In January 2010, my mother and I took the train to Kansas City, Missouri. This is part 2 of our trip report, which includes comments from our original trip-report recipients.
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| Kansas City, City Market |
MZURI'S REPORT
Tuesday, we visited Steamboat
Arabia, which is within the City Market.
In brief: Steamboat sank in Missouri River in mid-century 1800s. All contents still within, tho all humans escaped. River course changed. Boat encased in muck and mud til 1990, when museum owners dug it out. Contents preserved and on display. Sort of a snapshot in time of everyday items - many totally new at the time, as they'd been intended for mercantile stores along the river route.
I'm not all that interested in all of the minutia arrayed in the museum, although there is power in the sheer quantities of like items, e.g. boots, nails, buttons, coats, tools, etc. The thing that I like is that the individuals who unearthed all of this are still a daily part of the museum, and they introduce themselves to visitors. Also, the docent is very knowledgeable about the dig and the museum contents. I was especially interested in talking at some length with one of the textile preservationists.
There was a bit of an incident when Carol was talking to one of the museum owners, one of the men who led the whole adventurous gamble of the dig. The boat was in a field owned by a local judge (a mile south of Parkville). Carol asked about legal threats to the ownership of the boat's contents, to which the museum owner replied there were none. Carol noted that it was likely a good thing the landowner was a judge and not "an ignorant ..... " at which time my hand suddenly, without any warning to me, shot out and struck her thigh. Carol and the gentleman looked startled, and Carol asked, "what, were you worried what I was going to say next?" I allowed as how, yes, I was. Carol asked what I thought she was going to say, and I said I didn't know, but whatever it was, it probably wasn't going to be good.
Carol might have been really angry except that only moments before, the museum owner had exclaimed that she couldn't possibly be old enough to be my mother. So Carol was like a lion who'd just eaten, willing to let small prey live.
In brief: Steamboat sank in Missouri River in mid-century 1800s. All contents still within, tho all humans escaped. River course changed. Boat encased in muck and mud til 1990, when museum owners dug it out. Contents preserved and on display. Sort of a snapshot in time of everyday items - many totally new at the time, as they'd been intended for mercantile stores along the river route.
I'm not all that interested in all of the minutia arrayed in the museum, although there is power in the sheer quantities of like items, e.g. boots, nails, buttons, coats, tools, etc. The thing that I like is that the individuals who unearthed all of this are still a daily part of the museum, and they introduce themselves to visitors. Also, the docent is very knowledgeable about the dig and the museum contents. I was especially interested in talking at some length with one of the textile preservationists.
There was a bit of an incident when Carol was talking to one of the museum owners, one of the men who led the whole adventurous gamble of the dig. The boat was in a field owned by a local judge (a mile south of Parkville). Carol asked about legal threats to the ownership of the boat's contents, to which the museum owner replied there were none. Carol noted that it was likely a good thing the landowner was a judge and not "an ignorant ..... " at which time my hand suddenly, without any warning to me, shot out and struck her thigh. Carol and the gentleman looked startled, and Carol asked, "what, were you worried what I was going to say next?" I allowed as how, yes, I was. Carol asked what I thought she was going to say, and I said I didn't know, but whatever it was, it probably wasn't going to be good.
Carol might have been really angry except that only moments before, the museum owner had exclaimed that she couldn't possibly be old enough to be my mother. So Carol was like a lion who'd just eaten, willing to let small prey live.
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| Kansas City, City Market |
I liked the City Market. There seems to have been some effort by the
powers-that-be to ensure some interesting diversity there. The restaurants
include: Italian, middle eastern, Vietnamese, Ethiopian, Indian, Mexican,
Chinese, and American. We lunched at the middle eastern place; Carol had a
chicken gyros and I had a lamb/beef one. She had a great salad with feta,
olives, etc. and I had hummus with my gyros.
I picked up fresh dates at the middle eastern market, ginger at the Vietnamese market, and berbere spice at the Ethiopian restaurant. Carol picked up a used book at Auntie Em's, an antique store.
CAROL'S REPORT
I picked up fresh dates at the middle eastern market, ginger at the Vietnamese market, and berbere spice at the Ethiopian restaurant. Carol picked up a used book at Auntie Em's, an antique store.
CAROL'S REPORT
When the gentleman said I didn't look old enough to be Mzuri's mother I was wearing
the red coat. [See Chicago trip reports for red coat reference.]
Mzuri punched my leg; it startled me and I knew she was cautioning me to watch my rhetoric which puzzled me, but am getting used to my children expecting some untoward remark made by me. Beekeeper [Carol's 4th son] even asked me to refrain from sighs at his son's recent concert. Anyway Mzuri explained later that she thought I was going to say "ignorant farmer" instead of what I did say which was ignorant person. By the way, the group responsible for digging up the boat were a father and his two sons all in the family air conditioning business. The City Market was unique - as Mzuri said many cultures and native food choices present.
Mzuri punched my leg; it startled me and I knew she was cautioning me to watch my rhetoric which puzzled me, but am getting used to my children expecting some untoward remark made by me. Beekeeper [Carol's 4th son] even asked me to refrain from sighs at his son's recent concert. Anyway Mzuri explained later that she thought I was going to say "ignorant farmer" instead of what I did say which was ignorant person. By the way, the group responsible for digging up the boat were a father and his two sons all in the family air conditioning business. The City Market was unique - as Mzuri said many cultures and native food choices present.
My passport card was Discover. Today, the Art Museum.
EMAIL RESPONSES TO DAILY LOG:
FROM LABARQUE:
I love these reports. They are great escapes. Thanks for sharing them. ....I especially enjoy the two different reports. I love Mom's clarifications. It's the difference in the two perspectives that I find the must humorous and interesting.
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