Smartass sportswriter Bill Simmons makes a pilgrimage to Lambeau Field.
Having been lucky enough to see a Bears-Packers game there two season ago, I have to agree with him that it's a transcendent experience:
Six ways to know that you're entering a transcendent stadium: (1) It's more simple than you expected -- shockingly so; (2) You feel the history everywhere you turn -- retired numbers, statues, signs that look like they've been kicking around for 60 years; (3) The ushers and vendors are positively ancient; (4) When you find your section and see the field/court/ice for the first time, you get a major rush; (5) You can't help but think, "wow, [fill in the game of a famous athlete] played here"; and (6) One unique quirk pushes everything over the top. Number six is the biggie. At Fenway, it's the Monster. At Wrigley, it's the ivy. At the Rose Bowl, it's the staggering size. At Yankee Stadium, it's the symmetry of the upper decks and how they tower over the field. And at Lambeau, the clouds hug the top of the stadium, the sky always seems to be four different colors, you can't see anything else for miles ... it's the real-life "Field of Dreams." It really is. And unlike every other professional football stadium, the first three-fourths of the stadium is filled with metal rows (the seats) and the top fourth holds the luxury boxes. So all the real fans are in the good seats. I can't think of a single negative about Lambeau. Not one.
...
I notice only five Green Bay numbers are retired -- Don Hutson (14), Tony Canadeo (5), Bart Starr (15), Ray Nitschke (66) and Reggie White (92). Sadly, no Don Majikowski. Those numbers run underneath the bigger scoreboard. Wrapping around the stadium is the Packers Ring of Honor, which has about 20-25 more names. Everything is displayed in the least ostentatious way possible.
Now, if only the Packers could win a few games this season.