy. We have so much in common and an insane amount of memories together, going back to 8th grade volleyball, to hanging out in college, then traveling Southeast Asia together. Safe to say, we have formed a strong bond throughout all those massive life events. So, a majority of our time together Saturday afternoon and evening was spent catching up.

Because I visited her on my way home from my Michigan trip, I already got the apartment tour and felt as though I was at home. It is true, home is more about the company of others than where you are locationally. The entire weekend felt as though we were both in our adult lives, living out our dreams of moving somewhere warm and near the beach, and being roomies. Minus the weather, and instead some football, haha. I was perfectly happy spending my first few hours hanging out at Izzy’s place, chatting incessantly, as there was not a whole ton of sightseeing to do in Green Bay. But, she did have one spot she wanted to take me that evening, so around 5pm, we left her apartment and made our way over to TitleTown.

Right outside of Lambeau Field is a developed plot of land that has an ice rink for skating, a large hill to sled down, trees dazzling with lights, and restaurants surrounding it. We thought about skating but instead walked around to see the whole place, stood by the fire to warm up our hands, and were entranced by the sunset, proof below.

We were there for a while, chatting and feeling present in the moment. There was so much to appreciate, being able to travel again, even though it was quite local compared to some of the other places I have gone this year, the joy of the people around me, and the peace of spending quality time with my best friend. Not to mention nature’s sunset sharing its beauty from the city, and the delight of the lit up trees at Christmastime.

After TitleTown, we headed back to Lambeau Field to walk around the most insane Pro Shop I have ever seen for any professional sports team. I sure did buy something, that being my go to souvenir, a postcard. I was tempted to buy a cheesehead, but I restrained myself. We got there just before closing and headed back to Izzy’s for the night.

We had leftovers for dinner, and Izzy had some homework to do, so I read my book, (current read: The Housemaid) while she got that done. Of course, we also talked long into the evening, feeling an ounce closer to maybe being fully caught up. I treasured the day we had and my time in Green Bay thus far.

Sunday, Game Day!!

Izzy had an early shift to get the players fed before their game, so she woke up around 7am to get ready and pack up for her shift and the game after. She gave me some recommendations of where to go and what to do while she was at work. One of her recommendations was going to her favorite cafe in the city, Kompound! It was super cute and even had vegan pastry options. I was in heaven. I had packed a bag with my laptop and book, and I would decide what I wanted to do once I got to the cafe. However, the choice was made for me when I forgot my book bag at Izzy’s apartment, and because the cafe was 15 minutes away, I did not think it was worth the extra 30 minute drive to go back for it. So, I quickly pivoted and instead found a new book to read on my phone, (that book: Lessons in Chemistry)

I could not spend long there because I wanted to make sure I got back in time to meet Izzy at Lambeau around 11am for the noon game. Having some extra time once I got back from the cafe and not being sure how to transport myself to the Field, I thought, could I walk it? It was only about two miles away and had a sidewalk the entire way, so I thought I would go for it! Get my steps in and not have to worry about an Uber, bus, parking my car, etc. So, I bundled up for the day, put in my headphones, and talked to my mom my entire walk over to Lambeau Field. Oh, to get a glimpse of my solo traveling ways again. Upon arrival at Lambeau, I had extra time before Izzy was ready, so I walked around the tailgate, checked out some of the events and activities, and kept my eyes peeled to see if I would recognize any Vikings fans and could join in on their tailgate. Sadly, no one was spotted, but after I did my complete lap, Izzy was ready!

She showed me some of the cool tailgate spots before we decided to head into the stadium so we could be there for kickoff. We got to our seats just in time to hear “Black and Yellow” and see the players running onto the field. So cool. Our seats were lower bowl, about halfway up, and pretty close to the 50 yard line! No complaints there.

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/24da27_ca1919966d8e4be7b8eb0c5159e62e94/1080p/mp4/file.mp4

I was proudly wearing the Packer gear, but throughout the game, I was secretly rooting for both. Which was kind of fun, for your team to always be on offense! The only bummer part was that the Vikings played so horribly that I felt defeated when they were on offense, versus the Packers fans cheering greatly when the Vikings made a mistake. That is how I knew I was still a bit of a Vikings fan at heart, when I could not root for their demise.

For how terribly the Vikings played, the game was still fun, and we got to celebrate a Packers victory! After the game concluded, Izzy and I agreed to head back to her apartment, racing for the car to blast the heat and eat a makeshift lunch at 4pm. It took us a while to warm back up and rest after the long afternoon! We did both by watching the new movie, Materialists, curled underneath cozy blankets. We blinked and just like that, the movie was over, it was dark outside, and we were starting to get hungry again, even though we had just eaten a super late lunch.

In college, Izzy and I would always make dinner together, trying new recipes and always cheffing up something healthy. So, we made a quick Target run, picked up some supplies, and then headed back to her apartment to cook dinner together! On the menu were burrito bowls! We ate and talked forever at the dinner table. We ate around 8pm but did not leave the table until 10pm, closing out the night with another great conversation and a weekend filled with quality time.

And that was my time in Green Bay! Yes, I went to the Vikings and Packers game, but the highlight was being able to see my friend. Reconnecting as though we did not live a four hour drive apart from each other. Similar to Saturday morning, I wanted to drive in the daylight, so I left Monday morning and made my way home for the fun holiday week I had in store for Thanksgiving. Thankfully, it was not the hardest goodbye because we made plans to see each other over Thanksgiving, going to a yoga class together! It was so fun to go on a little trip this month, getting to visit a close friend and partake in a fun experience. A worthwhile trip, no doubt.