Relax in Kansas 

By: Debbie Stock

Established: 1861 
Motto: Sunflower State
Pop. 3 million
Capitol: Topeka
Largest City: Wichita

Kansas Wheat Fields, Liberal Pancakes and Lawrence Jayhawks are several Kansas attractions. Kansas is smack-dab in the center of the U.S. as seen on the map!

When you stand in a wheat-colored field on the Kansas plain, you can feel so small and insignificant. There's nothing quite like that experience on earth. For tourists, it isn't exactly an attraction you can make reservations for. You have to simply go there and feel the power of nature.

I spent at least four years of my life in Kansas, attending college at the University of Kansas in Lawrence. I got to know a lot of native Kansans and found them to interesting, creative, down to earth, and respectful of the their roots. Most I met came from small towns, medium-size cities, farms and other places where urban environs are nice to visit, but good to get away from.

Kansas is known as part of the farm belt. With winter snows, the growing season primarily ranges from spring to fall, and for visitors, that's the ideal time to see Kansas, a Midwestern state known for its stretches of road that go on for miles with little more than fields and nature to enjoy.

With one of its largest cities, Wichita, enjoying a population of just over 300,000, you can understand that the nightlife and cultural attractions run thinner than urban centers along the U.S. coasts, or in Chicago some 9 hours away by car.

People who live in Kansas don't feel compelled to be entertained. They make their own fun, and much of it involves nature. It's quite simple to just be” and enjoy the good life when visiting Kansas. There are some things that may surprise you but with a little preparation, you'll find that a trip to Kansas could be the best thing to put your life into perspective, especially if you're feeling overwhelmed by big city life and pressures that surround you such as traffic, crowds, long lines and the stuff that eats up our time as humans.

Kansas residents are pretty much like other Midwest people. They're generally just honest, good people. What you see is what you get. If you don't like them, you can move on, thank you very much. While the people and their lifestyles seem simple, don't be fooled. When you reduce the time it takes to carry out your daily routines such as rush hour waits, there's more time to think and create. Kansas is filled with farmers, artists, artisans, creators and intellectuals. Per capita, the state serves its population with a larger than average number of higher institution such as universities. Having traveled the globe, we've noticed world class architects and engineers who attended college in Kansas. One architectural home you may want to see during a road trip is the Allen-Lambe House designed in 1915 by Frank Lloyd Wright. Open to the public, the home in Wichita, KS. is considered the last of Wright's prairie homes. This style has become synonymous with one of the best known architects in the world. The home is open to the public through pre-arranged tours.

Kansas has some quirky offerings and one such road stop is in Liberal, home to the famous pancake race. Each year the town comes out with their spatulas and pancake flippers to carry the breakfast food a distance without losing the goods. Also worth seeing if you happen to be passing through Liberal is Dorothy's House from the Wizard of Oz, Rock Island Depot which is listed on the National Historic Register, and Mid-America Air Museum with one of the largest collections of planes and aviation artifacts in the U.S. There are approx. 90 aircraft at the museum!

And what about the Jayhawk? It's been around since the mid-1800's and you'll find statues honoring this mythical bird which also happens to be the mascot of the University of Kansas ball teams. The jayhawk is a symbol of the history of Kansas, and symbolizes the struggles of Kansas settlers. Combining the traits of the noisy blue jay which robs nests with the sparrow hawk, a stealthy hunter, Jayhawkers came to be known as the individuals seeking to make Kansas a free state where slavery would be abolished. Kansas University was the stronghold of the free state movement, and the Jayhawk has long represented the University of Kansas as its symbol, usually appearing in a logo as a blue-bodied bird with a red crest and yellow beak and feet.

Every once in while among the millions of residents that live near the beaches of California I will see someone wearing a Kansas or KU t-shirt and when I see that it always brings a smile.

National parks and historic sites

Brown v. Board Of Education National Historic Site in Topeka
California National Historic Trail
Fort Larned National Historic Site in Larned
Fort Scott National Historic Site
Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail
Nicodemus National Historic Site at Nicodemus
Oregon National Historic Trail
Pony Express National Historic Trail
Santa Fe National Historic Trail
Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve near Strong City