Destination: Madison County, IA

My Trip:

I spent a few days here with my girlfriend and had a blast making her cry over and over again. “Honey, isn’t this the intersection that Francesca was holding the car door handle …” or “Hey, this is the field that Robert Kincaid took that picture…” If you travel here with a loved one, you probably should not follow my lead, as I was single by the time we returned home. I digress, but it was she who made me see that movie! Madison County, Iowa is the location of ‘Bridges of Madison County’ and if you saw the movie or read the book, you know that this is the real heartland of America. It’s one of my favorite types of places to go, simply because the people are so nice and open to conversation. I love to spend an afternoon around the Town Square, wandering in the local shops, eating at the local diner, just shooting the breeze with the type of people you rarely get to speak with in NYC. It’s also a gorgeous place to drive through – I find that there’s a sort of majesty to endless fields of corn and wheat and alfalfa (it is alfalfa, right?) And the view of silos in the distance is darn pretty. You can also get yourself a map and visit some of the few covered wooden bridges that remain and even take a 90-minute drive to see the actual “Field of Dreams” – they built it, you have to come.

Erik Hastings

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