IA Trip Day 2: Pella, Madrid, Des Moines

 What a day of Happy Accidents!

We didn't mean to stop in Pella, IA, but we did anyway and found it to be such a charming town. 

Animals in the town square

Courtyard

Courtyard

museum

Iris Cafe

Moat near courtyard

Town Square

Second coffee shop

Town Square

This adorable town holds a tulip festival every May. There's a strong Dutch influence that is evident everywhere you look downtown. 

We grabbed breakfast in one cafe, walked a bit, grabbed coffee in another cafe. 

Then we took a longer walk to the cabin and the sunken gardens.

Snagged some baked goods from this wonderful Dutch bakery.

Monarch butterflies hanging from trees.

We spoke to one of the residents who said that the tulip festival was well worth visiting. I'm sure she's right, but the crowds sound awful. While tulips weren't present, there were beautiful flowers planted everywhere we went. It was still lovely. 

Promising we'd return to Pella someday soon, we packed up and headed north. Ben was picking up a few things from someone he'd met on Reddit. His town, Madrid, was near a walking bridge and we never pass up an opportunity to visit one of those. 

We didn't have time to walk the entire length, but we enjoyed what we did see. It was a lovely day and the bridge and scenery did not disappoint. 

After a good walk we went back South to Des Moines. Our first stop was food. We grabbed sandwiches, coffee, and this amazing cake from a Ukrainian cafe. 

The sculpture park was next. 

On our way to the city overlook, Ben noticed a tool store he orders from. It was huge so of course we had to stop.

The city overlook was next. 

Nearby was located one of the neatest natural playgrounds we've seen. We played here until the sun started to set and we knew we needed to head out. 

Goodbye, Des Moines! Thanks for the memories!