Iowa State Fair
Monday, August 24, 2009
The lack of hipster quotient is one of the many things I like about state fairs.
I just got back from spending a seven hour day at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines. I was wide-eyed at every turn. I saw a 1,900 pumpkin, a 20-pound rabbit and zero Lollapalooza tee shirts.
My traveling companion Adriana said I was like an 11-year old. This is a vast improvement from my typical 18-year-old persona.
I have been to the Illinois State Fair and the Ohio State Fair but there is nothing like the Iowa State Fair. The 400-acre grounds are more woody and hilly than Springfield, Ill. and Columbus, Ohio. In 1987 the Iowa State Fairgrounds were named to the National Register of Historic Places.
The Iowa State Fair takes the cake when it comes to stuff on a stick.
I was on the fairgrounds for less than 10 minutes before I purchased a pork chop on a stick. Swine flu? Bah, humbug. Trying to walk the midway while balancing the juicy slab on a thin stick was like moving a sandbag with a toothpick. I also tried horrific cajun cheese on a stick and we saw Iowans devouring hard boiled eggs on a stick.
The Iowa State Fair has nearly 50 items served on a stick, including Hot Bologona on a Stick and Deep Fried Snickers on a Stick (which we missed, but we did enjoy the Deep Fried Oreo cookies not on a stick). Next year I will save room for the Pineapple on a stick (dipped in funnel cake batter and deep fried). Despite the varitey of things on a stick, just about everything looked like a corn dog.
This got me to thinking.
What is the state fair missing?
Old Style Beer on a Stick. Jello on a Stick. I thought Chili on a Stick was funny until I did some research and discovered there is a Chili Dog on a Stick.
Bloated and tired we concluded our visit with a ride throught the Ye Old Mill. This is simply a tunnel of love ride that makes a few dramatic turns through 1,500 feet of dark canals. The only light shines on several vintage Iowa State Fair posters. It set us back $2.50 each but that is not important. What is important is that Ye Old Mill was originally built in 1911. I tried to comprehened the scores of people who have taken this trip in 98 years. State fairs stand for that type of consistency.
They are who we are, not who we seek to be.
Leave a Response