DAY 7 : ST. LOUIS ARCH AND THE CAPITAL OF COUNTRY MUSIC

{ Tuesday, 21 July 2009 }

Last night when we passed through St. Louis and saw the Arch all lit up dad asked if visiting it was on the agenda. It really wasn't but dad kept talking about it so we included it... and we are so glad we did! St. Louis, established in 1746, is an old port city. They created the Arch as a testament to President Thomas Jefferson, an architect himself whose visions of expanding westward allowed the US to grow exponentially with the Louisana Purchase. Eero Saarinen, who designed the winning monument, desired to create one that would encapsulate Jefferson's forward-thinking and his creation did just that. The Arch is truly a beautiful monument that aptly depicts the idea of it being "The Gateway to the West." But before I post about the Arch, dear readers, you need to view these next shots of the keikis having fun on the Koa Kampground we stayed last night in Eureka, Missouri. It was lovely.

GRANDMA'S LITTLE HELPERS

ONLY THE KIDS WOULD FIND THIS SO FASCINATING

GUESS WHERE WE ARE?!

WE'RE ON ANOTHER TRAIN... CHOO CHOO!

IS HE HANDSOME OR WHAT?

JUST ONE REASON WHY I LOVE MY LITTLE HAM

THIS IS WHAT WE DO ALL DAY: PLAY!

TIME TO EAT. AGAIN.

Despite the rain and gray weather all the tourists in the museum underneath the Arch were happy. Gian and Maile were bit trepidacious with the 630 feet elevator/tram ride to the top but Kale'a loved it. When the elevator doors opened and we entered into the small atrium the keikis oohed and aahed when they peered through the windows and discovered the boats and barges coming and going on the grand Mississippi River. Although the north side windows displayed the historic courthouse and city views, the kiddies were more impressed with the rushing river.

THE ARCH
{ photo by brandon }

WE MADE IT!

YOU'VE NOW ENTERED THE TWILIGHT ZONE

THEY THOUGHT OF THE CHILDREN WHEN THEY BUILT THE VIEW STATION

THE VIEW OF JEFFERSON'S COURTHOUSE

THE MIGHTY MISSISSIPPI

After heading back down the Arch and into the open air dad asked if we were happy to have stopped here. "Yes," we unanimously agreed.

THE ELEVATOR/TRAM IS INTERESTING

Getting back into the RV Brandon drove from Missouri and into Kentucky. Despite the continual rain we saw such beautiful country with green grass and even greener trees, so different from the browns we see in Southern California. When we stop for gas the people are so friendly that I can see how the term "southern hospitality" came to be. I took over driving in the late afternoon and we entered Tennessee soon after. And goodness, what great music this state has. Atelei and I blasted the radio so loud that Kale'a had to *politely* ask us to turn the music down because he couldn't hear WordWorld. We listened to country ballads, country gospel, country-you-name-it { though we prefer the ballads and I especially enjoyed the jazz } until we reached our destination. Too bad we can't visit the Grand Ole Opry, especially since Carrie Underwood will be performing this weekend. Oh well, next time, no?

Tomorrow is a long traveling day as we gear up to head through the Smoky and Appalachian Mountains and into our country's capital city. Everyone is excited to see those national landmarks and the men with whom God used to form our nation.

DJ G