Tuesday, September 27, 2016

St. Louis ~



Our trip started out with a bang.  As in bang, uh oh.  Flat tire in Indiana.  AAA to the rescue to put on the spare, then finding a shop to repair the tire and finally back on our way arriving near St. Louis a few hours later than planned.  We are thankful it was not worse.

I have no idea how this post will turn out as I really don't understand how this Blogger app works.  Anyway, here goes.

Our first stop was the Old Courthouse to purchase tickets for the Gateway Arch.  Here the dome is reflected in a modern building next door.


The Old Courthouse as seen from the top of the Arch.


The tram that took us to the top.  Each car sat five people.  The door to enter was only 4' tall.


Looking up.


Thanks to South Carolina Julia, we headed to the St. Louis Basilica.  It just takes your breath away.




Not a good picture, but here's the main alter.


The mosaics are breathtaking.



Cherubs adorned each holy water font.


From the Basilica we headed to the Botanical Gardens.  It was recommended to me, but I can't remember by whom.

The lily ponds were beautiful.


This is a Victoria water lily.  At first I though they were not real.  Some must have been four feet in diameter.  Thorns surrounded the "lip".


These appeared to be blown glass.


These little round gardens were called pincushion gardens.




A very good day in St. Louis!  By the end of the day, my dogs were doing some serious barking.
Tomorrow we are heading further west. 

I hope this post turns out okay.  It has taken me way too long and frustrated me like you would not believe!!!  I wish I could figure out how to preview it.

Thanks so much for stopping by.
Pug hugs :)
Lauren

17 comments:

Cindi said...

The post turned out great! Sorry about the flat tire but looks like once you got to St Louis it was well worth it! Loved the Basilica! THanks for sharing!
Cindi

Crow’s Foot Farm Designs said...

Beautiful pics and the post worked great! Have a great trip.

acorn hollow said...

you had a bad start but you made up for it for sure. Love the pictures I have never been there either.
Cathy

Three Sheep Studio said...

You must be having a great time !!!
Your blog post is perfect ;)
Enjoy the road ahead of you !
Rose

Saundra said...

Job well done ~ awesome photos and that was a cool picture of the reflection of the old court house. Safe travels and don't treat you 'dogs' so badly.

Angela Tucker said...

Absolutely beautiful! And yep, the post is perfect on our end. Have a wonderful time and don't forget to share! LOL

Julia said...

Your post turned out beautifully. You're more techy than me. So sorry about the flat tire but thank goodness for AAA. I have that travel insurance but here it's called CAA.

Wishing you safe travel and an enjoyable trip.
Hugs,
Julia

Earlene said...

Laurens these are beautiful pictures!!!!
We went up the arch 20+ years ago when it was over 100 degrees outside.yea that pod is a little tight!
Safe travels and enjoy!!!!!

Lori from Notforgotten Farm said...

awesome-sauce! your photos are beauty-ful! the Basilica is gorgeous, as are those lilypads ~ wow!~ but, you would never be able to get me in that little yellow thing & ride up the arch....thanks for sharing your adventure with us!
L

Jacque. said...

Yay! You did it! The photos are great...sounds like you're having a great time. Enjoy!

Julie - My Primitive Heart said...

Hi Lauren,
Hooray for you!! Great job on the post and now that you got the flat out of the way, you can enjoy the rest of your trip! Your picture of the Arch brought back so many memories as I remembered my ride up in the little pod, too! It was very windy that day and the Arch actually moved, as it was designed to!! Loved all the other photos and so happy you got to see so much!!! Enjoy your travels out west, my friend, and looking forward to connecting soon!!
Heart Hugs~
Julie

3millplainrd said...

I loved your pics, my daughter goes to college in St. Louis, I've been to all but the Basilica, and the top of the Arch as I am severely claustrophobic. But your pictures were so wonderful, they made me feel closer to her as if I was there again.

weaverpat said...

The post turned out great.
When you said you had a flat tire right off the bat, I thought about the picture of the jalopy that you had in your last post. LOL!
Glad triple A was able to save the day.

Love the St. Louis sights! Amazingly beautiful basilica.

Happy sightseeing!

Gayle said...

Hi Lauren - I told you how much we enjoyed the botanical gardens when we were in St. Louis a couple years ago - especially liked the Chihuly glass they have there. Sounds like you're off to a great start (except for the flat tire of course)

village folk art said...

Wow...Beautiful cathedral...and the gardens are breathtaking too. Looks like all is going well. Glad that blowout is behind you and now to enjoy your trip. We saw the arches but never went in-side. I love traveling the states. Looks like we have become 'stick in the mud' homebodies.

Keep safe and enjoy,
Barb

WoolenSails said...

What a beautiful place, love the gardens.

Debbie

Curtains in My Tree said...

what a good days adventures for sure. I went up in the arch back in 1966 and those pods you ride up in scared me to death,I couldn't wait to get back down on earth. Did not like going up at all. The St Louis Basilica I have not been to yet. and I know the Botanical Gardens are wonderful and haven't been there for years. I need to get back down there