Viva Cuba members meet tourers at the well-appointed Visitor Center.
Viva Cuba may be more known for commissioning murals, planting flowers, or other community betterment projects, but one of their activities is giving groups tours of the murals and other Cuba attractions. Tour coaches meet the Viva Cuba members at the Visitor Center or a Cuba attraction. Then two “tour guides” board their bus for a narrated tour of the murals and a little commentary about other attractions. There is a charge for this service and the funds are used for mural maintenance.
Tour directors call ahead to reserve the time of the tour and discuss what their interests are in Cuba. The last tour group was from Concord Bank in St. Louis, and they were a fun-loving group.
After meeting the Concord group at the Visitor Center where they got off to stretch their legs and pick up some travel information, they returned to the bus to start their Cuba tour. It takes two Viva Cuba members to do the tours, one to narrate and one to direct the large buses around the streets of Cuba. The Concord Bank group had the oldest motel on Route 66, the Historic Landmark Wagon Wheel Motel first on their list. The group enjoyed the gift shop there and made several purchases.
Then the narrated portion of the tour resumed. Groups always like the humor of the Bette Davis story and are touched by the story of the Gold Star Boys. They like hearing about Chip Lange’s role in the Civil War Murals. They are interested in many aspects of the mural project and town history.
Groups are always fascinated by the World’s Largest Rocker.
After the mural tour was complete, we continued with them to The World’s Largest Rocking Chair at Fanning. While on Route 66 en route to the rocker, we gave the tourers a little more history and information on other area attractions. We pointed out the My Place Tires mural, told them about the Kinder Cemetery Tours during Cuba Fest, and pointed out the dump truck on Mr. Pasch’s gravestone and explained its significance.
This group really enjoyed their stop at the Fanning Outpost General Store and bought several items. One gentleman looked around and said, “This is a great store.”
The Concord group had a good time in the Fanning Store with its varied inventory and friendly staff.
Because it was raining when the group left the store, rather than pose the group in front of the rocker, they had their driver pull the bus in front of the rocker.
We told told this group about some of our special events, such as Cuba Fest, the Fair, and the September Car Show. Several expressed an interest in returning to Cuba.
That’s what we like to hear.
Even on a rainy day, a group can get a photo at the World’s Largest Rocking Chair.
