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Published: August 31st 2011
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St. Louis, Missouri
8/21/11 to 8/22/11
Independence, Missouri
8/22/11 I was told the 323 mile drive from Nashville to St. Louis was pretty, and I have to concur. It was a different kind of pretty, though. There were a lot of what appeared to be small, rustic farms. When I was little, I use to do a lot of puzzles, and the scenery reminded me of those puzzles. There were rusty, tin sheds and weathered silos, alongside of dilapidated, wood-slatted barns and crooked weather vanes. I definitely felt like I was driving through the country.
I arrived in St. Louis at 4:05, checked into my room, and was at the Anheuser-Busch beer tour by 4:30. I was pretty proud of this achievement, as I received two free beers at the end of the tour AND learned a lot about beer brewing, all within my first hour in the city.
I learned what makes Budweiser special is that it is aged for 30 days with beechwood. I also learned they use the same yeast culture they originally used in 1876. Something inside me thinks there is something really gross and wrong about this, but I just kept that to
myself. According to the guide, it is the yeast that makes a Bud taste like a Bud. The other 4 ingredients (hops, rice, water and barley) are pretty much found in every other beer.
The tour was pretty interesting, and I loved the smell at each process. (Well…minus the Clydesdale horse stables.) This particular plant produces over 1300 beers per minute. That’s a lot of beer. They even stayed open during prohibition, but they produced random products, like yeast and soda pop. I was impressed that Anheuser-Busch has made a commitment to be as green as possible, using renewable energy and recycling 99% of their waste. To celebrate their commitment to the environment, I ended my tour at the hospitality lounge, and toasted Anheuser-Busch with a Shocktop pumpkin wheat followed by a Landshark.
I considered going to a Cardinals game while I was in town, as my hotel was right by the stadium, but instead I decided to check out the nightlife. The people in St. Louis were super nice and I had some great conversations about the Gateway City. I ended up winning a round of drag queen bingo and helping a local ring in his 21st
birthday.
Before heading out of St. Louis, I had to go see the famous St. Louis Arch. I really knew nothing about the Arch, but learned it was built as a monument to Thomas Jefferson and westward expansion. It seemed only fitting for me to don my “Greetings from California” shirt to fully embrace the spirit of westward expansionism. As random as the 630 foot arch is, it is pretty cool. I rode to the top by climbing in this weird, egg-shaped pod along with four other people. Throughout the four-minute ride, I felt a real connection to Mork from Ork. The engineering was pretty impressive, as the width of the arch tapers significantly and 8 pods operate simultaneously. I didn’t stay at the top of the arch very long, as the viewing windows were pretty small, but hey… I got to see where the Rams play.
On my way out of Missouri, I headed through Independence so I could visit yet another presidential library. I really am a dork. Unfortunately, the 254 mile drive had me arriving in Independence at 4:30… only 30 minutes to run through the life of President Truman. I’ll be honest… I was
only visiting this library to check it off my list. Chances are I will never come through these parts again, and while I woulda loved to spend more time here, that’s not how it worked out. What I enjoyed seeing was the stuff I teach about: Truman’s diary entries about using the atomic bomb, the Mcarthyism telegrams, his speeches about the fair deal. Truth is, Truman was not a very popular president when he stepped out of office, but I enjoyed this glimpse at his life and home town. I think the library did a pretty good job at presenting his life and presidency. While I am not sure if I’ll return to these parts, I’m really glad I experienced Missouri and the spirit of St. Louis.
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