Today was very, very fun! Had a leisurely morning in Indianapolis, drove 3 hours or so to St. Louis, stopping at Greenville College on the way (where Jars of Clay met and formed). Doug bought us tram tickets to go the top of the arch in St. Louis, and when we arrived, we discovered a statue commemorating the spot where Lewis and Clark returned from their journey to the Northwest.
The arch was way cooler than I expected; there’s a museum underneath it, celebrating the expansion to the west through St. Louis after the Louisiana purchase.
My first view out the top was this, peering out a tiny window west toward downtown:
Then, we took our first look at Busch Stadium:
The view down was really intriguing. Since the arch is a sort of inverted triangle, you’re actually kinda hanging over…nothing. This picture was the best I could get:
Got a little bit of an education today. The infamous Dred Scott decision began in this courtroom, before it went all the way to the Supreme Court. They decided on March 6, 1857, that African Americans had no rights whatsoever. Driving through downtown, I caught this shot out the window of the car:
We got to the stadium in plenty of time. It opened just over a year ago, and in their first season in the new park, the Cardinals won the World Series. It’s a storied franchise with 10 world championships beginning in 1926. We loved Cincinnati’s park last night, but we all thought this was even better. More of a classic, brick look to it. Here’s an outside shot with a statue of Stan “The Man” Musial, one of the Cardinal’s Hall of Famers:
Doug had us in the lap of luxury with club seats again. This was the only place where Busch Stadium was worse than Great American Park last night. None of us thought the club area was as good:
As for watching the game…it was as close to perfection as it gets. Great weather, outstanding seats, beautiful sight lines. Look for both the arch and the courthouse out past the outfield. Barry didn’t hit one out, but the Giants won 4-3 in a very good game.
We’re halfway through the trip, and tomorrow is a long, long day. We’re in Springfield Illinois tonight, heading all the way to Detroit tomorrow. Take a look at my Flickr page for even more pictures.
you have a very good eye for photography!