unexpected cool[ness]

the other week, some good friends came to visit me in wichita.  as excited as i was to have them down in "ta" town, i was a bit nervous.  these friends are not only recent transplants from new york, but have also lived in a handful of other larger cities.  i love my town but was worried it might come off a bit "cowtown-ish" when compared to the lower east side of nyc.  none the less, these friends had always been wonderful hosts when i visited the big apple and i was excited to return the favor.

i should have realized i had nothing to worry about.  not only is this couple always up for anything but wichita's downtown really is starting to have something going for it.  with my apartment being centered between oldtown and downtown the weekend was spent roaming and walking a radius of five blocks.  within which we were able to enjoy some amazing meals, hit up a few local bars, have coffee, and go antique shopping.  within that territory we also ran into several local natives, a tribe of people other wise known as my friends.  a group of individuals who also love wichita, downtown and are some of the best local tour guides you could ask for.

the weekend was a blast.  my friends enjoyed themselves and i was really proud of my hometown.  even with new york city being exponentially larger, i've found what makes it great is the quality of neighborhoods and the walkability of within those areas.  a quality wichita is doing a great job developing.  at the end of the weekend, one of my friends said, "wichita is a lot cooler than i thought it would be."

i think that's a great compliment for the people working hard to develop downtown, and a wonderful observation about the people who inhabit, work, occupy and enjoy the area.