On day four of our road trip, we left from Greenwood, Arkansas, and drove just under two hours to Muskogee, Oklahoma. It was a quick visit, before continuing to Kansas for the night.
Muskogee, Oklahoma
Our first stop in Muskogee was the Five Civilized Tribes Museum. The museum celebrates the heritage of the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Muscogee, and Seminole tribes. Our visit was eye-opening. I know very little about Native American history, and am wary of what small amount I learned in school. It was hard to see and read some of the exhibits, but I’m so glad we spent some time at the museum.
After the museum, we ate lunch at Harmony House — a cute cafe and bakery in a 100 year old home. We grabbed some sweet treats to go before getting back on the road for 4.5 hours.
Lawrence, Kansas
We arrived at our Airbnb in Lawrence as the sun was going down. One of the more modest Airbnbs we’ve selected, it had good bones, a comfortable bed, and was extremely affordable at $87 for the night — including taxes and fees. To be transparent, I just looked up the property and it is now going for $250 per night. We would not stay there at the current rate.
We were hoping to grab dinner at Free State Brewing Company, which was recommended by our Arkansas Airbnb hosts. They were closed to have their floors refinished, so we ended up devouring wings at Jefferson’s instead.
Kansas City, Missouri
The next morning, we had a short drive into Kansas City to visit the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. I was anxious about the forecasted weather, because we intended to play a round of miniature golf on their Art Course.
The 9-hole course is refreshed each year. Every hole is designed by an artist to represent a different piece of art in the museum’s collection. Even though it was cold and rained steadily during our entire time playing, I loved it. I think it’s one of the most unique things we’ve done during 50 in 5, and I’d love to see something like this in North Carolina. So creative and fun!
Admission to the Art Course comes with museum admission, so we continued inside to dry off, warm up, and see some of the exhibits. I was delighted to discover that Nelson-Atkins had incredible items to view. From Monet’s Water Lillies to Degas’ Little Dancer, Aged Fourteen and gorgeous collections of modern and contemporary art, I was in heaven. Brandon and I joke that I love art museums and he likes them. And he loves history museums and I like them. Together, we’ve visited many a museum and I’m so glad that we both enjoy this type of learning.
We couldn’t stay at Nelson-Atkins as long as I wanted because we had a lunch reservation before driving several hours to our next destination. Begrudgingly, we left and traveled a few miles across town (into Kansas City, Kansas!) to eat barbecue at Q39. We loved Kansas City-style barbecue, and the burnt ends were divine.
After lunch, it was on to Des Moines, Iowa! We already want to return to Kansas City to visit Nelson-Atkins again, and to eat more barbecue.
