Gettin' our kicks in Missouri

*we're still working on the commentary for this post - do check back now, y'hear?!

Wednesday - near Stafford, MO

Before stopping for the night, we stopped to chat up some foxy cows...


We knew where to set up camp for the night after seeing the lovely signs for this exciting attraction - The Exotic Animal Paradise! Who could resist? This is the kind of run-down tacky roadside bonanza I'd been hoping for. Indeed, we suspected this could be the greatest stop since the Jesse James Wax Museum. Were we getting our hopes too high?
Oh, heck no! It was fantastic. $11.95 per passenger for a 5.5 mile drive along weedy, rocky roads looking at emaciated deer, greedy llamas, sad donkeys, and obnoxious ostriches. There were some marquee animals in the caged section, mostly consisting of a few lethargic tigers and lions. There were also some buffalo in the distance and some really ugly hippo/bison/cow thing refered to as "The Slimer" on the t-shirts for sale in the tiki-themed gift shop. We kicked in Paul Simon's "Rhythm of the Saints" for our drive-thru Safari. It actually was quite fun!

We had to see the Exotic Animal Paradise!

Like a zebra... touched for the very first time... like a zee-e--eee-bra...
Who, me?

Ostrich tries to join the journey - Attack Ostrich!

With well-maintained facilities like this, I felt very safe.

What lives here? Smell ya later! (or, rather, smell ya now).

Our exotic animal spirits thus satisfied, we rejoined Route 66 and continued on through to Springfield, MO.

Another beautiful day for drivin'


And how tickled were we to find this in our "Road Trip" Pringles can!

We needed to make Joplin by 5 pm, in order to pick up our replacement license plate marquee. There had been a false impression that Joplin was somehow a kickin' place - Kelly recollected that our friend Steve had had positive things to say about it, and with namesakes like Scott and Janis carrying the name, we thought at least there'd be some good music. Or something. Anything. There was not. Steve often has odd taste, but when challenged to answer "What did you like about this place again?" he exhorted: "What?! Joplin? I never said I liked that place! That place is a #$*^hole. Never. I hate Joplin. It sucks. Get outta there. Don't stop until you get to New Mexico!". If only we listened... we didn't linger in Joplin, to be sure, and headed for our first "New State" (neither of us had been there):

And then 10 feet later...

Name that tune: Welcome on the same post it says "Come back again!"

Ghost Towns - Main Street, Galena, KS

We did manage to prolong our Kansas experience at this lovely cafe

We did stop in Kansas to dine at the Route Cafe, where we had some very tasty food including actual vegetables!