Day 36 - St. Louis

Today marks the beginning of our sixth week on the road.  We find ourselves just back on our side of the Mississippi River in St. Louis.  First stop, the Gateway Arch.  This relatively new monument (completed in 1965) marks the gathering point for the Lewis & Clark expedition commissioned by President Thomas Jefferson in 1803 and begun in 1804.  

In the museum area beneath the arch, we watched a well done IMAX movie about the expedition that really put into perspective their travel and the magnitude of Jefferson's Louisiana Purchase (which doubled the size of the U.S. at the time).  

Their journey was that day's equivalent of going to the moon.  The odds of them reaching the Pacific Ocean and returning were fairly low.  But, they succeeded and their findings and maps opened up the area west of the Mississippi to American settlement.

The Arch is an impressive nod to that achievement and how it subsequently made St. Louis the chief provisioning point for settlers headed west.  Because it is so symmetrical, it's hard to get an idea of its' size until you are right next to it.  (It's 630 feet tall compared to the Washington Monument's 555 feet.)  Once inside, we got into the space capsule sized cars to go to the viewing area at the top.  (This area was also the setting for a scene in the first Percy Jackson novel). 

 The Arch is an excellent ending point in our chase of Thomas Jefferson.  His inquisitive nature led him to commission the expedition that opened up the western half of the U.S. to settlement.  Maybe the next Fergapalooza follows his lead and heads out West as well?  Stay tuned...

Our next stop was the famed "Crown Candy Kitchen" (as seen on the TV show "Man vs. Food.").  It is St. Louis' oldest soda fountain - opened in 1913.  They are best known for their 30 Minute, 5 Ice Cream Malt Challenge, but also for their great candy, sundaes and food.  The line for the minimal amount of old style booths was long, but well worth it.  Their BLT would be better named a "BBBBBLT" don't you think?  

Tummies full, we went to a place where we could burn some calories:  City Museum.  It is a really hard place to explain.  A former shoe warehouse/factory that had long been vacant, it was purchased by an artist who made it a playground derived of leftover junk and icons.  The four story tall "MonstroCity" looks like McDonald's hamster trails made from junkyard material.  The kids can climb everywhere, but so can their parents.  (Janell, unfortunately, lifted herself into a crossbar, bloodied her nose, and was down for the count much of our time there -- but being the trooper she was, she sat out with an ice pack while the rest of us sweated up a storm.)

Inside there are things such as a 3 story slide enclosed by painted rotating railings, extra large hydraulic-powered rock'em sock'em robots, a Big Boy statue, a circus school, a skate park without skates, enchanted caves, and a ten story spiral slide.  And the eclectic decoration that adorns the place is unreal.

It is an incredibly hard place to describe because it is so surreal.  But, Janell and I agree it is easily one of the top ten places we've ever been -- for kids or adults.  So, put it on your list!