Matisse would surely have appreciated the palette displayed under the glass counter of the Fenocchio ice-cream shop in the old town.
Eli Siemon, 26, an ice cream counter clerk, said he never washed his hands.
And there is a bar and ice cream counter, which appeared to be doing good business on Sunday.
The ice cream counter — which seems to get less attention but is a hit with neighborhood children — offers eight nondairy flavors, including Better Pecan and Great Nut.
When someone carved his initials, E Z, into one of the mahogany columns by the ice cream counter, the scratch was kept for posterity.
Later he stopped in three other eastern Iowa towns, for treats and glad-handing at a deli in Independence, a drugstore ice cream counter in Manchester and a grocery store in Dubuque.
Across the street, Harrel's Kingsville Pharmacy (204 East Kleberg, 361-592-9385, harrels.com), which dates to 1905, now sells gifts, though it is best known for its hand-dipped malted chocolate milk shakes, served at an old-fashioned ice cream counter.
Many headed straight for the bars, where beer, vodka, whiskey and other drinks were served at breakneck pace, often slathered in ice to counter the heat, even well past midnight.
Eugene Wade, 43, and his brother and co-owner, Eric Wade, 42, bought Heaven's Delite in 1997 from their brother Clayton Wade, who began the 500-square-foot space as an ice cream counter in 1987.
One house that is divided but somehow stands is that of Christine Ondocin and her husband, Robb Irving, who turned part of their 19th-century home into the popular Gil and Bert's Ice Cream counter on Main Street.
