She was a Union Miners Activist and Child Labour activist in the 1930's. At the time these miners lost their lives this was the only place they were allowed to be buried. So it was said when Mother Jones passed she requested to be buried with the men she fought for. Very humbling, and we felt we needed to pay our respects since we were in the area, and that is another milestone in history. After leaving Mount Olive we were not far from St. Louis so we decided to just keep on going through. We did stop briefly at the Rabbit Ranch which I thought meant they raised rabbits like in Roger and Me, but thankfully there were no rabbits involved. Come to find out it is actually a old garage that has been turned into a tourist information place. They are known for these freight trucks that say "Humpin to Please." 
Before we knew it we are in Missouri driving on a bridge overlooking the mighty Mississippi. St. Louis is very different compared to other cities I have been too. I would describe it as very blue collar feel, and very industrious. Everyone we met was very nice, very down to earth which is refreshing when in some major cities there is usually an air of pretentiousness. Finally make it to our hotel which was not far from downtown. You could see the Arch from their front door. Very nice, continental breakfast, free parking and close to downtown and the kicker, They have free popcorn and beverages, and happy hour!! It's the Pear Tree Inn, in case you find yourself in the area. After we checked in we decided to check out what they call "The Loop" which is suppose to be this trendy little neighborhood. It was raining pretty hard, nothing was open because it was Sunday. So Paul pulls out a brochure from his pocket he picked up in the hotel lobby. "Let's go to the casino!" he says. Neither of us are gamblers, but we are on vacation and we were going to go to Vegas, so this would be the next best thing! Apparently everyone else in St Louis had the same idea. The place was packed with people! Oh, something else we noticed, is unlike Illinois, Missouri doesn't have a smoking ban. So it seemed like everyone was smoking, which was a bit of a shock to walk into and elevator and someone had just been smoking in it. Being non-smokers this took us back for a moment. But didn't stop us from hitting the one armed bandits! All in all we lost $12.00 in an hour. That was enough for me, like I said I am not a gambler.
We made our way back to the hotel to find a restaurant, and once again found our options limited because it was a Sunday. There was one place called Max and Erma's which wasn't bad, they were the only place open that wasn't a steakhouse. Very casual atmosphere, they seem to get a lot of tourist being they are at the mecca of tourist destinations very close to the Arch.
The next day we hoped for better weather so we could get out and walk around and see the sights. First stop was Union Station, just to check it out.
(catching the train to Hogwarts)Right now it is attached to a hotel so you sort of lose the historical feel but they are trying to revitalize it with shops and such to draw people in I think. From there we kept walking until we hit the Arch. 630 feet in the air of pure stainless steel. It is a pretty amazing structure to see up close.
(Standing at the end of the Urban Rainbow) We decided to take a trip to the top. The first thing they ask you if you are claustrophobic. After seeing the "elevator" they take you to the top in I can see why. It is so tiny you are hunched down-seated. Finally at the top and you can feel it swaying in the wind. The view was amazing though, and work the can of sardines ride to the top. After that we made our way to the old courthouse just across the street. What a spectacular building. There are paintings on the ceilings, you can make your way up to the top floor but I had reached my limit for heights at that point.
I made a turn after using the washroom and found myself in a courtroom. Come to find out it was the courtroom where for the first time a slave by the name of Dred Scott sued for his freedom. He had offered to pay his owners $300.00 for his and his wife's freedom. Three times he tried and three times he was denied. Finally after being bought by someone else, they emancipated him. I recommend looking up his story, very interesting. 
(Read about Dred Scott's case)From there our adventure truly kicked off. A friend of ours told us to check this place out and it was amazing the photos don't do it justice. It's called The City Museum. The only museum where you can climb on things touch things, be loud. They have and enchanted cave where you take the spiral stairs all the way up 10 stories and take the slide down if you want. In the middle of the cave above your head is a giant pipe organ. You can barely see in front of you. Outside there was a huge structure where you can climb in industrial like treehouses. There really is no place like it. I will let the photos do the talking. We spent about four hours there, playing and taking it all in. Then we went back to the hotel for a nap..lol.
(Coils you can climb up into and take a slide down if you want)
(Paul as a human kaleidoscope)
(Come sit, let's talk.)
(Paul climbed all the way to the airplane in the sky. Much braver than me.)
(Under the sea)
(Inside the Enchanted Cave, you get an idea of how dark it acutally is)Unfortunately our trip had to come to an end. The next day on our way home we decided to do the Budweiser Brewery tour. It was 9:30am in the morning, but they didn't care. The tour was actually really interesting, the building was beautiful. They took us all the way through the beer making process, and explained the history of Budweiser. Even got to see the Clydesdale horses they have living there, and a cute dalmation pup.
At the end of the tour you got to sample the end products, all before noon! There was still one more place Paul wanted to see before we made it home, and that was the Cahokia Mounds. It is said these mounds were established in 700 A.D. and there may at one time been as many as 120 of them. Sadly the interpretive center was closed due to budget cuts, but you could still go to the top of the Monk Mound which was built to reach over 100 feet.
Some people wonder why we always got to memorials and burial grounds or why we attend museums. This is our way of connecting to the past. Paying our respects for those who got us to where we are now. To remind us, that it is not just about technology, and who has what. It's about locating ones truth.
All in all we had a fantastic time, and we wish you all the best in your own journeys. One day maybe we will follow the Mother Road all they way to California. Anything is possible.
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