I was told that this was a must-see Des Moines site so yesterday morning Catherine and I went to see it for ourselves.

If you are in Des Moines, you are likely to see the capital’s golden dome gleaming from far away. We took the tour so I can tell you that that is real gold leaf, thinner than a hair, and that it has to be re-applied every 20-25 years.

The architectural details, both in and out, are really amazing and, now that I think about it, the whole place was really clean!

If you look down you’ll notice that the tile designs in the floors are varied and quilt-like…

  
  
But when you look up, your jaw will drop.

If you take the (free) tour, you get to go up to the the balcony high in the dome, just below the banks of lights that illuminate the space. I was standing there when I took the following photo, looking up…

…and then looking down to the floor far below, where the ‘x’ is. That’s a person walking away, to the right of the ‘x’.

Even the smallest details were not forgotten…

door hinge

thermostat

window pull

sconce arm

There’s more to share tomorrow but for now let me say that this really is a nice place to visit. Way to go, Iowa!