The official start of fall brings food festivals… pumpkins appear at farmers’ markets.
I’ve been in Des Moines for a little over two weeks! Time has flown, but it also feels like I’ve been here much longer than two weeks because of the amount of things I’ve learned. As I’ve been exploring, the downtown streets are becoming more familiar to me. I love small cities for this very reason: all the excitement and buzz of city life without the overwhelming sense that I’ll never fully understand the place.
I visited the Iowa farmers market, one of the best in the nation… not a thing to miss! There’s a strong Dutch influence felt there, in a few bakeries with Dutch names and farmers whose facial features broadcast their ancestry. And there’s also a very strong Asian influence there, with many Asian family farms displaying piles of fresh produce and occasionally, flowers.
Last weekend, Des Moines had an international food festival! Friday through Sunday, major streets were closed off for this huge event. Rows of tents set up provided all kinds of cuisines: Italian, Haitian, Andalusian, and many others. Crowds choked the walkways between the tents, everyone standing in everyone else’s way staring at the menu offerings. I stopped at the Andalusian booth and ordered soup (served in a catastrophe-inviting styrofoam bowl) from the handsome men there, and some chicken stew to go with it. Everything was hot, tasty, mouth-wateringly good.
East Village is a little distance from where I live downtown, a little under a mile: too far to comfortably walk, but close enough you feel silly driving. It’s an upscale shopping district right in front of Iowa’s state capitol building that used to be a rougher part of town in decades past. The growth of the city and the ingenious city architects (sorry, I’m going to be singing their praises the whole time I’m here) have made East Village one of the best places in Des Moines. The streets are clean and cheerful. Historic buildings house photographers, artists, upscale lingerie shops, and more. And parking is only $.47/hour at the meters.
My absolute favorite feature of East Village: boutique stores that turned out to be live/work spaces. One owner lives there, right above her shop. The charm is undeniable.
Des Moines continues to surprise and delight! I can’t wait to see what next week brings.
~ The Dauntless Princess ~