by You might think that the best parts of Kansas City are in Kansas, but you’d be wrong — the most well-known attractions are in Kansas City, Missouri. It’s very weird how these two cities are joined — there’s no clear dividing line like a river for most of the boundary, so its like one big city in two different states. It just seems unnecessarily confusing. Every time we’d see a “Entering Kansas City” sign, I’d think “I still need you to narrow down what state I’m in.”
Anyway, we were in town for a work event for Doug. We managed to squeeze in a few interesting items, but most of our fun was had in the Kansas City that is not in Kansas. On the plus side, Kansas is a new state for us to visit in the van!
Shawnee Mission Park
We did a little birding in Shawnee Mission Park, just west of Kansas City.
Johnson County Museum
We went to this museum in Overland Park (part of the greater Kansas City, Kansas, metropolitan area) to see the 1953 All-Electric House, which was built by the local electric company to showcase modern living. It was open to the public to tour for seven months, and 62,000 people came to see the “home of the future” (almost the entire population of the county!). At 1,500 square feet, it cost $51k to build and sold for $36k – at a time when the average cost of a new home was just $11k! It was a residential home (with five different owners) until 1994. You can take a video tour here, if you’re looking for ideas.
Overland Park Arboretum & Botanical Gardens
I wisely chose to visit the Overland Park Arboretum & Botanical Gardens while Doug was working. It had a bunch of walking trails that I personally found underwhelming.
Museum of Deaf History, Arts and Culture
We are always interested in learning about experiences beyond our own realm of experience, and this museum in Olathe (another city part of the greater Kansas City (Kansas) metropolitan area) fits the bill.
A deaf greater welcomed me in, and gestured instructions to me. I watched a video and meandered the small exhibit areas. Perhaps it is no surprise that museum dedicated to the loss of hearing didn’t have much to see, exactly.
And More Food!
I left Doug in Hana’s Donuts, reportedly one of the best donut shoppes in Kansas, with instructions to get me a red velvet donut. Imagine my surprise when he returned with an entire box of donuts for two people. They were definitely delicious donuts (or so I heard).
At Joe’s Kansas City Bar-B-Que, Doug got the Z-Man Sandwich, which features “sliced smoked brisket, smoked provolone cheese, a couple of onion rings, a bit of barbecue sauce, all on top of a Kaiser roll.” Doug is really suffering during van life.
