2 regions in the American Midwest: Des Moines ed Iowa State Fair
– “…Iowa!”
– “Interesting, but… cos’è?”
certainly, among Europeans, is not the most famous American State, many will struggle to even place it on the map but, I have to admit that it turned a pleasant discovery.
Located in the center of the country, a day trip from Chicago, and a couple of hours from Omaha, NE (I bet some lover of Big Bang Theory knows this city), is essentially a… only, large, wheat field. 🙂
Farms and fields are followed with a disarming monotony along the I-80, the e unico “diversion” is the crossing of the great Mississippi River, which marks the border with East Illinois.
Yet, in estate, Tourists from all over the country storm the capital, Des Moines (pronounced, French, Demoin), to attend the largest state fair in the U.S.: The’Iowa State Fair.
If judges who evaluate cows, horses, scout, singers improvised, cow made of butter (you read correctly!) and a quantity of unclean fried food do for you, well… you've found the right place!
The city, Also, owns the Capitol with domes highest across the USA (US Capitol building escluso, of course), which can be visited free of charge (including the Senate and the State Library), and well worth a morning.
You can reach Des Moines plane (all regional American flywheel in the port city, which is located a few miles south of downtown), renting a car, or via Megabus, which offers daily service from Chicago.
Regarding the accommodation, there is no offer vast and, as an alternative to downtown hotels, that arrive during the Fair prices soaring, you can orient yourself to rent a room through the site AirBnB, as I did, Info Salisbury Oaks, quiet residential area.
It does not appear that the city offers so much more but, believe me, apart from the beautiful Capitol, the Iowa State Fair is worth the visit, if only for the air we breathe! Something is radically different from the skyscrapers of the metropolis, both from national parks of the Southwest.
Council to do careful with the food fair (corn dog on a stick, deep fried butter e schifezze simili), ultracalorico and not just because it is healthy, as we remember one of the souvenirs for sale: “I Went to the Iowa State Fair and All I Got was Type 2 Diabetes“. 🙂
In the city you are moving easily on foot while, to reach the area of the Fairgrounds, where it is held, you can use public transport or even the dedicated shuttle, that part outside the U.S. Capitol, near the bell (from the cost of .50$).
I shot a little video to show Iowa, waiting for the parade: la musica country c’era, horses, pure, cowboy hats and morbidly obese idem… I confirm, We are west of the Mississippi River!
All pictures I took in Des Moines are, Usual, in the gallery, within this address.
We route (assuming the arrival in town the night before, in order to take full advantage of the first day):
1 day:
Iowa State Fair (red balloons):
download daily schedule in PDF
Mail sent to me by the Tourism Office in Des Moines: For a newbie…. we are celebrating 100 years of our Butter Cow, so that would top the list of things to see! I would take 1-2 days to fully explore the fair. It is easier to break it up than try to do it all in one day.
Fun contests include our outhouse races, llama limbo and chow chip throwing…. all can be found in the daily program when it is posted in June.
Other standbys that would be must sees are livestock shows; horses, cattle, swine, sheep. It is easy to spend hours in the barns. We also have a Avenue of Breeds that is great to check out.
Watching a foods competition is also great, we have more than 900 divisions! The competition can be fierce.
The food alone is worth the trip with more than 50 foods on-a-stick! https://www.iowastatefair.org/services/food-on-a-stick.php.
We will have a walking tour on our website in the early summer that will help you to navigate the grounds. https://www.iowastatefair.org/entertainment/tours.php.
2 day:
downtown (Yellow balloons):
- Iowa State Capitol and the area around – whole morning
- Departure – To get to the airport: Il bus 8 southbound costa 1.75$ e parte fra Walnut&7th. From State Capitol, con vari bus, You can reach Walnut&7th.
MAP ON THIS TOUR: link
Some other… suffered little known in the United? Have you attended the Iowa State Fair or, Maybe, to that of Wisconsin during the visita a Milwaukee?