The Missouri Waltz

Missouri Welcome Center, just over the border...

At one time I wanted to write a book about my travels. I may still, although this little blog has satisfied a great deal of my need to write. I want to name it "'Rest Area Next Right"/

Some of the most interesting things I encounter in my travels are rest areas... yeah, I know, not much of a life, is it! I do feel, however, that a state's rest areas tell you a great deal about how you will be welcomed in that state, and of how you will be viewed as a traveler. California has like, two rest areas and they suck... should tell you something...

Once you get out of the mean states, the climate changes, and you will find welcome in a great many places. Many states utilize local stone or themes that are meant to introduce you to something about the state. Many states have rest areas that are 'manned' by people who take great pleasure in showing or telling you about their state. Many will make reservations for you. Some offer free coffee and cookies to help you stay awake on their roads. Some states allow overnight camping, and provide little cooksites and auto shelters so that you will stop and stay and not mess up their highways in the middle of the night. The above picture is of the Missouri Welcome Center, the first rest area you see in the state. I was shocked and impressed. It looks rather antebellum from the outside, but the real joy was inside...



It was in November, I believe (encouraged by the Christmas tree), and it was not a camping trip, but a visiting one. Inside this delightful building were local crafts, couches for resting, and a fireplace that actually worked... I have seen other rest areas that were as ornate and as welcoming as this one, but this was my first experience with being asked into a state in hopes that I might enjoy myself...

Way to go Missouri!...