Mystery Day 6: Hey, Peggy Sue!

It's the last day of our Mystery Tour . . . and it's good to have a bit of a lay-in. We've been up and on the go early each morning so today's late (9:30 am) check-out was welcome.

The National World War I Museum
The museum in Kansas City was our first stop this morning. We arrived a little before 10:00 am when the doors opened so we were ready for our 90-minute visit. The artifacts, film and photos, newspaper accounts and uniforms made for an interesting walk through history. The 15-minute film in the Horizon Theatre offers a brief insight into world events that lead to our entry into the war and also brought home to those of us who only read in history books about the war a bit closer to the horrors and accounts of World War I. The walkway leading into the museum proper was made to look as if we were walking above the ground, over a field of 9,000 poppies, each representing 1,000 combatant deaths during WWII.  I spoke with one of the docents about the glass bridge and he told me it was made purposely to make one feel a bit uneasy about the walk into history, much like the uneasiness of the United States entering the first World War.
The artillery display along with the museum's showpiece, the French-made Renault FT17tank, brought the war into focus. The exhibit halls, broken in to two galleries covered the years 1914-1917 and 1917-1919. There was a chronology of America's entering the war, the Trenches, Air War & War at Sea galleries and interactive tables displaying the experience with historic voices in the reflections alcove.The 217-foot tower at the center of the museum is accessible by an elevator at a climb of 45 steps to a scenic view of the Kansas City skyline.
The National World War I museum is a must see on any visit to Kansas City.

New Theatre Production of "Buddy" The Buddy Holly Story
Our final event of this 6-day Mystery Tour was at the New Theatre Restaurant in Overland Park. "Buddy", The Story of Buddy Holly was our entertainment after a wonderfully delicious buffet lunch. A fine dining meal served buffet style is kind of a contradiction but after a few bites it was quickly confirmed that this was one of the finest meals we've enjoyed on this tour.

The story traces Buddy Holly's start in Lubbock, Texas in 1953 to his untimely death in a plane crash in 1959. Buddy ­ The Buddy Holly Story tells the story of Buddy Holly's short yet explosive career and features his classic songs; "Peggy Sue," "That'll Be The Day," "Not Fade Away," "Oh Boy," "Maybe Baby," "Rave On" and many more. I'll tell you one thing, THIS SHOW ROCKS! Everyone watching the show was drawn in to the upbeat style that was uniquely Buddy. Toe-tapping, hand clapping and even singing along with the hits of Buddy, Ritchie Valens and J.P. Richardson (The Big Bopper) made for an energy-filled performance. We will be back to the New Theatre again!

On a more somber note, our motor coach driver, Brian, lost his home in the recent tornado activity that hit Shawnee, Oklahoma. We found out about this through casual conversation with Brian during the trip so Marsha decided to do something. While we were loading the coach after the show, Marsha explained what had happened to the group. We decided to make a love offering to help Brian in some small way put his and his family's life back together. We are very grateful for the hard work Brian does getting us safely from location to location, event to event and meal to meal, making our ride smooth, comfortable and safe. He's a professional in every sense of the word and we consider ourselves lucky to have him drive for us. If we could help in some small way to lessen the pain and stress Brian and his family are experiencing, then we must do it.  Thank-you, Brian from each and every one of the Travel Masters.

So ends our 2013 edition of Lights! Camera! Action Mystery Tour. We think we've had a successful tour and we hope that everyone who joined us has kept a memory of this past week's fun.

Thanks to our great group of Travelers!