WAZUAZ Vann(AM)ERICA Tour is officially underway! This fall tour has been in the works for over eight months. Lots of planning, routing, re-routing and merchandise making. Wednesday felt surreal as we packed the last few things in the van and hit the road for Chicago.
We planned our arrival in Chicago just in time to hit rush hour, whoops. Better luck next time. Our first night was spent sharing the wild world of natural dyes for an intimate workshop at Open Studio Garage in Edgewater. Each of the seven participants had the opportunity to dye their own pair of WAZUAZintimates briefs or a bandana. A beautiful space that was filled with much curiosity and creativity. 
We departed Thursday morning for a quick drive north to Milwaukee. One of our absolute favorite cities in the US. A hidden Midwest gem. Our arrival landed us just in time to reunite with a sweet friend and multi-talented artist, Brian Nau, before our show that evening. Linneman’s Riverwest Inn hosted our show and it was fucking amazing. Old school vibes with a green room for the bands, stocked with all the needs for a party. The venue is owned by a couple that have curated a space with so much soul and good feels.
The following morning we greeted the day with a stroll accompanied by Brian to grab an iced coffee at Milwaukee Public Market then down to the Milwaukee Bay in the Historic Third Ward. Absolutely beautiful view and even better weather.
We departed later that morning for Madison, Wisconsin. A short two hour drive allowed us some time before our show to wander the city. Stumbled across Calabash Gifts, a shop overflowing with unique, handmade goods from Africa. UaZit found himself a kalimba. The remainder of the afternoon was spent at Lake Mendota until our show.
Not gonna lie, Rigby Pub was a beast to load into. Located directly downtown Madison, right across the state building. There just so happened to be a music festival happening downtown, which added to the chaos. Parking was impossible but we landed the last spot available in a parking garage that could fit our van...about a half mile from the venue. Luckily our merch boxes have wheels. The actual concert room was in the basement, which included many stairs. What felt like 500 trips later, our merch and equipment were loaded into the basement. TO OUR SURPRISE, the PA and gear was stored on the second floor. So more stairs it was. We are laughing now but our legs were about to collapse beneath us. The show was fucking wild though and everyone was captivated. The nightcap was a no pants party in the venue basement featuring WAZUAZintimates. Post show, we drove to a truckstop and UaZit took a $16 shower because all the Planet Fitness locations were closed. "Best $16 I have ever spent." - UaZit
Majority of our Saturday was spent driving from Madison to Des Moines. By the time we arrived, stormy weather was rolling in. We made a pit stop at Goodwill, just because, and that was about it. We parked up for the night at the end of a Walmart parking lot to ride out the storm and watched the new Pinnochio. The following morning was beautiful. Our time in Des Moines just to happened to align with the very last VegLife Summer Market so we popped up our tent and surrounded ourselves with a bunch of happy vegans. The vegan Philly Cheesesteak and vegan BBQ sandwich from Veggie Thumper made our tums very happy. Throughout the duration of the hot weather at the market, we longingly watched children enjoy the water fountain all day long. Once the van was loaded up and the parents had disappeared with their children, we noticed the fountain was still going....so we enjoyed ourselves a nice cool down in the water. It was glorious.
One week of tour down, many more to go!