St. Louis
Our first destination in Missouri was the city of St. Louis, located right after crossing the border. Here, we planned to stay overnight and explore the city a bit more, but coincidentally, all the reasonably priced hotels in the city were fully booked because the St. Louis Blues had just won the Stanley Cup, the NHL championship. Apparently, there was going to be a championship celebration or parade, as there were already a lot of people with folding chairs lining the streets in the middle of the day. We spent the day wandering around the city, and we weren’t sure what or when the event was going to take place by the time we left.
A notable landmark in the city is the Gateway Arch, designed by Finnish-American architect Eero Saarinen. This massive arch is almost 200 meters tall, and there’s an opportunity to go inside and up to see the views from the top of the arch. The arch is very impressive and stands out in the skyline of the city.
Near downtown is also the Busch Stadium baseball stadium. We admired this from the outside onlyโit would be amazing to attend a baseball game there sometime, as Americans are known for their event organization.
Kiener Plaza Park is a beautiful square/park area in the city center. The plaza features several fountains, where children seemed to enjoy playing, and the atmosphere was very charming overall. The plaza offers a magnificent view towards the old courthouse, with the Gateway Arch rising behind it.
Detour from the Route
In the state of Missouri, Historic Route 66 roughly follows Interstate 44. However, at this point, we decided to take a detour from the actual Route 66 route and head towards the city of Columbia, a couple of hours away between St. Louis and Kansas City. Here, we had spotted a nature reserve where we wanted to go hiking.
In Columbia, we stayed at the Extended Stay America – Columbia – Stadium Blvd, which was also a suitable accommodation.
The nature reserve we headed to was Rock Bridge Memorial State Park. This is a geological preserve that serves as a public recreation area.
First, we stopped at the park’s information center, which is always recommended when visiting nature parks. They provide good advice and tips on what to see in the area.
We hiked the Sinkhole Trail, which was 2.3 kilometers long, and also did the 1-kilometer Devil’s Icebox Trail. The trails are very lush and wooded, but the paths and stairs were well-maintained and easy to follow.
On the trails, you can admire caves, but beware that they have slippery rocks and waterโwe did have a shoe mishap and got completely soaked ๐ Both trails were beautiful and highly recommended. From Columbia, we then headed south back towards Route 66.
โI love ur anusโ
Once back on the Route 66 route, our next stop was a peculiar place. Uranus Missouri Towne Center is a place you don’t want to miss! It’s an attraction along Route 66 that provides an experience you won’t easily forget. The highlight of Uranus is the Uranus Fudge Factory & General Store, which offers a wide selection of candies and fun souvenirs.
The place is very humorous, full of puns and bold humor in both the products and the staff, which brings a smile to your face. You could often hear shouts from the store (whenever someone made a purchase), โI love Uranus,โ which might sound more like โI love ur anus.โ
However, Uranus is not just a candy storeโthere are other attractions and activities that offer entertainment for visitors. You can check out the “Uranus Axehole,” where you can test your skills by throwing axes at targets. Additionally, Uranus features the “Uranus Sideshow Museum,” showcasing a collection of odd and peculiar objects. You can see strange animals, bizarre art projects, and other interesting exhibits.
Simply walking around and marveling at the place’s humor is an activity in itself.
From Uranus, we continued our journey towards the border of Missouri and Kansas in Joplin, where we stayed at the Microtel Inn & Suites by Wyndham Joplin hotel. In the U.S., there are many such clean, inexpensive accommodations on the outskirts of small towns/villages that are perfect for road trippers.
We usually stopped somewhere in the evening to eat, where we could access Wi-Fi and book our accommodation. This turned out to be a handy and effective way to plan our stays. This way, accommodations were always conveniently located, and we never ended up without a place to stay ๐
Now we were already at the border of Missouri state, and next up, the journey continues through Kansas towards Oklahoma.
