First Fridays

I always get "Final Fridays" and "First Fridays" mixed up, since one is KC and one is Lawrence, so I just generally think of end of the month and beginning of another. Tonight was FIRST Fridays in Kansas City, and my FIRST time to go. I've been wanting to go for about a year, and I figured today was the day, before it gets too cold and before I have too much work to even enjoy some free time.

Thanks to Kansas construction which resulted in one lane on the Interstate during holiday weekend, rush hour traffic, it took me twice as long as usual to get downtown. I wasn't even sure exactly where I was going. I really should have checked beforehand because I never got to where I was supposed to be, with all the art galleries. I did find two, plus a Friday Night Farmer's Market, and lots of hot dog stands.

The first building I went to had an empty first floor, some abstract paintings, and this really cool old... elevator? It was just pushed into a corner with a bunch of construction stuff, but it was more interesting than the actual art on display, in my opinion.

Also in the first building was part of the Drepung Gomang Tour which is currently in Kansas City. The visiting monks played music (I love those long horns) and taught kids how to make sand mandalas, mold flowers, and paint rocks. It was very entertaining to watch.

Sure it was "for kids", but I wish I could have tried...

At the farmer's market, I found some Thai basil. When my mom and I ate Vietnamese in San Diego, we had some on a plate, but couldn't tell what it was. But now I know, and now I'm going to make some Vietnamese food. I bet it will go quite well with my cari chay. It's probably not so different from regular basil, but I do think it's prettier.

Several people I walked by commented on how nicely it smelled too!

Finally, I made a stop on my way home to check out the new Trader Joe's. It's huge! And like always, they had the goat brie and chile mango popsicles I love so much.