Saturday was absolutely gorgeous and we decided to spend it exploring Des Moines.
We started downtown at the Pappajohn Sculpture Park. The sky was so blue and the sunshine felt so wonderful. This piece is by Keith Haring ~ 'Untitled' (Dancing Figures).
Rod had fun with these Moonrise pieces by Ugo Rondinone.
I love him … always willing to be silly for a photo.
Our favorite piece was Nomade by Jaume Plensa.
Next we headed to the East Village to walk around. We found some awesome t-shirts at Raygun … but most of all, those fine ladies recommended we have lunch at Lucca, which turned out to be the best stop of the day.
After Raygun, we picked up several pieces of new art for our home at From Our Hands American Craft Gallery … such a fabulous place.
The first is a fused glass piece by Anne Nye of Omaha, Nebraska. I'm a very tactile person & love art that you can both see & touch. The wonderful layers of fused glass give such amazing texture to this piece.
We also got a wonderful metal sculpture from Sondra Gerber (who often collaborates with Nye). It looks fabulous against our red wall in our dressing room.
Lunch at Lucca was our next stop. I loved the rustic brick walls.
We shared a Greek Salad & then had some of the most amazing pasta we've ever eaten.
Salmon and Cream for me (front) with fresh spinach and tomatoes … Bolognese for Rod … and the thin slices of chewy bread were perfect for soaking up every last drop of the amazing sauces.
We continued to enjoy the fantastic sunshine and walk around the East Village. I loved these amazing blooming bowls at Seed.
There was also lots of fun art at Sticks.
We ended our day with an early supper at the Flying Mango. When we arrived at 4:50, there were already eight other couples waiting outside for the doors to open. Thankfully we were able to get a seat without a reservation.
We enjoyed some amazing smoked ribs, sweet potato pancake with mango sour cream, and fried apples … as well as some cheese grits and cornbread with honey butter … another fantastic meal … and perfect way to end our day in Des Moines.