Day 6: It's tourist time

"It gets cornier" 

Today is the day of American landmarks you see on television but never think you'll ever visit. I am actually very excited.

We get an early start to the day because we have more than 10 hours of travel/sightseeing time on the schedule. For the second consecutive day we are also driving across an entire state, west to east. Breakfast is free at the hotel and reminds us we are in middle America - very large people gorging on free food laden with corn and not another minority in the breakfast lounge, though there are plenty laundering sheets in the rooms below us. While we haven't really experienced any discrimination, funny looks have been common; in fairness, I too would stare at two ninjas driving a German automobile. Let's get going to a real city already.

Wall, SD is not a real city. It is essentially a large "drug" store that triples as a tourist trap and small town. And it's amazing. Wall Drugs literally sells everything and anything you could possibly hope for, including Aveeno Active Naturals Itch Relief Cream (purchased, thanks mosquitos) and designer $300 cowboy boots (not purchased).

They also have restaurants, western art, animated dinosaurs, giant jackanapes and much, much more. We limited ourselves to 20 minutes and a cup of free water to prevent me from buying useless things (I really wanted that real "used" lasso) and keep us on track to reach the Corn Palace on time.

Yes, the Corn Palace. What is a Corn Palace you ask? What isn't it is a better question. In this multi-purpose civic center space decorated in corn, the following occur on a semi-regular basis: basketball games (various levels), concerts, banquets, shows, proms, speaking engagements, parties, weddings and three-ring circuses.

How do I know all of this? A worker on his lunch break informed us while answering 34 questions we did not ask him while interrupting a conversation I was having with a friend I haven't seen in more than five years. Here are other fun facts we learned during this conversation:

• Former NBA Rookie of the Year Mike Miller played all his home high school basketball games at the Corn Palace. 
• His team, the Mitchell High Kernels, has a kernel of corn as a mascot
• The team's games were broadcast on the local radio station, call sign K-O-R-N

Those were the only one's I remembered, but I believe he went on to tell us about the Annual Shriners Circus, his time as a clown in said circus, and the trials and tribulations of purchasing makeup during his time as said clown. He also invited us back for next year's circus, where he won't be a clown. As it is in April, I will busy doing anything else and will not be able to attend.

This next bit of information won't pertain to 95 percent of our readership, but it is so random I have to include it. In college I worked as a Resident Assistant and worked with Kim Cundall, formerly of Hawaii. We are friends, primarily through facebook as I haven't seen her since 2005. Yesterday, she posted a picture of Mount Rushmore; we touched base through a series of messages, but were not able to schedule a time to meet. We both knew we were headed to Mitchell the next day and thought we might run into each other in Wall Drugs or the Corn Palace. Sure enough, Corn Palace. Seeing Erik Thompson in Boise is one thing. This is random on another level. Good to see you Kim, hope you enjoyed the corn as much as we did.

Sioux City is the last stop in SD and we have one goal:  Bob's Cafe and the MegaBob Burger. Bob's Cafe has other plans however; they have won best local chicken four years in a row. Scott Lee is tempted and gets the broasted chicken, I hold the line and get my prize.

This is not Bob, he bought it from Bob several years back. He is very friendly though, as are the rest of his patrons who all appear to be regulars. And older - we are eating lunch at 5pm just as the early bird senior citizens are getting dinner. Unlike the rest of this state, they engage us in friendly banter and tales of years past. They offer advice on things to do and have us sign their guest book. This 10-seat counter cafe, with their "our chicken is clucking good" slogan, might be my favorite dining stop so far.

We push on, through our first encounter with rain, to Minneapolis. It rains throughout the remainder of the leg, ensuring a day of humidity to come.

Tomorrow's Agenda:
Route: Minneapolis > Minneapolis
Estimated Distance: 0 miles
Estimated Time: 0 hours, 0 minutes

Day 3: A new plan

"Go for the burger, not for the falls"

Even best laid plans can go awry. A late night Boise audible called by Scott Lee has us in a Super Eight Motel in West Yellowstone tonight - Camping 0, Mike 1. As it is 4th of July weekend, Yellowstone is packed and the odds of us rushing through six hours of driving, getting supplied up and finding a site against a setting sun was not looking favorable. Instead, we had a leisurely day, highlighted by impromptu stops, pick-up basketball games and world-class burgers.

Our early morning plans also hit a snafu. Goldy's, the critic's and people's pick on yelp as one of the best restaurants in town, had a 30 minute wait for breakfast. On a Friday. At 10:35am. Must be some breakfast. I'll definitely be sure to make reservations the next time I'm passing through town. We were able to recalculate and find a more than suitable replacement spot however, allowing us to get back on the road in under the allotted free hour of parking time. Thanks Boise, it's been real.

Another easy day on the road; Scott Lee was able to drive the entirety himself. We stopped first in Hansen, ID to pay homage to Eileen and her people by purchasing gas and sacrificing a deer.

There is quite the bridge (the Hansen bridge) that crosses the Snake River. We didn't really sacrifice a deer, it was dead when we got there. It didn't stop at the marked sign.

Our next stop put us in Idaho Falls, a designated stop on our journey for the hamburger at the Snakebite restaurant. Fortunately for us, the Snakebite was closed until 5pm for dinner. Why was this fortunate? We got to explore the sleepy town of Idaho Falls where we saw the namesake falls (even though they were not recommended, and we agree) and played basketball with an 8th-grader who resembled Manu Ginobili and 2-time 7th grader who was Ralph Wiggum.

They were not very talented, even by middle school standards. Manu did not seem to understand the fundamentals of the game - maybe it is a symptom of playing a lot of small-town-forced-one-on-one basketball - and kept passing to himself (traveling, double dribble) even though I was on his team. They were very kind to us though, with Ralph even giving me one of his poweraide drinks. But back to the burger. As billed, this was one of the best hamburgers I've had at a restaurant at some time. As often discussed, the bun was one of the key factors in the successful execution of this sandwich, but ultimately, the burger patty itself was perfectly cooked. Juicy, with a big beefy taste and perfect texture, what more could you ask? Says Scott Lee, "I picture God making himself this burger".

The day in Idaho Falls ended with an necessary trip to the local Wal-mart. Not being frequent customers, Scott Lee and I both marveled at how inexpensive our purchases were. The crown jewel of my trip was a fishing vest which shines both in form and function. It goes beautifully with the $25 fly fishing rod sets that are sure to break after a dozen casts. One final Wal-mart observation was the prevalence of many obese people purchasing unhealthy food items, even when healthy food items are available and rock bottom prices. Too bad.

To round out our supply list we ran into town in West Yellowstone just before heading to bed. Earlier in the day, Scott Lee remarked how he wanted to see a rodeo; low and behold, there is a nightly amateur rodeo off of Highway 20. As we want to make sure we get firewood and gas tonight so we can be the first one at the campsite we want tomorrow (7am site, 6am park), we decide not to stop now and hope to hit it on the way back to the hotel. It is unfortunate that we miss the rodeo on the way back (Scott Lee frowny face) , but it is fantastic that we stop at the local McDonald's to get a late dinner. Immediately after pulling into the parking lot we can tell this McDonald's is a very important part of the American Adventure Vacation for scores of European and Japanese Yellowstone tourists. McDonald's in Tokyo have less Japanese people in them. A young Italian woman tells me everything is "perfecto". Even our servers are named Maria, Lilla, and Tatiana - truly a global experience in small town U.S.A.

Tomorrow I venture into the woods for an overnight stay in one of the nation's greatest national parks. My previous "camping" trips have involved satellite television and condominiums, so wish me luck.

Meghann Glavin Highlight of the Day:

Scott Lee: Little Tokyo/McDonald's
Mike Ham: Not having to camp yet

Tomorrow's Agenda
Route: West Yellowstone > Yellowstone National Park
Estimated Distance: 7 miles
Estimated Time: 12 minutes