"The Sunflower State"

Welcome to Kansas

Kansas/Missouri border on I-435
March 20, 2009

Dorothy had every right to get excited about not being in Kansas anymore, since there isn't much to write home about. In fairness, I didn't spend a whole lot of time in the Sunflower state and perhaps Wichita is a happening place to be. But between Topeka and Kansas City (yes, the one in Kansas), I can see how the state gets overlooked. What typically doesn't get overlooked is Kansas seems to be the favorite breeding ground for tornadoes, where it seems that hardly a year goes by that some small town isn't devastated by a twister. While many state nicknames are no longer relevant to their namesakes, I didn't see any flowers during my entire stay in Kansas. Though disappointing, I think they aren't in season during late April.

This sign and I have a history. On two different trips into Kansas, I photographed this exact sign, the first time on April 29, 2007. The first time was during my roadtrip visiting my friend in Omaha, and I was heading to Overland Park for some barbecue. This time, I was in Kansas City to watch Michigan in the NCAA Tournament and wanted to go back to the BBQ place. I deliberately took the same route (which was slightly out-of-the-way this time around) just to see if the sign had changed. It did, and for the worse. As poor as it was previously, at least it managed to incorporate a sunflower into the design. This time, there is nothing that makes it unique to the Sunflower state whatsoever. I'm not sure what the star has to do with anything, aside from adding a dash of color to a dull blue background. For what it's worth, I do like the font choice.

Welcome to Topeka

April 29, 2007

While trying to sound as nice and diplomatic as possible, it looked like Topeka had recently hit some hard times during my visit. The downtown seemed completely devoid of any activity on the Sunday afternoon when I visited, and I think I saw a total of about five cars parked along the street (and this was a main drag as well). While it has a population in the six-figure range, it had a very small-town feel to it. The city is probably most famous as the site of the famous school integration that lead to the landmark Supreme Court decision, Brown vs. Board of Education. I would have liked to visit the historical site outside of town, but I just didn't have time.

Something about the dome on this capitol seems a little off. It reminded me of the Michigan capitol, where it seems it is too narrow in proportion to the rest of the building. This shot is taken from the rear of the building, where some work was being done to either add or modify a parking lot. I try to take my pictures from the front, but sometimes foliage gets in the way, and that was the case here. The grounds around the building weren't special, although there was a miniature replica of the Statue of Liberty on the northwestern corner of the square. It seemed oddly out of place, since it was located closer to the street than the building.

Miscellaneous Kansas Symbols

State Route Sign

License Plate

Seal

Quarter