St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis - Gateway to the West
In 1764 a group of French merchants decided to settle at the confluence of Missouri & Mississippi Rivers to establish a fur trading post. The confluence was also one of the few banks that never flooded which made it an ideal place to settle down. The fur trade prospered and even King Louis IX of France extended his support when the merchants decided to construct a village. As a mark of respect to the king, the village was named St Louis..
Grafton Ferry carries passengers from St. Charles, Mo., to Grafton. The Illinois side of the landing is located near the Grafton Lighthouse and public boat ramp off Market Street.
Fine Dining : St. Louis is fast getting recognized as an essential Midwest culinary destination, offering a food and dining scene impressive in its caliber, expansive in its diversity, and uncommon in its breadth. Some of the famous joints I visited are Pappy’s Smokehouse & Ted Drewes Frozen Custard.
Gateway Arch : It is a 630-foot-tall (192 m) monument in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Clad in stainless steel and built in the form of a weighted catenary arch, it is the world’s tallest arch and Missouri’s tallest accessible building. Built as a monument to the westward expansion of the United States and officially dedicated to “the American people”, the Arch, commonly referred to as “The Gateway to the West”, is a National Historic Landmark in Gateway Arch National Park and has become an internationally recognized symbol of St. Louis, as well as a popular tourist destination. There is also a tram car ride to the top of the Arch. But a defining feature of the ride is the series of clicks visitors hear as they ride to the top. The clicks are the cars rotating along the track. The rotation allows the cars (and visitors inside) to remain level the entire way to the top.
Anheuser-Busch Brewery : It is the world’s largest brewing company which owns multiple global brands, notably Budweiser, Michelob, Stella Artois, and Beck’s. The 142 acres property includes 189 buildings. Some of the most striking are red brick Romanesque architecture with crenelated towers and elaborate ornamentation. The brewery can produce 5.6 million cans, 3 million bottles and 10,000 kegs of beer every day or 11 billion bottles of beer every year. The brewery has daily tours which takes you more in-depth and behind the scenes details of the brewing process, storage, quality testing, bottling & packaging and providing you with sample beers throughout the journey.
Special thanks to my friend Praveen & his family for inviting me to St. Louis and welcoming me to their beautiful home. It has been a wonderful & memorable trip filled with joy and love.
