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To Peek at Topeka: HHNC

Yes, Topeka of all places. Like you, perhaps, I had no actual first-hand knowledge of this mysterious land they call Kansas. All I really know is that it has a reputation for being flat, and hot, and dull, and that its very name is literally a synonym for plain and ordinary, as in "We're not in Kansas anymore." And all I really knew about Topeka is that it's the home of the Westboro Baptist Church, as well as -- speaking of religious nuts -- the home of former governor Sam Brownback's fabulous failed tax experiment. Stephen King also saw fit to make use of the place, specifically Gage Park, in the Wizard and Glass book of his Dark Tower series.

We were there for more prosaic reasons though and sadly, we were unable to ride a miniature train into another dimension which is, as I understand it, what happens to the characters in Wizard and Glass. On the other hand, we were very pleasantly surprised by the quality of food. We had excellent burgers, Italian food, and a very good meal at a place called The Blind Tiger whose logo is so bitchin' that I bought myself a tee shirt. First time I've ever bought a restaurant/brewery shirt. Blind Tiger also sponsors the tiger exhibit at the Topeka Zoo, which is another reason to like them. On the other hand, we ate at a chicken place where the experience could best be summed up like so. Go watch. I'll wait.

Speaking of cutting you, we learned that Topeka has a terrible reputation due to its high crime rate, although what struck me is the way it appeared that all the white trash from the wretched little rural county where I work as a social worker had somehow multiplied their numbers and built themselves a city with buildings and sidewalks and everything. Topeka seemed to be a city that will cut your candy ass at the slightest provocation. It felt rather a lot like Little Rock and in fact, that could be a good tourism slogan for the city: "Topeka: It's basically Little Rock!"

Other potential slogans might be "Topeka: Comfortable, like your fat pants" and "Topeka: Shockingly tolerable!" -- because it was. I was stunned by how comfortable the place felt, even with so many people walking around with visible track marks and no teeth. It felt rather homey, all things considered, which was absolutely mindblowing for a guy born and raised in the mountains.

And the real fun of it is that we'll likely have to go back there at least two or three more times. Perhaps on one of those future trips I can take more than just these crappy photos with my phone.

Thank you Topeka is rare on this forum actually on any forums too.

Nice pictures. Topeka doesn't look too bad. Did it have a prairie feel, or does Topeka feel more like it's in a farmland region similar to Illinois or Iowa?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Murphy de la Sucre (Post 8179045)

Thank you Topeka is rare on this forum actually on any forums too.

I think on a forum like this, pretty much anything is rare if it isn't an alpha world city.

...Which is a shame because there's a lot of urbanity in the world beyond the big dogs.

Quote:

Originally Posted by xzmattzx (Post 8179278)

Nice pictures. Topeka doesn't look too bad. Did it have a prairie feel, or does Topeka feel more like it's in a farmland region similar to Illinois or Iowa?

It definitely was a pleasant surprise. I had very low expectations.

I'm not sure I'm qualified to describe a "prairie feel" versus a farmland field, but one thing that did surprise me, coming from the South, was that urban development pretty much slammed to a halt right outside town. There was a very clear delineation between town and country. All of a sudden you were out in the fields.

Quote:

Originally Posted by hauntedheadnc (Post 8179286)

I'm not sure I'm qualified to describe a "prairie feel" versus a farmland field, but one thing that did surprise me, coming from the South, was that urban development pretty much slammed to a halt right outside town. There was a very clear delineation between town and country. All of a sudden you were out in the fields.

that's mos def tell-tale prairie/plains...that's present in illinois west to ?

ah, the infamous topeka.

http://www.i-mockery.com/minimocks/p...omobiles/3.gif

when i lived in kansas city, i rarely went west of lawrence into kansas (which amazingly feels totally different than topeka) unless i was going all the way to the front range or less common, to the flint hills and manhattan (kansas) which once again, feels different than topeka.

https://scontent-atl3-1.xx.fbcdn.net...fb&oe=5B5B7E16

the kansa, or more common regionally the kaw tribe member with the bow and arrow pointed at the north star. this iconic statue on the dome a classic waypoint on I-70 for me on the way to the rockies. sort of a signal that the land is starting to slowly but surely bend skyward from the influence of the rocky mountains, and the "gate" to the proper great plains.

thanks for the photos.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Centropolis (Post 8179509)

that's mos def tell-tale prairie/plains...that's present in illinois west to ?

I was surprised that the land had more texture than I'd been led to believe... You'd be going along and suddenly find yourself on a patch of high(ish) ground, and be able to see downtown miles away. That was pretty cool.

Quote:

the kansa, or more common regionally the kaw tribe member with the bow and arrow pointed at the north star. this iconic statue on the dome a classic waypoint on I-70 for me on the way to the rockies. sort of a signal that the land is starting to slowly but surely bend skyward from the influence of the rocky mountains, and the "gate" to the proper great plains.

thanks for the photos.

They do have a nice capitol, and you can see it and that crowning statue from everywhere. I can honestly see how Topeka could be a place that a person could grow to love. I really hope they can straighten themselves out. There are blocks upon blocks of Victorian houses there, cheap as dirt, just waiting for some enterprising creative type to bring them back to life. Topeka has some serious funk potential.

Quote:

Originally Posted by hauntedheadnc (Post 8179536)

that's sort of the difference between the prairies of indiana/illinois and the plains of kansas, etc. the land goes from feeling concave, down in a massive bowl to convex, or an inverse bowl. kansas really opens up especially in places like the flint hills or smoky hills, the ozarks southwest of st. louis can do this too east to west but there's usually too many trees to appreciate it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Centropolis (Post 8179631)

Having been there and seen it, I think Kansas has a very subtle beauty that takes an open mind to appreciate. Plains and gentle hills are not dramatic, no, and they won't pack the same kind of punch that a 400-ft waterfall would. But only a fool would not call it beautiful.

Interesting. Thanks for the set.

I haven't been there as an adult, but as a kid & teen my family drove through Topeka on I-70 at least a dozen times on long cross-country road trips. My main memory of it is how different it feels depending on which direction you're driving.

If you're heading west, you don't think about it much at all. There's only a half hour of country in-between the KC & Topeka suburbs, with Lawrence smack in the middle of that, so it really doesn't seem isolated or far or special. But ho-boy, things are different coming east.

Coming east you spend hours and hours in the depths of the Great Plains, feeling (and being) in the absolute middle of nowhere. For 500 freaking miles between Denver and Topeka, you're lucky to get a Dairy Queen and McDonalds at any highway exit, much less anything that you could reasonably call a city. It's an entire day of driving. But then you get to Topeka. And small and dusty though Topeka may be, Topeka is a city. You get there and you throw your hands up in the air and sing a literal hallelujah, because finally you've reached the first outpost of metropolitan America, of civilization itself.

I am not exaggerating. Approaching Topeka from the west is an emotional experience.

tl;dr this is you arriving in Topeka from the west:
https://media.giphy.com/media/3oFzm9...G1ry/giphy.gif

Anyway, my mental image of Topeka is pretty much exactly your first picture. That distinctly urban view from I-70 is permanently ingrained into my brain. But that's all that is, since I only traveled through as a kid and never got the chance to explore it off the highway.

Also the state house dome fountain is adorable.

Awesome tour. Thanks!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cirrus (Post 8179682)

a few years ago between relationships i tore up I-70 a decent amount between st. louis and denver. replace topeka with lawrence (for me) as that civilisational totem. lawrence is one of the good ones...where william s. burroughs settled in of course. has a pre-superboom mini-austin thing going on at its best. a slightly above average state flagship university town at its worst.

perhaps that bias also prevented me from digging in to topeka...i didnt know it had some of these things. historically speaking lawrence is the liberal yang to the topeka (whatever) ying.

Quote:

Originally Posted by hauntedheadnc (Post 8178857)

https://scontent-atl3-1.xx.fbcdn.net...b6&oe=5B516DF1

I love pioneer monuments!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cirrus (Post 8179682)

Mark my words I will do the exact same trip like yours from Denver to Topeka to experience the feelings and emotions as you described.

Preliminary plan is something like this: in year of 2022, to fly to Denver from LA or SF, have to skip SLC cuz it is said boring. Then to drive from Denver to KCMO to experience the ... so tired of in the middle of nowhere all day ... wait wait see some urban stuff (in Manhattan) ... oh man more urbanism (in Topeka) ... and hallelujah finally back to civilization (in KCMO, actually been there in 2011 had an alright metropolitan minute, especially when in Crown Plaza area, spending some decent time at the mall the Hallmark the hotels the parks and the monument and looking to downtown skyline, yeah that 500-mile was worthy of the emotion and all).

Did not know there was an "equality house" across the street from Westboro. That's awesome! Great tour!

Kansas is like a lot of states that can defy stereotypes. The eastern part of the state is green, somewhat hilly, and woodsy in places. As for the people, it's like all red states. It's not that there aren't a lot of intelligent, educated, decent people. It's just that the far right wing extremists and politicians get so much attention that folks don't realize there are other people there, including lots of moderates and liberals. In my line of work, I've worked with many people from Kansas who were absolutely wonderful people. They're very embarrassed by Brownback and Westboro in particular, both of which seem to define Kansas.

Thanks for the comments, everyone.

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikecolley (Post 8180128)

Did not know there was an "equality house" across the street from Westboro. That's awesome! Great tour!

The Equality House is owned by a nonprofit called Planting Peace. They also own that house next door, which is painted in the colors of the transgender flag just like Equality House is painted in the colors of the gay and lesbian flag.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Centropolis (Post 8179767)

replace topeka with lawrence (for me) as that civilisational totem.

I'd expect Lawrence and Manhattan to be pretty nice, being university towns. But you can't see them from I-70, which was what made Topeka so great for me.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Muphy de la Sucre

Mark my words I will do the exact same trip like yours from Denver to Topeka

Good luck! I can see how that would be an adventure for an Antwerpian.

Thank you for posting these. I can't recall ever seeing Topeka here. It looks interesting, a little more rundown than I expected but overall seems to be in good shape.