A friend of mine was surprised that Phil and I were going to spend three days in Nebraska. “What is there to do in Nebraska?” he asked.
I had already made my plans, hotel reservations, and fun places to visit. So we went forward on our trip, knowing I could show my friend many places to visit. And we did. In fact, after seeing Nebraska, I thought I could enjoy living there, except maybe in the winter. So join me on our mini-tour of Nebraska. Remember that we were limited on the number of days we spent there, but I hit nearly everything I wanted to see.
Hastings
We began our trip with Hastings Museum. I picked this place since it has so much information on Kool-Aid, one of my husband’s favorite drinks. When we walked in, there was so much more than what I planned to see. The cost for us to go in was $7 each, using our senior discount. The Museum is at 1330 N Burlington Avenue, Hastings.
Outside of the museum on the beautiful grounds, there is a sculpture, which was quite interesting. It was of two boys, the Martin brothers, ages 12 and 15, who were hit by four arrows, one of which went through both of them, holding them on their horse together. This happened in 1864. Amazingly, they survived, married, and had families. Amazing!
We were fortunate to be at the museum while they had a temporary 9-11 display, which moves about the United States. So many exciting things that I never knew about 9-11.
Also in the museum is a collection of antique vehicles. And a large collection of taxidermied animals. There are many “did you know?” signs with interesting facts about the animals. One of the answers was that “Mule deer do not run, but stot.” There was also a display of old household items from pioneer days. And prehistoric animals hanging from the 3rd story ceiling. There is also a Planetarium, but we ran out of time. So much information in a small space. If you go, be sure to look for Black Elk’s explanation of the Indian “peace pipe.” I would plan for at least 3-4 hours at the museum. I highly recommend it.
Kool-Aid History
There is a sizeable Kool-Aid exhibit with all kinds of history and memorabilia at the Hastings Museum. Did you know Kool-Aid started as Kool-Ade? I don’t remember Kool-Aid gum or bottled drinks, do you? Edwin Perkins created Kool-Ade in 1927. In the museum is the printing press he used to print labels, advertising, and business cards. Side note: my husband once owned a print shop, so he was interested in looking at the press. I found it interesting to see the changes in the labels on the Kool-Aid packages.
Edwin’s favorite flavor of Kool-Aid was Raspberry, which was unfortunately eliminated in 2001. Edwin also created other products, including Kool-Aid ice cream powder, Jel-Treat gelatin dessert, and Kool-Aid bubble gum. In 1953, he sold the company to General Foods. I liked the Kool-Aid response to World War II, making single servings to put in ration kits for the military. General Foods continued this in the Vietnam War, donating 600 cases annually. It was an excellent item for care packages sent to soldiers. Kool-Aid helped improve the taste of the water and brought a touch of home to the soldiers.
Lincoln
The capital of Nebraska is Lincoln. We drove through part of the town and did see the Capital building. The main reason we came there was the Sunken Gardens. It was my first time seeing a sunken garden. The volunteers that work in the park do an excellent job of arranging the plants throughout the area. It’s gorgeous. Flowers are one of my favorite things to view when we travel. They had a beautiful bronze sculpture entitled “Rebecca at the Well.”
After seeing the Sunken Gardens, we went to Honest Abe’s for lunch in downtown Lincoln. They are known for their big burgers, great fries, and handcrafted shakes. My husband liked his shake, but he wasn’t impressed with the burgers (too much bun). I liked the fries, and the burger wasn’t bad. I had a diet soda instead of the shake, even though it was tempting.
Greenwood
We went to Greenwood to go to Baker’s Chocolate, Nebraska’s largest candy outlet. They had a lot of candy from when we were children. Plus newer items. I bought some candy, but we could have skipped this stop since I didn’t need any candy. If you are in the area and want to stock up on candy, it’s an excellent place to go. I think the prices seemed reasonable.
Gretna
One of the most beautiful places we visited was the Holy Family Shrine. We are not Catholic, but we appreciate beauty. This is an operating Catholic Church. No pictures are allowed inside, but we could enter. Since the building is mainly windows, seeing inside was a possibility.
In the visitor center, there are plaques containing information about the construction, how the water is moved throughout the area and even the names of the flowers used in the landscaping.
The woman in the visitors center explained to us about the silver sculpture hanging from the overhead window. The sculpture represents the Holy Spirit. Water drips down into the round area underneath. There is a cut-out in the floor that carries the water outside. Then the water travels through the walkway and into the actual shrine. The water continues along the aisles in the shrine, up to the pulpit. At least, that is what it appears to do. The water movement is explained on a plaque on the wall in the visitor center.
Omaha
In Omaha, our main attraction was to visit the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge. Locally it is known as the Bob. It is one of the longest pedestrian bridges in the U.S., 3,000 feet long. The bridge connects Iowa and Nebraska, built across the Missouri River.
At the beginning of the bridge on the Nebraska side is Omar the Troll. Photo op. There is a mark in about the middle of the bridge that allows you to stand in both Iowa and Nebraska at the same time. It is free to cross the bridge, and it’s open 24 hours a day. We did not see it at night, but I’m sure it’s spectacular when it’s lit up at night. The address is 705 Riverfront Dr. in Omaha. There is an amphitheater-like area of grass where you can sit and listen to music on Fridays in the summer. Plus there is an interactive water jet fountain for the kids and access to the National Park Serice Visitors Center. There are many miles of nature trails. People both walk and ride their bikes over the bridge.
Ice Cream anyone?
Coneflower Creamery – 3921 Farnam St, Omaha. Hours are 12 pm to 10 pm Tuesday to Saturday. Sundays are 11 am to 8 pm. It is closed Monday and some holidays. The best ice cream in Omaha is either at the Coneflower Creamery or Ted and Walleys, depending on who you ask. We opted for Coneflower Creamery. It’s a small place downtown, and parking around it was a bit difficult. The line to get in was not bad, and once you are in, you have enough time to quickly check the menu before ordering. The woman behind me in line told me that sometimes the line goes around the block when it’s extra busy.
They had some interesting flavors along with the regulars like vanilla and chocolate. The ice cream is handmade from local ingredients, and they make their own cones and sprinkles. Unique flavors include basil and white chocolate, basil lemon sherbert, cinnamon cheesecake crunch, Christmas in July, spicy crackerjack, carrot cake, and I’m positive I saw it on the menu when I was there, something like cream corn. They do say, “We love farm to cone ice cream,” so I’m sticking with cream corn as the actual flavor. Their website is down, so I can’t confirm, but I remember it was something I was not willing to try. They also sell floats, ice cream sundaes, a pint of your favorite flavor to take home, artisan bottled sodas, and more. Was it the best ice cream I’ve ever had? Not really, but I did play it safe with triple chocolate.
More Omaha
Old Market is a neighborhood in downtown Omaha known for its restaurants, art galleries, and upscale shopping. They also have a farmer’s market in the area. It is on the National Register of Historic Places as a historic district. The streets are brick-paved. The Chamber of Commerce has walking tours of historic buildings. We walked around for a while and then had lunch at the Twisted Fork, 1014 Howard Street, Omaha. I enjoyed a french dip sandwich, and my husband had a salmon sandwich. There were a lot of restaurants to pick from in the area.
Joslyn Art Museum at 2200 Dodge St. is only open Wednesday – Sunday from 10-4. The museum is well known throughout the world. We went there to see my favorite artist, Dale Chihuly’s work, which I thought was a temporary exhibit. Since there was a sign saying at least one of the pieces was purchased by donors, I’m thinking it could be permanent. The bottom left two pictures above are two of his art pieces. They are several stories tall. We could see the exhibit free, but we would have had to pay to see the rest of the museum.
Places we were unable to visit, due to time constraints:
- Hebron – World’s Largest Covered Porch Swing – This is in park in Hebron, a city that is now known as Nebraska’s porch swing capital by proclamation of the Governor in 2016.
- Happy Jack Chaulk Mine, 80131 Highway 11, Scotia. This is one of only 2 diatomic mines in the United States. Billed as the biggest underground adventure.
- Springfield – Springfield Drug and Soda Fountain, 205 Main Street, a historic Soda Fountain. I love old-fashioned sodas.
- Tank Down the Elkhorn – this sounded fun to me, but it didn’t fit in our schedule. It is seasonal and reservations are required – 402-709-8693.
- River City Star one hour cruise down the Missouri River, at 151 Freedom Park Road, Omaha. You can see this from the Bob bridge, reservations required 402-342-7827.
- Joslyn Castle at 3902 Davenport St., Omaha. As a castle and historic home lover, I’m really sorry I missed this.
That is the end of our trip through Nebraska and the end of our 3-state trip. It is called the Corn Husker State, which doesn’t seem impressive, but I found it to have some amazing and impressive places to visit. Have you ever been to Nebraska? If you live in Nebraska, I hope you have taken the time to see most of these places. Please take a moment to comment below about your favorite place to visit in Nebraska.
