Meet Me in St. Louis

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Ahhh ... there is nothing like a road trip! Seriously, I don't know what it is about driving, but it is one of the most relaxing things things for me (unless I'm driving in Chicago during rush hour). I'm a "Set-It-And-Forget-It" driver. Cruise control is my friend and allows me to really focus on the road and my thoughts rather than my speed. Thursday afternoon, I got in the car and headed south.

I would never choose to live in Illinois again, but I must admit it really is beautiful in its own way. Sure, there are a lot of corn and soybean fields to drive through, but they are dotted with wind farms and water towers. And where else could I get this close to Normal??

A little over 5 hours on the road and I pulled up in front of Sujomi and her Handsome Husband's home where I was greeted by their youngest Musketeer who exclaimed "I think it's HER!" I would continue to be known as "HER" for the remainder of my stay :)

In case you are wondering, Sujomi was the greatest influence in my decision to attempt a Project 365 Blog. I've been following her Project 365 Blog for quite some time. I even "stole" her posting format when I started mine (Imitation is the most sincere form of flattery, right?? Right??) It was wonderful to finally have the opportunity to meet Sujomi and her family in person.

Being that she and her Handsome Husband are avid photographers, it should be no surprise that the visit was filled with photo-ops. I've included a few here and will likely be using more of them over at Dana Does Digital.

Thursday night was spent catching up and getting to know each other, but Friday morning we went here:

I had never been to the Arch, but have been fascinated with it's presence and architecture for as long as I can remember. We arrived early and purchased our tickets for the ride to the top. First stop - door #1 where we were shown a brief video on the history of the Arch.

Once the doors opened, we entered our pod - a cramped little pea-shaped orb with 5 seats - for the ride to the top.

The view from the top was truly spectacular. It was a sunny, clear day that allowed for amazing visibility. If I didn't know better, I'd say that you can actually see the curve of the earth from that vantage point ... at least it looked that way in some of my photos!

This was the view looking east ...

... and the view looking west ...

... and one looking straight down at the shadow of the arch ...

After finishing up our visit we headed across the street to St. Louis' Old Courthouse where, in 1857, the Dred Scott decision was made. Amazing building with phenomenal history.

After touring the courthouse, we were all getting a bit hungry and cranky, so we headed to the Lafayette Fire Company #1 for lunch. With happy bellies, we headed back to the homestead to meet up with Handsome Husband for round 2 of food and picture taking.

After a wonderful sushi dinner at Nobu's and frozen custard treats at Ted Drewes (a Route 66 icon) it was off for more photos! There was a stop at the Turtle Playground ...

... a drive by the world's biggest (I'm still not sure if they were pulling my leg on this one) Amoco sign ...

... and many architectural treats, including some that are now abandoned, but none-the-less interesting ...

It was a long, but exceptionally fun day with great hosts and many wonderful memories!

Thanks again Sujomi and Handsome Husband for your hospitality! And tell the Three Musketeers "HER" said "Hello!"

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