Victory Inn
Well, October is here which brings visions of colorful leaves, Halloween, haunted houses, and a return to the road.
This leg of the road would bring me to Wamego, KS as I had negotiated a media ticket with the famed Columbian Theatre to review their production of Sleepy Hollow. My home away from home would be the Victory Inn Bed and Breakfast owned and operated by Francis and Margaret Feyh.
I was particularly looking forward to traveling this time as I would actually be going in a new direction. Nothing but highways going west and south. New scenery, at last. It was a pleasant afternoon for a drive and I enjoyed passing through the small towns of our great country. About 1pm, my thoughts turned to lunch just as I began to pass through the town of Tecumseh in Nebraska.
Lo and behold I saw a place called Frazier’s Café off to my left and decided it would be a make for a good break. I glanced through the menu looking for something different when my eyes fell upon a meal listed as the H Bomb which described itself as a spicy chicken fried steak sandwich. I decided to order one though I thought the price was a little high at $9.95. That is I thought it was a little high until I actually got the sandwich.
Frazier’s Cafe
This sucker was about the size of an H Bomb as well. It was so big that I needed a knife and fork to eat it. It was tasty and big enough for 2 meals which is exactly what I made out of it.
Full from lunch, I continued my drive which included traveling through Burchard, NE, the birthplace of silent film star, Harold Lloyd. About 3:30pm I entered Wamego and parked in its downtown area. I wandered up and down the street admiring the buildings. I stepped into the library and thumbed through a few books before I finally headed over to Victory Inn.
I was immediately struck by the beauty of the inn. It had a well manicured backyard with a little waterfall and gazebo. I rang the doorbell of the back door and waited a few minutes. Upon hearing nothing, I began to search out the front door when I heard the turn of doorknob. I did an about face and retraced my steps as Margaret welcomed me into her home.
She quickly led me to the Victory Inn Suite before leaving me to my own devices. I got myself settled and goggled at the palace sized bathroom which housed a Jacuzzi bathtub before exploring the house. I admired the antiques and glassware and bumped into Margaret’s husband, Francis who quietly welcomed me to the inn.
After wandering about the home, I drew a hot bath and enjoyed a good long soak before slipping into my suit and heading over to the Columbian Theatre.
Columbian Theatre
The theatre is quite an impressive edifice. It was built in the late 1800s as a music hall and that same hall still serves as the theatre’s performance space.
The show itself was rather disappointing. After a rough show, I walked back to the inn where I wrote a very difficult review and then retired for the night.
In the morning I was ready for breakfast and Margaret had a nice repast waiting. There was nothing fancy about the meal. It was just good old-fashioned home cooking with eggs, bacon, cinnamon coffee cake, some amazing hash browns, and juice.
Old fashioned country breakfast
I needed some exercise so I spent the next two hours wandering around Wamego where I visited the park, saw the town’s famed windmill, and then I stopped at the famed Oz Museum.
The windmill of Wamego
The Wizard of Oz is very big in this town. Not only do they have a museum dedicated to all things Oz but several businesses are named after items in the story such as Oz Winery and Toto’s Tacoz.
The Oz Museum has brought in visitors from all over the globe and it was actually an interesting little visit. The history of L Frank Baum (author of the series), the birth of the stories, the creation of the famed movie, and other Ozian things came to life before my eyes. The most surprising piece of trivia I learned was that the books were so popular that other writers were brought on to create more stories after Baum’s passing. Baum had written 15 stories, but the series ended after the 40th novel written in the late 1960s. For those who have the time or desire, the film is also shown all day.
When I stepped outside it looked like it was about ready to rain so I decided to while away the afternoon in my room where I watched the Iowa Hawkeyes pummel the Purdue Boilermakers.
After thoroughly enjoying Iowa’s shellacking of Purdue, I took another Jacuzzi bath and then headed over to St Bernard’s Catholic Church for worship. The church is a pretty impressive edifice and looked fairly new to my eyes. My eyes did not deceive as the building was erected in 2010.
St Bernard Catholic Church
It was a pretty good service and Father had a very thought-provoking sermon about how 80% of Catholics no longer attend services which got me to thinking as to how much the attendance rate had fallen amongst all denominations. His most telling statement was, “I don’t think it’s because we (he was an elderly man) were old-fashioned. I think we’ve just lost faith.” Very profound food for thought.
After services, I had hoped to eat at the Friendly Cooker, a diner on the main street of Wamego. However, the only nights they serve supper are Thursdays and Fridays. Instead, I decided to try the cuisine at Toto’s Tacoz.
Toto’s Tacoz
Twas not a bad choice at all. I had the namesake food which ended up being shredded beef, cheese, onions, lettuce, cilantro, sour cream, and tomatoes on a tortilla. It was seasoned quite nicely and a little of it goes quite far.
Then I headed over to Junction City, a military town (Fort Riley is nearby) to experience Zombie Toxin. As a teenager in Omaha, I rather enjoyed the haunted house attractions available in the city and we have some pretty good ones. While my interest in them has waned as I’ve gotten older, this one made me curious as it touted itself as the #1 haunted attraction in Kansas.
After visiting it, I can say that those claims are perfectly valid. I would also like to give a special shout-out to Rob for providing me with a speed pass media ticket so I could enjoy Zombie Toxin.
First off, this attraction pays meticulous attention to the details. It begins with the story of Dr. Von Monschture which I absolutely love because it gives a sense of reality to the attraction. Once inside, you appreciate the care that went into this place. Each room has a specific atmosphere and a lot of creativity went into creating the numerous experiments in Von Monschture’s quest to revivify corpses. There’s nothing cheap about the horrors here. It has the quality of a big budget horror flick.
Aside from the horrifying beasts, you’ll have to deal with crackling electricity, falling barrels, giant wolf’s heads and a maze in darkness in your attempts to escape from the mad scientist. Oh, and be wary. The weird creations and characters of the house pop out anywhere and anytime. I’m still trying to figure out who or what grabbed my jacket at about the halfway point.
If you live in the vicinity of Junction City and are looking for something to do this Halloween season, visit Zombie Toxin. I promise you won’t be disappointed.
After visiting the haunted house, it was time to head back to the inn for the night.
For some reason my sleep was a little fitful. I popped out of my sleep due to goofy dreams on a couple of occasions, but still felt well rested when I woke up for good around 7am.
Another old fashioned breakfast was on the table consisting of pancakes, sausage, scrambled eggs, cinnamon pecan rolls, juice, and water. Once more I ate my fill, then came back to finish writing.
Another leg of the road has been completed and Wamego is a quaint little town with friendly folk and a bit to do. Take in a show at the Columbian. Travel to the merry old land of Oz. And for those who need more, the town of Manhattan is less than 30 minutes away. But make sure you get a room at Victory Inn, you’ll get comfort, hospitality, and a good meal.
Until the next time.
Chris' Corner 