Life in Topeka

For the past couple weeks, we've found that Topeka is quite the city. It seems our state capitol city has a lot of things figured out when it comes to a lot of things. Some of the highlights of Topeka so far are well, our house. It is small, but very clean and in a decent neighborhood. Plus our landlord is great and she's very helpful. Helpful landlords are hard to come by for some, and it seems that we have been fortunate yet again. Also, we have found on our "cheap date" excursions some places that will definitely be visited again. Among them? The Topeka State Library.

Basically, it's a cafe, art gallery, museum, and study place all wrapped up in one nice package. Librarians there were very helpful and promptly helped us set up free library accounts. In addition, the selection there is amazing. Latest books were there and available online and in-person--except for the Jodi Picoult series...I think that the Picoult series is checked out everywhere nation-wide.

Wanamaker Road is another great feature of Topeka that will enjoy frequent visits from us. It seems nearly every store resides either on it's streets or very near it. This is quite evident from the traffic there, but the transit system seems to be fairly efficient as we never felt held up at any particular time. Some of the places we've visited are the Westridge Mall, Target, and a Gas Station, so we've a lot of exploring to do.

One place that I visited daily upon moving in was the Hastings at the intersection of Fairlawn and 21st. It was never busy in their Hardback Cafe, and their internet is absolutely free and fast. Another plus is that all of the chairs are comfortable, which seems to be rare among bookstores. I was also very impressed with one of their managers and his dedication to the customers, but that's another story for another time. Nonetheless, Hastings helped me study for my Praxis tests that I took this weekend (7/25) and keep up with other things that wouldn't have been possible had I not had any internet.

I'm sure that there are many other great features that Topeka offers that we'll learn of in the future, but for us, Topeka is home for now and we are glad that we're here. I start school in a week, and am looking forward to getting started. Gretch is still looking for a place to work, but will find something soon.

If you are from Topeka or were from here, and have tips on great places you liked to go on dates to or to visit, let us know! Our address is 3428 SW Mayo Ave, Topeka KS 66611. Have a great rest of the summer!