By DAVID MARTIN
Dreaming of of a trip to Seville? Kansas City tourism officials have an offer for you, although travelers will need to squint and pretend that the beggar just asked for a down payment on a hamburguesa con queso.
Shooting for the stars with "staycation" ideas, the taxpayer-supported Kansas City Convention and Visitors Association is advertising the Country Club Plaza as an alternative to, yes, Spain. "European art, colorful architecture of the detailed domes and towers and romantic atmosphere of the Country Club Plaza immerse travelers in the heart of Spain without leaving the Midwest," the visitors bureau says in a press release. And when that gets old, there's McDonald's and The Dark Knight showing on four screens.
The visitors bureau proposes other substitutions for budget-minded wanderers. The Nelson-Atkins instead of New York. The World War I Museum instead of Washington, D.C. Worlds of Fun instead of Orlando. The Irish Fest instead of Dublin. And who needs Belgium when Gomer's stocks six-packs of Boulevard?
It could be worse. Topeka's visitors bureau lists the home of Herbert Hoover's vice president as a staycation idea.
Wait a while let’s not be too hasty to judge. If we change the ducks derbying in Brush Creek for bulls rampaging down Nichols Road, during an art fair, I think there is some merit to the suggestion. Then again, would it be better to do during the Christmas lighting ceremony? The smell would be less and the bulls would likely just die off from the cold, which saves time in rounding them up and all.
In fact, this may be an opportunity where you might even get me to vote for some bi-state action and give you some of the JOCO money we have over here in piles.
Posted at: July 23, 2008 8:24 AM