“Ernie just sent me a text not to miss the corn palace.” Layne looked quizzical. Neither of us had ever heard of the worlds’s only corn palace. We were in eastern South Dakota in the central time zone and we were driving through corn fields alongside I-90 and it all looked like it might be Iowa.
A billboard popped up shortly thereafter advertising a hotel near the Corn Palace. With a knowing glance between us I aimed for the exit.
I don’t know about you but we make it a habit to see the odd and the offbeat as we travel, no matter how corny. We’ve stopped at the worlds largest gavel, and teapot and something else that I can’t recall. Add the corn palace to the list.
It was evening when we arrived and there was a clutch of visitors lurking on the sidewalk taking selfies alongside others walking around the building doing the same.
This year’s theme is the circus but it changes every year.
Mitchell is a nice enough town with an ice cream parlor I could spend some time in and a rather nice patio attached to a pub offering some intriguing drafts. But herself had a cousin to meet in Chicago so we had to press on.
They call it a “Moorish Revival Building” and they stick grains on the exterior to create the design.
Inside it’s a 3200 seat arena. Visitors sho went inside came out and told us the exterior was far more interesting so we stayed outside.
It’s a bit like Mount Rushmore; once you’ve seen it you’re a bit stuck as to what to do next..take pictures.
Layne bought a bag of mixed popcorn which was so burningly salty I couldn’t eat it.
And that was pretty much that. We drove on to a rest stop for the night not anticipating the morning round of drama. Ah, South Dakota.
