Gateway to the West: St. Louis, MO
2017: Care Less. Travel More.
Decided to start out the new year with a little road trip to a neighboring city that I have always secretly admired: St. Louis, Missouri. As an impromptu birthday getaway for my mother's 48th birthday, St. Louis always seemed like the forgotten child of the midwestern cities in comparison to Chicago (one of the greatest cities in the world) that needed to be explored. Although I did not stay long, I managed to enjoy my time there and share the joy of traveling, seeing different elements of St. Louis with my mother. Needless to say, I definitely would go back and revisit St. Louis.
Road Trip Essentials.
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| Keys & Starbucks |
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Great pair of wheels & Shades.
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The Spots.
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| Views. |
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| Room Ambiance. |
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| Bathroom Art. |
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| Busch Stadium - Home of the St. Louis Cardinals, MLB Team |
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| Views. |
The Westin of St. Louis.
Leaving on a Friday night, the drive down to St. Louis was not as bad as I expected. My mother wanted to sport her new Lexus, so driving the LX was a change of pace... Granted, with living in the city of Chicago for the past couple of years, I have not driven a car in a while so driving any car at this point would have been a change of pace for myself. Down I-55S to Missouri, the drive was easy going. We tried out the CD player in the car, exercising my mother's collection of old discs, bumping to Celine Dion, (90's) Mariah Carey and Madonna.
Arriving around ten at night, we checked into the Westin of St. Louis. One thing you must know, and it is a trait I do take on from my mother, is that I enjoy being able to live in the life of luxury for the fraction of the price. For one night at the Westin of St. Louis booked via Hotwire.com at a rating of 4/5 stars, it only cost around $65 (with tax). I recommend to anyone who loves to travel but does not love to pay for the price of a room you'll only be staying in for night to explore your lodging options as much as possible. You'll never know how lucky you may be to find highly rated hotels for motel prices!
I regret immensely that I did not take many photos of room itself. To be fair though, I did not even stay that long in the room itself - just to sleep and shower in. But my oh my, the room was beautiful. The space was huge, stretching two queen size beds across the room with an office desk to do homework. What really astounds me about the room is how large the bathroom is. Most hotel bathrooms provide its guests with just a shower or bathtub with a toilet and the sink would be outside along with the rest of the living space. However at the Westin of St. Louis there was both a shower with a water falling shower head and a jacuzzi style bathtub, Jack-and-Jill sink space with ample lighting for make-up.
Another feature of my stay at the Westin of St. Louis that I absolutely enjoyed is the amount of art they showcase throughout the room and the hotel. I manage to take a couple snapshots of the artwork that caught my eye. Interesting enough though, for a bright hotel they carry a lot of dark artwork. Most of the frames display dark tones and obscure uncertainty. Although my mother was not a fan of it, after staying in that room with all the creepy art it has inspired me to go out art shopping again for my apartment.
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| The Arch. |
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| River front - Mississippi River |
The Arch.
A 630 foot stainless steel wonder that symbolizes the gateway to the land of the west - The St. Louis Arch is located right in front of the Mississippi River across from Illinois. Visitors can go up the Arch and see all of St. Louis. In a previous trip when I was a small child, I went up the Arch and it was quite interesting. Just like the the Sears Tower Skydeck, the top of the Arch is very wobbly and unstable. Unlike the Sears Tower Skydeck, the top of the Arch is very small and can only hold around ten to fifteen patrons. If you suffer from claustrophobia, I don't recommend for you to go up the Arch. The elevator holds only three riders, sitting down in a small space. But by all means, go visit the museum that is held below the Arch, especially for history buffs like myself. It is quite interesting and teaches a lot about how St. Louis the city came about in regards to the explorers of the West, Lewis and Clark.
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| Table for One. |
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| Like mother, like daughter. |
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| Views. |
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| Views. |
St. Louis Union Station (Hotel).
Second to Chicago's Union Station, St. Louis Union Station is a popular transportation hub that brings in visitors from all over. Before, this train station would act as both a location would visitors to come in and out of via trains, either Amtrak or their local St. Louis Metro, and shopping center. Now this old train station has been transformed to a hotel.
While visiting this location, the only areas that were open to the public was the hotel's lobby. The rest has been closed off for renovations. The hotel's lobby displays high ceilings with amazing architecture. With wide spaces, the lobby is used to accommodate weary traveling guests with plentiful lounge areas and a bar. With a feel of how the 1940s was in St. Louis, you are faced with a standstill experience in the lobby.
Getting a glimpse of what St. Louis Union Station used to be, it reminded me of one of America's greatest tragedies: abandoned malls. The open space, big enough to be a mall itself shadowed its old homes of retail existence. Its quite sad that this location was not being used to its full potential but it is only assumed that if the area is under construction something better must be built. Cannot wait to come back in the future and see what they have done with the space.
Snapshots of a Tourist.
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| Caffeine run at Catalyst Coffee Bar. |
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| Getting some homework done. |
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| St. Louis treat: Gooey Butter Cake |
excited you started this & look forward to keeping up with Zsa Zsa :))
ReplyDeleteYou always find all the interesting places wherever you go! Jealous.
ReplyDelete- Andrey