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  • Day 3

    Oompa Loompas Live Here

    June 27, 2015 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 19 °C

    80 degrees and Sunny (only nice day they've had in weeks)
    3 miles (of driving)
    3 attractions
    I pool
    1 outburst
    1 clogged toilet (and it wasn't me)
    10 floors
    3000 Calories
    1 free hug

    I...AM...SO...TIRRRED. What a great day. St. Louis is a nice city. I didn't know much about it. We saw as much as we could in one day. Whew.

    We are staying at the Residence Inn Downtown. It's a little better than average Marriott with two rooms and sleeps 6 with a kitchen. We didn't need the kitchen but we needed the sleeping space. Free buffet breakfast and best of all a shuttle to anywhere in the city. How bout' that? The location of the hotel is good anyway but to not have to find parking is awesome. So..

    Our day started at the Gateway Arch. I bought tickets ahead of time online and took tripadvisor advice to go before 10. Great idea. As we were leaving, the lines were looong. The Arch is beautiful. We took the ride to the top which was a harrowing experience in my mind. Literally, you climb through a door the size of an Ooompa Looompa into a glowing pod. Didn't you always wonder where the Oooompa went? In these pods that just fit 5 people (lap children if you dare) with headroom for an Ooompa Looompa. It is so bizarre. You take a (nerve wracking- for me) ride to the top. I was uncomfortable. You can walk around the top and look out windows...let me restate that...they were long retangular portholes to sure death. It was cool to see the city from up there but not a place you linger. You can feel movement and it's very warm. Then you travel back down at a bit higher speed which made the ride a little smoother and over much faster. Worth doing.

    We attempted to go to Grants Farm ignoring the tripadvisor warning to go early. You would not believe how many cars were in line to go there at noon. It was rediculous. It is a free farm owned by Busch and a neat looking place but we are not feeling adventurous enough to fight a crowd like that. So we headed to the park at the Botanical Gardens to have a picnic lunch. We stopped at a little grocery store and got sandwiches. After lunch, we went to the Botanical Gardens which is really pretty. A couple people in the family were not fans. I know this because, one unnamed, person related his experience by saying, "Now I know how you feel at a baseball game." Which is unfair because I like going to baseball games. I don't like watching them on tv every night of the summer or watching kid pitch baseball games which drag on for hours. It was nice to be outside. Everyone agreed.

    After a brief rest at the hotel, we called for the shuttle again to take us to The City Museum on recommendation by a few people. We had NO IDEA what we were walking into. It is indescribable. It is an art museum playground. If you've been to Honey I Shrunk the Kids at MGM, it is that on steroids. It's where the Ooompa Looompas live!! I would NOT recommend it with kids under 8 and even at that, I'd want them to be with older siblings. They will get lost. In order to stay with your kids, you will have to go through mazes and tunnels and tubes that you may or not fit into. There are 10 floors of mazes and tunnels. It is so cool and artistic. You won't believe it. We spent about 3 hours there and burned about 3000 calories (some replaced by a couple of cocktails made available on every floor to keep the parents entertained). A must see in St. Louis.

    What a great day. I am ready for bed. To Kansas City tomorrow.
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