Midwest Travels--Part I

So I flew into St. Louis on Wednesday night and after a bit of a late start Thursday--no matter--my sister Kathy and I got on the road.  We drove through downtown St. Louis to reach our highway and took a short detour so Kathy could show me the huge Cavalia tents practically at the foot of the federal building she works in.  This very popular "Cirque de Soleil" type show with horses has been held over twice in St. Louis.

Kathy and her daughter had seen the show from the front row--as a spectacular gift from her roommate--and raved about it.  Then we drove along the waterfront so I could get some pics of the St. Louis Arch, Gateway to the West.  Along the way, we saw a horse with some different colors:

This Percheron with pretty painted hooves and his carriage were awaiting some fares at the base of the Gateway Arch...

with the Mighty Mississippi River before them.  My timing seemed to be perfect as this riverboat passed under the bridge just as a pleasure boat approached.  Only my sister--a dog lover with a current total of 6 Cavalier spaniels plus one Cairn terrier--would point out there was a dog on the motorboat!

It is hard to gauge just how tall the Gateway Arch is, from a distance.

Got a better idea now?

See those tiny windows?  The view from 630 feet up is pretty incredible.  Going up inside the Arch is an adventure in itself--Kathy took me on that ride many years ago, the first time I visited St. Louis.

Lewis and Clark, the well known western explorers, captured in bronze on the banks.

Another bit of timing luck, as a train crossed my scene as I shot this stone arch bridge. Finally we turned away from these interesting scenes for many miles of other views through two states...

Endless farmlands stretching out through Illinois and Indiana...

...interspersed with forests leafing out in every shade of spring green.

These 80 foot trees were luscious to stand beneath at a roadside rest stop.  Kentucky brought some hills and rocks and wound through downtown Louisville along the Ohio River.  No pics of that, since it was my turn to drive.  Finally, long after dark, we arrived at Cousin Florence's house in Mason, Ohio and dug into the wonderful homemade chicken cacciatore she had made, while catching up with her and our mom, and talking about the next day's adventures.  Part II to follow!