Chrysa and I have really hit our stride here in Iowa. We get up in the morning, have some coffee, go to the gym, and then Chrysa and I go to work. We do that for about a week and then Chrysa has a week off. This schedule leaves us plenty of time to do the exploring that we love, and didn’t get a chance to do in Spokane.
So what, you may ask, is there actually to explore in Iowa? How about the beautiful city of Des Moines? Chrysa recently had a week off, and we had completed our morning routine on time, and were looking for something to do. As we may have mentioned, Minneapolis is only 2 hours north of us, and Des Moines is 2 hours south. The question was really north or south.
Since we had never been to Des Moines we decided on south. The Midwest heat and humidity was in full effect so we donned our lightest clothes, loaded into the Jeep, and headed due south on I35. After a couple of hours we got our first view of the Des Moines skyline and Chrysa exclaimed, “oh, it’s a real city”!
You will not be surprised to find out that it is, in fact, a real city complete with tall buildings, a bustling city center, and (happily) adequate parking. Chrysa and I had done a little research on the city and had managed to park close to the visitor center. We only planned on being in the city for a few hours, and that meant maximizing our time there. Visitor Centers are a great way to do that. The folks who man them are always full of great information and are more than willing to share insider tips.
We began our tour by walking toward the State Capitol Building. The nice folks at the visitor center suggested doing this because the walk would also take us through the East Village, where we could pick up some lunch and a drink.
Our lunch didn’t exactly give us the break from the heat and humidity that we hoped for. The AC in the bar we stopped in was broken. We did stick it out though and enjoyed a nice, if not a little sweaty meal, before heading to the Capitol Building.
This ended up being the highlight of the trip. If you are ever in Des Moines you absolutely must check out the Capitol Building. As Chrysa will tell you, I am fascinated by old federalist buildings. When we went to Washington DC a few years ago we toured the US Capitol Building. Chrysa thought it was nice, but I was fascinated. The beauty of the building was obvious, but I loved the interplay of history and architecture. You can visualize presidents giving inaugural speeches on the steps, and you can feel the ghostly presence of presidents laying in repose under the Capitol Building rotunda.
My only complaint about the US Capitol Building tour is the lack of accessibility. In this day and age security concerns are very real. Having people wandering aimlessly throughout the building may not be the best of ideas. To my surprise access is not restricted at all at the Iowa State Capitol Building. We were shocked to find this out when we purchased our tickets for our self-guided tour. We were provided with a map of the building indicating the rooms that were open to the public, which included the Secretary of State and Governors offices.
Seriously… it was before 5 o’clock on a Monday and we just walked in while people were working. In fact, we got a little tour from an office docent in each room. The Secretary of State’s office has an exact replica of the Resolute Desk, and a three story vault. The Governor’s Office has a beautiful receiving area and spectacular mirrors and art.
We also explored the Senate and House Chambers, the law library, and the old Supreme Court Chambers. It was closed because of excessive heat, but you can even take the stairs to the top of the rotunda. I simply could not believe the level of access. If you ever want to explore the nooks and crannies of an old building consider coming to Iowa.
The next place to check out was the historic East Village. Since we spent so much time in the Capitol (my fault) we really just walked the area and made notes on places to check out when we come back for another visit. On the short list is Tacopocalypse. Crazy fusion style taco’s…yes please! We did check out a store or two and bought a t-shirt before winding up our trip in the court street district.
As a city Des Moines seems to sum up the Midwest as a whole. It’s an unknown or unexplored area of the country that’s full of fun, interesting and historic places, that people don’t give proper respect too. Hopefully our posts do there little part in changing that.
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