TRAVEL soul city SOUL city Kansas offers travellers a slice of the real America as Elizabeth Nell finds out 54 MEDICUS October
TRAVEL Kansas City, Missouri is one of those quintessential American cities that offers the traveller a huge amount – yet is all too easily overlooked. It is also highly recommended as the ideal city to get a real feel for the American soul if you are flying from the east coast of the US to Australia. KC (as it is popularly known) is a wonderfully welcoming town that offers a taste of the real America and a chance to soak up the history, culture, shopping and food of mid-west USA. Situated almost at a central point in the continental United States, KC has remade itself after some decades of demographic challenge and s<strong>oc</strong>ietal change and seems to now be facing the future with new-found confidence. Easily seen in three days (I had four days there very recently), KC should be on the to-do list of anyone really interested in the growth and future of the US. Most visitors fly into cities on either the east or the west coast to see places such as Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, even Boston. And yet the US is predominantly a land of smaller cities. Chicago, Illinois; Austin, Texas; Richmond, Virginia; Little R<strong>oc</strong>k, Alabama; Sacramento, California; Salt Lake City; Utah and Portland, Oregon. All these cities reveal more about the US than a visit to New York ever will. And yet tourists – especially Australians – continue to pour into New York like lemmings looking for the real American experience, not realising that in many ways the city is fast becoming a type of traveler’s Disneyland where tourists talk to tourists and the person sitting next to you at breakfast or in the theatre is far more likely to come from Frankfurt or Tokyo or Madrid than somewhere in the US. KC – and other cities like it - is therefore a wonderful balance to the global nature of NY. The home of the American Jazz Museum, the impressive National World War I Memorial and Museum and the 1920s Spanish-style shopping area, Country Club Plaza, KC seems to have a great spirit that is easy to catch. L<strong>oc</strong>als are intrigued that you have visited them, repeatedly asking what was it about their town that attracted me to call in on my way home. Founded in 1838 at the point where the Missouri and Kansas rivers meet, the city has at various points of its history been Talking points: The Nelson Atkins Museum of Art acts as a net to the giant shuttle-c<strong>oc</strong>ks sitting on the grass outside. (Facing page) Kansas City’s famous Union Station is worth a visit. Fountains galore: The J.C. Nichols Memorial Fountain on the Country Club Plaza in Kansas City. major transport hub (its renovated Union Station is worth a few hours at the very least), a hugely influential jazz and blues centre and has a fascinating African American history, especially of the days of segregation. The Jazz Museum shares a building with the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum which commemorates the history of the African American teams that flourished during the years of segregation. Claiming to have more fountains than Rome, the KC l<strong>oc</strong>al barbecue style has also set the food style for much of the US. In fact, it is worth visiting KC for the food alone – especially in such landmark barbeque joints as Arthur Bryant’s or Oklahoma Joe’s. Especially important for history and political buffs, KC is just five minutes from Independence, the former home of US President Harry Truman which now features the Truman Presidential Library and Museum. Within the gardens of the Museum you will find his grave, alongside his wife Bess. The museum is a wonderful compilation and explanation of the second half of the 20th century, including his decision to use the atomic bomb, the formation of the United Nations and the huge post-war economic growth of the US. A short walk through the suburban streets of the dormitory suburb bring you to the simple home he and Bess retired to in 1952 and where he would entertain world figures of politics and entertainment – but only for a maximum of 30 minutes. KC itself is also the home of a range of world class art galleries, including the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art, where the building itself acts as a net to the giant shuttle-c<strong>oc</strong>ks sitting on the grass outside. The great American city is not dead, but it is changing. Unlike dying cities such as Detroit, KC seems to have found a good mix of the past and the future. The towering demonstrations of 1920s wealth, the hotels, have all been or are being renovated. I stayed in three of them, and all were impressive, both in terms of retaining their history and offering modern comforts. KC will welcome you. As a city it offers a real taste of the United States, especially when mixed with an offering of hickory-smoked pork, chicken or ribs barbeque! ■ a October MEDICUS 55