17. Toppenish, Washington
There are certain landscapes that I grew up with a prejudice against because I came from timber country. The irrigated desert landscapes of southwest Idaho and central Washington are among those types of landscapes. I don't like the smell of cattle and sugar factories. I don't like the idea that Mexicans are exploited for their cheap labor by wealthy conservative farmers. I don't usually like the lack of trees and the open feeling of vulnerability from the plains.
So having presented a glimpse of my dislike of such landscapes it will surprise you to know that one of the places I am thankful for is a small town in the Yakima Valley of central Washington. I have actually grown to love Toppenish, Washington. It has all those things about irrigated landscapes that I mentioned above, but in their own quirky ways those very things have caused me to really love Toppenish.
First of all, Toppenish is on the Yakima Indian reservation. It is home to all kinds of farming of fresh produce – asparagus, corn, melons, apples, pears, cherries, peaches, etc. It is also home to beautiful hop farms and vineyards and that means wine and beer. You can't go wrong with wine and beer.
The town itself shows signs of tensions from a combination of ethnicities. Many stores have bars over their windows and you will always be able to find graffiti tagged onto walls. Mexican food abounds – and I mean authentic Mexican food. You can buy authentic tacos and burritos and… at small restaurants or street vendors. The new thing over the past 20 years has been the abundance of murals painted on buildings everywhere chronicling the history of the Yakima valley. In Toppenish cultures come together on a collision course that splatters itself into the barren Yakima Valley in an explosion of beautiful colors and flavors and that makes me forgive any stench of a dairy farm. Toppenish really is where the West still lives and thrives in a beautiful throbbing heartbeat.
