Nebraskans are fondly known as “cornhuskers”. A term derived from the manual labour of husking corn, which it is fair to say is in abundance in Nebraska. It’s plastered everywhere, their sports teams, banks, mechanics shops, think I even saw it in a donut shop. It’s a term popularised a century ago… and an improvement on their then name of bugeaters.

We’ve arrived deep in the mid west, the very centre of the United States . So far from the ocean it is the only state in the US where you apparently have to travel at least 3 states north, south east or west to get to the coast. It’s the middle of winter, and while it’s comparatively warm it’s still hovering around zero degrees. Why? I hear you asking. Why?

Well, it’s a very important element of our trip , this is where we get to visit a dear friend who moved here years ago. I’ve threatened to visit many times and it’s only now, when our main flight in and out of North America was Houston. That it seemed rude to not add a few days and a couple of additional flights and head North to Lincoln. So here we are. In Cornhusker’s territory. Go big red!!

Knowing someone here and being introduced into their lives is a true blessing, we’ve been introduced to work colleagues , friends called at short notice so we can drop in for tea, hell, today I met their doctor’s receptionist… it’s the small town friendly vibes. and it’s beautiful, embracing and genuine.

I had one request, I’d like to go to a diner. So off we went to the outskirts of town and the Hiway Diner. Food was bloody fantastic, service unreal and I’m angling to go back before we leave. Although I have to say, the explanation that a “chicken fried steak” is called “chicken” when it’s actually beef because there is egg in the crumb, does not make sense to me. It was still bloody good. ( basically a bashed steak, egged, crumbed with bread and crackers, with a white pepper sauce, it was a high end schnitzel in my opinion).

Long walks, long conversations and multiple home cooked meals with endless cups of tea, it’s almost like a transition from travel life to home life.

Lincoln has a population of about 300,000 in its centre, not dissimilar to Wellington, but it feels and appears smaller…it’s definitely quite liberal, I saw one Trump sign on the outskirts of town and yet in shops or in cafes I see a lot of inclusive signage , seen a few anti ICE signs even in home windows.

Megan our friend here has been so hospitable, and taken us to places we would never have imagined going to, Today we went to Scheels. A store where you can , buy pecan chocolate crunch, ride an in store ferris wheel ( as tourists we were given free rides) and then buy a gun. Welcome to ‘merica. It was wild, a mix of department store, hardware store and a touch of theme park.

Next stop was Trader Joe’s, I picked up the “office treats” to bring home. Plus a few extra for us and a couple of tote bags. There were no less than 8 NZ Sauvignon blancs available, at prices I am not sure you could get in New Zealand.

We then went for a country drive. It’s still a bit surreal seeing the snow remnants and the still frozen lakes and streams. It was a chilly almost bleak day, but we arrived at Ashland a small town half way between Omaha and Lincoln. Had a great lunch ( corn and crab bisque of course) some incredible cider and the best coffee we have had all trip. It very much reminded me of Kyenton in Victoria or Greytown in wellington. Very quaint.