The Mighty Mississippi

I love visiting old river towns, the ones that were around long before highways, let alone air travel, made them less commercially vital. But for all the years I've been criss-crossing the country, I somehow never went through any of the Quad Cities on the Iowa/Illinois border at the Mississippi (I guess mainly because the interstate loops around them). This trip I made a point of stopping, and above you see a view of the riverfront from the edge of Davenport, Iowa. They've done a nice job of improving the waterfront, but in this case it no doubt meant removing much of the old commercial district, at least that was my impression. The main business district is now a few blocks north of the river, and while there is a nice park there, it's also somewhat blighted by a giant casino complex. I like what places like Omaha did better-- the old warehouses and factories have been converted to shops and restaurants. But I guess that isn't always a viable alternative. Davenport seemed nice enough, but it didn't strike me as retaining much of the heritage from its heyday (though maybe I just missed it that neighborhood).