In the Wilds of Des Moines

I haven’t been writing enough lately because I have been on internship visits all week. The first trip was Lexington/Liberty/Kansas City MO, and the other Glenwood/Des Moines IA.

Richard and I have gotten to stay overnight because of the mileage involved in visiting 3 interns. So we explore the places we’re staying given the energy we have left. This usually means food places and coffeehouses.

Notes for the Des Moines part of the trip:

• Gursha Ethiopian Grill: we ordered this Door Dash. Two drinks and one entree on my 5-item Vegetarian plate went missing. The lentil and split pea dishes were somewhat under spiced. On the other hand, Richard ate the 5-item meat platter and said it tasted exceptionally good. Consensus: don’t eat here if you prefer vegetarian.
• Hotel Renovo: This is a “country” themed hotel, but does not come off like Cracker Barrel and its aggressive nostalgia. There are design elements, such as one set of sliding barn doors to shut off a conference room. There is an overall feeling of space and comfort, created by big windows and not cramming spaces with too many couches and tchotkes. One startling use of a window is where the second floor hallway opens out into the breakfast nook. Keep an eye out for the deer in the headlights — the bad pun version — in the lobby.
• Waveland Café: Where has this been all my life? The café is a breakfast place. And superlatively so. The atmosphere is quirky. The walls are signed by famous people who have visited, mostly newscasters and their crews, as Iowa is a news making state during primaries. The breakfasts themselves are wonderful, although I’d rate the coffee as “ok”.
• Mars Cafe — our coffee and writing stop. The conceit here is outer space, and the cafe does it well in a mellow space with joyous music. Mars has the usual fare in a coffeehouse — coffee, lattes, etc. But they have their own creations; I’m drinking a Sputnik revisited, which is a latte with browned butter, walnut and cinnamon. My husband is drinking a Space Pioneer Miss Baker, which is a non-alcoholic cocktail with espresso, sparkling water, walnut bitters, and rose water. I’m feeling inspired to write this blog!

The mini-vacation ends this afternoon, when we have to drive the 2 1/2 hours back down to Maryville and deal with four very grumpy cats. But my mini-working vacation has been a very good one.