...47...48...
Why, you might ask, if I had meetings in Kansas City, did I find myself in Nebraska? The answer is quite simple: because I could.
Not that I've ever had any great burning desire to see Kansas City (although it was perfectly pleasant, and former KC denizen Global Librarian came through with some excellent recommendations), but I was very excited about this trip for two reasons: Kansas and Nebraska.
As of Wednesday morning, I had been to 46 out of the 50 U.S. states. It's not like I ever set out to visit each state, but after a couple of cross-country drives and a couple of long driving vacations, I realized I'd seen a fair chunk of this beautiful land of ours. Among the states I'd never visited? You got it--Kansas and Nebraska (the other two are North Dakota and Alaska).
So Wednesday afternoon I rented a PT Cruiser in anticipation of checking those states off my list:
My plan was to drive north through part of Kansas on the way to Nebraska the next day, but it was still light out, Kansas beckoned mere blocks away, and the hotel had a brochure for a chain of stores featuring Kansas memorabilia. I was SO there. (The really impressive thing--and it was truly chock full o' Kansas stuff--was that none of their locations appeared to be near anyplace touristy...clearly locals have Kansas pride.) I quickly crossed the border and number 47...check!
The next day after finishing my meetings I headed north toward Nebraska. It took a couple of hours, but it was a truly excellent drive for several reasons:
--The speed limit was 70mph, so I could go a comfortable 75-80mph without being too worried about getting a ticket;
--Although if I wanted to, I probably could have driven 100mph because I didn't see a single state trooper--not one--the whole way there and back;
--Despite my lovely arm splint, my messed-up shoulder didn't cause me any troubles driving;
--It was quite pretty and not nearly as flat as I was expecting it to be (for some reason I pictured terrain as flat as a pancake with mile after mile of corn);
--As an added bonus, I got to drive through Iowa! I had already checked Iowa off the list--Gretchen and I actually met at a wedding there--but there's just something pleasant about Iowa. In this case, despite looking at maps beforehand I had somehow missed that I would be driving through part of Iowa (even if it was only 10 miles worth);
--There weren't too many 18-wheelers; and
--Perhaps best of all, people were really good about the whole pass-on-the-left thing...everyone was driving in the right lane except when they passed on the left and immediately moved back to the right. After living in Europe, where passing on the right is frowned upon (and can actually get you in big trouble), it was a big adjustment to come back to the DC area, where drivers think it's their God-given right to drive 56mph in the far left lane and have everyone pass them on the right. In roughly six hours of driving, I think I had to pass a total of two cars on the right...I usually pass that many here in the morning before I've even reached the next exit.
So anyway, north through Missouri I went, and then into Iowa (IOWA)! before bearing west toward Nebraska. My original plan had been to drive up to Omaha, which is supposed to be kind of interesting and have its own little indie scene, but I didn't want to feel rushed so I lowered my sights and went somewhere closer instead: Nebraska City, which as surely everyone knows is the home of Arbor Day. (Number 48...check!) To capture the moment (and prove that I was indeed in Nebraska), I got this shot of the man himself (or at least his statue): J. Sterling Morton, father of Arbor Day:
That was about all the excitement I could stand for one day (except for being surprised to discover that I could get frozen custard in St. Joseph, MO), so I took a state highway road south through rural Nebraska and eventually found my way back to the freeway. I got back to the Kansas City area more quickly than expected so I took another detour into Kansas and visited Leavenworth, which for some reason I thought might be interesting. Maybe I had one eye on my watch to make sure I got back to the airport in plenty of time, but other than maybe getting a view of the Missouri River (I'm a big fan of rivers), it's not going to be next on our list of family vacation destinations:
All in all, an excellent day. Now North Dakota and Alaska, here I come...
Not that I've ever had any great burning desire to see Kansas City (although it was perfectly pleasant, and former KC denizen Global Librarian came through with some excellent recommendations), but I was very excited about this trip for two reasons: Kansas and Nebraska.
As of Wednesday morning, I had been to 46 out of the 50 U.S. states. It's not like I ever set out to visit each state, but after a couple of cross-country drives and a couple of long driving vacations, I realized I'd seen a fair chunk of this beautiful land of ours. Among the states I'd never visited? You got it--Kansas and Nebraska (the other two are North Dakota and Alaska).
So Wednesday afternoon I rented a PT Cruiser in anticipation of checking those states off my list:
My plan was to drive north through part of Kansas on the way to Nebraska the next day, but it was still light out, Kansas beckoned mere blocks away, and the hotel had a brochure for a chain of stores featuring Kansas memorabilia. I was SO there. (The really impressive thing--and it was truly chock full o' Kansas stuff--was that none of their locations appeared to be near anyplace touristy...clearly locals have Kansas pride.) I quickly crossed the border and number 47...check!
The next day after finishing my meetings I headed north toward Nebraska. It took a couple of hours, but it was a truly excellent drive for several reasons:
--The speed limit was 70mph, so I could go a comfortable 75-80mph without being too worried about getting a ticket;
--Although if I wanted to, I probably could have driven 100mph because I didn't see a single state trooper--not one--the whole way there and back;
--Despite my lovely arm splint, my messed-up shoulder didn't cause me any troubles driving;
--It was quite pretty and not nearly as flat as I was expecting it to be (for some reason I pictured terrain as flat as a pancake with mile after mile of corn);
--As an added bonus, I got to drive through Iowa! I had already checked Iowa off the list--Gretchen and I actually met at a wedding there--but there's just something pleasant about Iowa. In this case, despite looking at maps beforehand I had somehow missed that I would be driving through part of Iowa (even if it was only 10 miles worth);
--There weren't too many 18-wheelers; and
--Perhaps best of all, people were really good about the whole pass-on-the-left thing...everyone was driving in the right lane except when they passed on the left and immediately moved back to the right. After living in Europe, where passing on the right is frowned upon (and can actually get you in big trouble), it was a big adjustment to come back to the DC area, where drivers think it's their God-given right to drive 56mph in the far left lane and have everyone pass them on the right. In roughly six hours of driving, I think I had to pass a total of two cars on the right...I usually pass that many here in the morning before I've even reached the next exit.
So anyway, north through Missouri I went, and then into Iowa (IOWA)! before bearing west toward Nebraska. My original plan had been to drive up to Omaha, which is supposed to be kind of interesting and have its own little indie scene, but I didn't want to feel rushed so I lowered my sights and went somewhere closer instead: Nebraska City, which as surely everyone knows is the home of Arbor Day. (Number 48...check!) To capture the moment (and prove that I was indeed in Nebraska), I got this shot of the man himself (or at least his statue): J. Sterling Morton, father of Arbor Day:
That was about all the excitement I could stand for one day (except for being surprised to discover that I could get frozen custard in St. Joseph, MO), so I took a state highway road south through rural Nebraska and eventually found my way back to the freeway. I got back to the Kansas City area more quickly than expected so I took another detour into Kansas and visited Leavenworth, which for some reason I thought might be interesting. Maybe I had one eye on my watch to make sure I got back to the airport in plenty of time, but other than maybe getting a view of the Missouri River (I'm a big fan of rivers), it's not going to be next on our list of family vacation destinations:
All in all, an excellent day. Now North Dakota and Alaska, here I come...
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