After finishing the book All the Bright Places, I was inspired to document my own wanderings throughout my small-big hometown of Kansas City. Although there are quite a few tourist attractions in KC, my wanders won’t include places that you can find on a travel website. I hope one day you will take a trip to my wonderful city and explore the more alternative places to visit.
.
.
711 East 31st St 64109
On the hot, humid day of July 17th, I gathered my closest friends to find the infamous KC Star Wall. The soft blue wall created by the local artist Shane Evans sits between the arts district and the rich culture of 39th St, just south of downtown Kansas City. As one of the several art murals decorating my hometown, the Star Wall is the background of lots of locals’ pictures, including mine.
.
.
1800 W 39th St 64111
Last winter, I went with Josephine to Prospero’s Books, one of my favorite stores to buy reading material from. They have a wide range of genres of both fiction and nonfiction books. Located on 39th St, there are several small restaurants and coffee shops close by the bookstore, and the whole area remains one of my favorite districts in Kansas City.
Most of the wall space is packed full with books of all shapes and sizes. With there being three floors to the store, there are Plexiglas holes in the floors to view those on the level below you. A vintage typewriter sits between two bookshelves on the ground floor, and there are poems written in the concrete of the floor of the basement. On the second floor, a lounge with a couch and some chairs overlooks 39th St life through floor-to-ceiling windows. The atmosphere of the store is cozy and smells of old books and wood.