Wednesday, October 24th, 5:30-8:30pm: An Evening at Old Cowtown Living History Museum

Walk into the streets of Wichita c. 1870 and experience the genuine living history of the Old West. Our group will take a walking tour of Old Cowtown, which is constructed with many original historical buildings, including hotel, saloon, sheriff’s office, blacksmith shop, school house, church, railway station, grain elevator, farm, other businesses and historic houses. The tour will be followed by a full barbeque dinner from Hog Wild Pit Bar-B-Q with beverages. The Flatland String Band will provide traditional acoustic music from the late 1800s.

On the way back to the hotel, attendees can take in the Keeper of the Plains “Ring of Fire” at the confluence of the Little and Big Arkansas Rivers. This 44 foot tall sculpture is now a symbol of Wichita and stands on land that is sacred ground to the Native American people and home to the All-American Indian Center. Bus transportation will be provided round trip. Cost is $30 (or $50 for those attending both special events). Maximum number is 50, so please register in advance. See: http://www.oldcowtown.org and http://home.southwind.net/~lyoung

Thursday, October 25th, 5-8pm: A Visit to Phap Hoa Buddhist Temple

This unique evening begins with a tour of the Phap Hoa Temple and grounds followed by a brief lecture on the basic tenets of Buddhism with Professor Anh Tran from Wichita State University and questions & answers with the Temple Abbot. A traditional vegetarian meal will be served prepared by members of the temple, who are primarily Vietnamese immigrants in Wichita. Bus transportation will be provided round trip. Cost is $25 (or $50 for those attending both special events). Maximum number is 50, so please register in advance.
See: http://phaphoatu.org/english/default.aspx

Friday, October 26th 10:30am-12:30pm: Campus Tour of Wichita State University

The visit to Wichita State University begins with Garvey International Center, home of the Office of International Education, and continues to the Ulrich Museum of Art for refreshments and a short viewing of the galleries, featuring The Hard Kind of Courage: Gordon Parks & Photographers of the Civil Rights Era and Poetic Fictions by Ronald Crist, WSU painting faculty member. Then, there will be a walking tour of the Martin H. Bush Outdoor Sculpture Collection (one of the top ten campus collections in the USA). Lunch will be available on campus for those who would like to purchase or participants may leave after the tour. Shuttle buses will be provided from the Hyatt Hotel to the WSU campus and back. Free event!
See: http://webs.wichita.edu/?u=ulrichmuseum&p=/Art/OutdoorSculptureCollection

Wichita Local Arrangements Team

Randy Bush, Armin Gerhard, Shan Jabara, Carol Solko-Olliff, James Harter