Our third week in St. Louis, Missouri was JAM PACKED with fun experiences. We were starting to feel the crunch to squeeze in as much as possible and we really ran ourselves ragged this week. This is a long post but there are lots of pictures so hang in there!
On Saturday, we were doing something that neither of us had ever done before – going to an indoor UFL game! After doing 4 years of marching band in high school and attending every football game and being from Ohio and watching every game on television to support THE Ohio State University, I had drifted away from football in recent years. John had never been a huge football fan (preferring hockey). When we found out, though, that St. Louis had an UFL team and that they had a home game while we were in town, we decided to give it a try.
We got up early to grab some breakfast prior to the game at St. Louis Kolache. This would become one of our favorite foods while we were in the area and we ate here several times over the next few weeks. We could each get two kolaches and be completely full for around $15 so it was an excellent way to start the day.
The game itself was between the St. Louis Battlehawks and the Memphis Showboats and took place in The Dome at America’s Center. Although the rules and scoring were a little different then the traditional football we were used to, we had a great time and were super excited to watch the Battlehawks add another victory to their record. We had great seats and really got into the game along with the rest of the crowd. Although we aren’t huge sports fans, there’s nothing like a live game! And the best part may have been the official cheer for the Battlehawks – yelling “KA-KAW” at the top of our lungs.
After the game, we picked up some dinner from the Sugarfire BBQ location in Arnold. We had been told that the downtown St. Louis location is the best but the Arnold location was less than 10 minutes from our house so we decided to take the risk. It was really good! We got the sampler platter with baked beans and potato salad to share and an order of the pork belly hush puppies. We also got a bottle of soda and a strawberry jam bar for dessert. We really liked the pulled pork and the turkey! I enjoyed the brisket and hush puppies but John didn’t like them as much. Neither of us liked the strawberry jam bar but we both loved the soda and the potato salad. We brought our food home and had a nice little picnic outside. Harley begged from both of us and seemed to enjoy every single bite she was offered.
On Sunday, we had planned a visit to the World Bird Sanctuary and had reserved the 1:00 bird show. For $12 total, we were able to walk through their exhibits of non-releasable birds which included a variety of eagles, emu, owls, ravens, hawks, vultures, buzzards and more. All of the animals in their show or on exhibit are unable to survive in the wild either due to injury or imprinting on humans as babies. They have additional facilities that are not open to the public where they treat and care for birds that will hopefully be released back into the wild.
We had already reserved seats for the free show at 1:00 and it was so wonderful! We were able to learn about raptors and they work that they do at this sanctuary. We were in the front row for the show and were less than 10 feet away from some amazing birds including a bald eagle. At one point, a barn owl flew directly over our heads! It was such an incredible place to visit and we highly recommend it to anyone interested in birds or wildlife rehab.
Within a few miles of the World Bird Sanctuary, we stumbled upon Lone Elk County Park. Situated on 546 acres, this park is home to bison, wild turkey, waterfowl, elk and deer. For a donation (recommended amount is only $1 but we put in $5), visitors can drive their own vehicle through the park to view the animals! We didn’t get to see too many elk but towards the end of our drive, we came upon several bison that were laying right next to the roadway.
On Tuesday night, we decided to check out a Major League Baseball Game at Busch Stadium- the St. Louis Cardinals vs the Arizona Diamondbacks. We ended up leaving in the 6th inning (Cardinals were down 10-1 and the stadium was DEAD) but we had a nice night and enjoyed a beautiful view. Our seats were in the front row of the uppermost section of seats at the very top of the stadium. We were right behind home plate but because we were up so high, we had a full view of the entire field along with the iconic Gateway Arch in the background. I think this was the first professional baseball game either of us have attended in our adult lives so it was definitely a fun new experience. The final score was 14-1 but, again, we had a blast.
On Thursday, John took a vacation day and we visited the St. Louis Zoo in Forest Park. Parking is $15 per car, however the lots were both full by the time we arrived at 10:30 so we parked for free on the street a short distance away. Admission was also free so aside from money for food and souvenirs, it was a free day for us! The zoo is enormous and has a ton of large, natural looking exhibits featuring a wide variety of animals- many of which are not common in zoos that we have visited. We got to see Sichuan takin, dwarf mongoose, hyenas, and puffins in addition to giraffes, elephants, penguins, polar bears, and more. They have a great reptile building and several aviaries- including one that has been in Forest Park since the 1904 World’s Fair. We also ran into several friendly docents who were more than happy to chat with us about various species and exhibits.
While in the Forest Park area to visit the zoo, we also stopped for a walk around the Jewel Box and a few of the war memorials. Parking was free and admission to the Jewel Box was $1 per person. The Jewel Box is a greenhouse that was built in the Art Deco style and was finished in 1936. Today, it can be rented out for private events and weddings – I can’t imagine a more beautiful setting to say “I do”!
On the way home, we stopped off at Fitz’s SoCo. Remember all the way back to our stay in Bertrand, Missouri when we got the butter cake and a grape soda from the camp store? This is where that soda was bottled! In addition to making and bottling a line of sodas, they also have a restaurant. We weren’t starving so we split an order of chicken tenders and our waiter was sweet enough to have the kitchen split it onto two plates for us with sides. John had a root beer and we split a 3 Amigos float for dessert. We weren’t there during bottling hours so if you plan to visit, check their schedule if you want to see them in action.
After driving around the Gateway Arch for weeks and seeing it looming in the background, we were scheduled to visit it on Friday night. John got off work early and we headed into town for a bite to eat and a little sightseeing.
We grabbed lunch at Blues City Deli and wow! It was just a little place but the food was excellent and very affordable considering the large portions. We had the Original Roast Beef and the Bada BANG. They are only open for lunch so make sure you plan ahead for your visit!
Living a nomadic lifestyle sometimes has its difficulties. One of those difficulties is that we both love being surrounded by books- we actually used to own a bookstore. But tiny house living does not really allow for hauling around a bunch of books so we try to visit bookstores and libraries as often as possible. We took advantage of having a little free time downtown before our schedule Arch visit to visit the St. Louis Public Library on Olive Street. It is absolutely stunning! The building is GORGEOUS and they have so many cool features like tons of places to sit and read or study, a teen section, computers and 3d printers and so much more. One of the librarians even gave us a cool pamphlet as a souvenir!
After all of that running around, it was finally time to make our way to The Arch or Gateway Arch National Park as it is officially named. We spent a little bit of time walking around the museum which discusses the history of the St. Louis area from the Native Americans, through the Louisiana Purchase, and into modern times. It also contains some exhibits on how the arch was constructed.
Finally, it was time to go up inside the arch itself. Each side of the arch has a tram that is a combination between a Ferris wheel, an elevator, and an escalator that carries guests from underground all the way up to the top. It consists of a small pod that is mounted to a track and uses special brackets to rotate/shift as it moves to keep guests upright. It’s a little jerky but overall not too scary. The ride up took about 4 minutes, we spent about 10 minutes at the top, then the ride down was about 3 minutes. I am afraid of elevators but, as I said earlier, the tram wasn’t too bad (VERY close quarters but thankfully it was just the two of us in ours) but I was terrified at the top!
The top of the Arch was maybe 8 feet wide and it was so windy we could feel the whole thing swaying. It made us both a little seasick, honestly! It was 630 ft up! I was able to face my fears and push aside the nausea and look out the tiny windows. The views were breathtaking! We could even see right down into Busch Stadium where we had just been a few days ago for the baseball game.
When we came back down, we watched a short movie about construction of the Arch itself and let’s just say I am glad we went up BEFORE watching the video because I would NOT have set foot up there AFTER.
The arch was completed in 1965 and was built as a monument to the Louisiana Purchase and Westward Expansion- Lewis & Clark began their journey just a short distance away and is a must see for anyone visiting this city. If you are claustrophobic or afraid of heights, though, you may want to admire it from the ground and leave the journey to the top out of the equation entirely.
At the close of this crazy week, we found ourselves entering our last week in town. We were completely exhausted but thankfully we had planned ahead so our last week could be a little slower – we definitely needed a break!
