Days 23-24: Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota

Welcome to the midwest.  Hence this guy.

Wide...

...load.  
We passed about 30 wind turbine blades on flatbed trucks on the way through Iowa.

Old school Bruegger's.  I decided to forego a Breuggaccino.

University of Iowa, in Iowa City, Iowa.  Iowa.  (Iowa.)

Quick stop at the legendary Prairie Lights bookstore.  Bought this collection of short stories -- anyone know much about Charles D'Ambrosio?

Quick stop to the Iowa Writers' Workshop was...uneventful.  This picture is to SHOW you we went there, not TELL you. (get it? anyone?)

"Zzzzzz..."

"Huh?"

"Are you seriously taking a picture of this?"

"Oh COME ON."

"Whatev-- Zzzzzzzz..."

On to Des Moines for a quick pit stop and to check out Laura's dad's old house.

Thomas Friedman was right, the world really is flat, at least here.

We actually arrived in Nebraska at night, but this was the only picture we could get (the next day)

Allegedly the "original" Omaha steakhouse.

Mmmmm prime riiiibbb...

Is that...

...ummm, I think...

...yup, lunch.

Scenery is starting to change...

Pretty hard to believe we already hit 4,000 (at the time of posting, actually up to 6,000)

The smog above Sioux City

Mitchell, SD -- home of the Corn Palace.

Meet the Corn Palace.

TECHNICALLY it's not made of corn, just decorated with it.  Disappointing.  We drove five thousand miles for THIS?!

The corn palace also doubles as the local college gym?

...and city hall?

Unsurprisingly, the mayor is a little...wait for it.........husky.  But, surprisingly, no ears...

At this point, the signs of hunting season begin to appear.  On the one hand, it means every hotel is dog friendly.  On the other, it means your neighbors may accidentally fire off a shot next door at any point.

First of several hundred signs for Wall Drug in Wall, SD.

Reached the Missouri River.  Landscape REALLY starts to change after this (but not until the next blog entry).

It was VERY windy.  I was very NOT happy about it.

A prize goes to everyone who can find Winter in this picture*

*No prize will be awarded.  Don't be ridiculous.