St. Louis Trip

            During the summer of 2010 I visited St. Louis.  It’s kind of funny how the trip came about.  I was at Momma Goldberg’s with a girl friend and she mentioned that she was going up there for a wedding.  She was leaving on a Friday and coming back on Sunday.  She was meeting some girls up there, they were going to the Cardinals game Friday, the wedding Saturday and then home on Sunday.  I started to get jealous.  Then she told me that her husband had just taken a new job and could not make the trip because he had training.  We finished dinner and headed home.  On the way home it hit me…they have an extra ticket to the Cardinals game.  Dare I call her and ask if I could tag along?  The idea seemed so intrusive and really not like me.  I am still a little embarrassed that I invited myself along like I did.  But I called her and said, “Hey, what if I went with you?  I could go the game and use the extra ticket Friday, do my own thing Saturday while you are at the wedding, and then we leave Sunday.”  She said yes.  I was so excited!  The next day I got the okay to take off that Friday and booked a seat on the same flight as my friend.  I was set.

            About a week later we left for St. Louis.  We had a funny conversation on the fight there about how few red articles of clothing we owned; I am an Auburn girl who just does not own very much red.  We landed in St. Louis, went for a quick ride on the MetroLink and then walked for a couple of blocks to the hotel.  Once all of her friends made it to the hotel we went out for a bite and then headed to the stadium.  We were staying about two blocks from the stadium so we were able to walk.  I have said before that one of the first things I like about the Cardinals was their stadium, and that was just after seeing it on TV.  In person it is even better.  All of the seats are bright Cardinal red.  They contrast very well with the vibrant green grass.  The exterior and some of the interior is red brick.  The entire facility has a very bold look to it.  The Gateway Arch towers over centerfield and its image is cut into the grass across the outfield.  That night the Cardinals beat the Brewers 8-0.  Adam Wainwright pitched a complete game and only allowed two hits. 

            The next day they headed to the wedding and I was on my own to do some sight-seeing.  I visited the St. Louis Zoo.  I love zoos, always have; and St. Louis has a huge zoo.  After the zoo I went back to the hotel to figure out my next move and saw that the Cardinals had just started their game.  So I went back to the stadium.  I bought a standing room only ticket and after wandering around for a bit I found a seat that no one else appeared to be using.  I figured worse case scenario someone would tell me it was their seat and I would just find another one; but no one ever came to claim the seat.  That day the Cardinals beat the Brewers 5-4 in eleven innings.



            The next day we visited the Gateway Arch before heading home.  The Arch is so much bigger than you think it is.  Our hotel was right in front of it, but when we started walking toward it we realized we were not as close as we thought, meaning the Arch was just that much bigger.  The museum, gift shop and entrance to the ride into the Arch are all underground, so the area outside is just a big park, the Mississippi River and the Arch.  It is very spacious and nice.  We rode the elevator into the top of the Arch, which is 630 feet high.  The view was incredible, especially the view of the stadium.  After touring the Arch we headed back to the airport to go home.  It was a great weekend and a great trip.        





View of Busch Stadium from the Gateway Arch