Somewhere Over Wamego: The Wizard of Oz Museum

Before streaming services we had Blockbuster - but did you know one remains in operation? On this episode, we share the downfall of Blockbuster, and how the Bend, Oregon location keeps its doors open to this day. 

Over the more than 200 years of its existence, the US has become home to a number of iconic sites that domestic and international travelers alike place at the top of their must-see lists. The classic memorials and museums circling Washington, DC spring to mind, of course, because of their importance to both the history and future of our country, but other cities outside our capital possess an immediate connection with a building or structure: for instance, San Francisco’s graceful and majestic Golden Gate Bridge, the futuristic and awe-inspiring Space Needle in Seattle, the formidable and photogenic bronze lions guarding the entrance to Chicago’s famed Art Institute. America’s largest metropolis, New York City, is famous for, among other things: the Statue of Liberty, whose promise of freedom welcomed millions of immigrants to America’s shores; the legendary sports and performances at Madison Square Garden; and the delicious, titanic corned beef sandwiches and knishes at the Carnegie Deli. But one building alone symbolizes the strength, beauty, and spirit of New York.

The small town of Wamego, Kansas, with its modest population of nearly 5,000, is not a sprawling, sepia-toned farmland featuring Aunty Em, Miss Gulch, and Professor Marvel. It does not look like much of the Midwest landscape that comes to mind. Oh, no. Wamego, Kansas has poppy fields and Emerald Cities; yellow brick roads and ruby red slippers and lions and tigers and bears, oh my! Because somewhere over the rainbow is Wamego, Kansas, a town whose cultural identity has been oz-ified into no place like home.

From modest beginnings in the small town of Burlington, Vermont, Ben & Jerry’s ice cream and other products can now be found in freezers in over 30 countries. This is their story. 

Every year, from February to May, 1,800 acres of desert plateau spring to life with color. Purples, yellows, oranges, and blues all come together on the sprawling arid landscape to emulate an Impressionist painting; a fluid composition of light and hue, playing with intensity and movement. The four-petaled, burning orange poppy is illuminated as it contrasts with a vast, blue California sky. This week on the See America Podcast, the Antelope Valley Poppy Reserve in Los Angeles County, California.   

When Americans travel internationally, they often encounter nations and civilizations far older than their 245-year-old home country. As they explore new cultures, the travelers learn the depth and breadth of antiquity, often well-preserved, in many of these foreign lands. How wonderful it is, they marvel, that we can take a trip back in time and see government buildings, houses of worship, homes, roads, markets: elements of entire societies that were established and active hundreds of years before the US was even a thought in anyone’s mind. While it’s true that the story of the United States goes back only a few hundred years, Indigenous cultures in North America had been thriving for centuries before Europeans set foot on the continent. Though sadly much of the history of Native American tribes have been lost or destroyed, a shining example of a Native American city lives on in southwestern Illinois, only a few miles from modern-day St. Louis.  If you're enjoying the show, please consider helping us reach even more people by leaving a five-star review on Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/see-america/id1479148682 Save 15% off your Roadtrippers PLUS membership with code RVMILES2X at https://roadtrippers.com/ Connect with See America across social media:  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seeamerica.travel/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SeeAmericaPodcast See America Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/SeeAmerica Have a suggestion for a future episode? Email us at [email protected].  See America is part of the RV Miles Network of resources for the North American traveler. Check out our other podcasts - RV Miles and America's National Parks. Available where you listen to this podcast. 

Every October the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta creates an enchanted world of vibrant balloon-filled skies, special-shaped balloon rodeos and twilight balloon glows. In Balloon Fiesta Park, visitors walk alongside the balloons, witnessing these colorful, graceful giants inflate and leave the ground against the backdrop of the cerulean desert sky. The number and enormity make you feel like a kid again, immersed in a wondrous world of color and light, of excitement and sound.  If you're enjoying the show, please consider helping us reach even more people by leaving a five-star review on Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/see-america/id1479148682   Save 15% off your Roadtrippers PLUS membership with code RVMILES2X at https://roadtrippers.com/   Connect with See America across social media:  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seeamerica.travel/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SeeAmericaPodcast See America Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/SeeAmerica   Have a suggestion for a future episode? Email us at [email protected].    See America is part of the RV Miles Network of resources for the North American traveler. Check out our other podcasts - RV Miles and America's National Parks. Available where you listen to this podcast. 

This week, The Beat Museum, City Lights Bookstore and the movement of a Generation that all started in San Francisco, California in the 1950s. These artists wielded their medium to question mainstream politics and culture, ushering a renaissance of new ways of thinking and creating in the world. If you're enjoying the show, please consider helping us reach even more people by leaving a five-star review on Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/see-america/id1479148682   Save 15% off your Roadtrippers PLUS membership with code RVMILES2X at https://roadtrippers.com/   Connect with See America across social media:  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seeamerica.travel/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SeeAmericaPodcast See America Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/SeeAmerica   Have a suggestion for a future episode? Email us at [email protected].    See America is part of the RV Miles Network of resources for the North American traveler. Check out our other podcasts - RV Miles and America's National Parks. Available where you listen to this podcast. 

The Boston metropolitan area offers a rich and intriguing look back to several significant points in American history: the landing of the Mayflower, the Boston Tea Party, the War of 1812. One community close to Boston that has held multiple levels of interest and fascination for literally centuries is the small town of Salem, 15 miles northeast of Boston proper. Most people know Salem primarily as the site of the notorious 1692 Salem Witch Trials, as well as for its many references in media and popular culture for all things witchy and woo-woo. But Salem contains far more than metaphysical curiosities.  This week on the See America Podcast, Winter Island in Salem, Massachusettes.  Connect with See America:  See America Facebook Group:  See America on Instagram:  See America Facebook: 

A 200 foot sea creature that’s bigger than the statue of liberty. The largest carousel in the world, illuminated by over 20,000 light bulbs. A room that goes on forever. The largest collection of miniature doll houses and circuses - all under one roof. Today, we’re visiting what’s been called “the fever dream of the Midwest,” House on the Rock in Spring Green, Wisconsin.