North America,  Travel,  U.S.

Moving across the United States by car (5) – St. Louis, Missouri

February 26, 2023 /

Driving from Kansas City to St. Louis, the road detoured through a small German town called Hermann, located on the Missouri River. Most of the residents here are of German descent, and the German architecture is beautiful.

When I arrived in St. Louis, I passed an outdoor Laumerier Architecture Park, which is similar to the architecture park in Hakone, Japan, but much smaller in scale.

After seeing various treasures of Chinese art in the art museum in Kansas City, I saw Chinese Jingdezhen porcelain, Tang Sancai, bronze ware and other works of art in the art museum in St. Louis. Also saw a Picasso painting. There are also many exhibitions of Inca and Mayan cultural relics in Central America, aboriginal people in Oceania, and Egyptian pharaoh mummies. Many small countries have never even heard of their names. The more I travel, the less I know. The world is too big, and there are too many countries that I have never been to.

I went to the St. Louis History Museum on Saturday and learned that this is a transportation hub in the Midwest of the United States. It was established by two French explorers in the 18th century, so there are many traces of French colonization. The third Olympic Games/The first Olympic Games held in the United States was held in St. Louis in 1904. It was originally to be held in Chicago, but because it was convenient to be held in conjunction with the World's Fair held in St. Louis that year, it was changed to st. louis. There is also a Coloring STL "coloring for St. Louis" activity in the History Museum. No matter adults or children, you can use marker pens of various colors to paint different buildings in St. Louis. The great American writer Mark Twain was also from Missouri, and his former residence was in Hannibal, a small town near St. Louis.

St. Louis Cathedral is magnificent, with exquisite interior decoration and frescoes. City Foundry STL Market is a leisure and eating place in a modern market converted from an old factory. There are various small shops, small restaurants, bars, etc. It feels that many cities have such a fashionable place converted from an old factory, similar to many cities in China. food street. The houses near Lafayette Square are mostly Victorian buildings in the 19th century, with bright colors and beautiful. There were not many people in the City Sculpture Park, but there was a serious traffic jam nearby, and there were many police cars. Later, it was discovered that there was a football match at a nearby venue at night, and many people went to watch the match.

The St. Louis Gateway Arch is a monumental building known as the "Gateway to the American West". It is the tallest arched building in the world, taller than the Washington Monument and the Statue of Liberty. In the evening, I met a Chinese teacher who I met at a foreign language teaching conference in Denver six years ago. I am very grateful to her for allowing me to stay at her house for one night, and then set off for Chicago the next day. I haven't seen her for too many years. In her impression, I still have long hair. It feels like it's a matter of a previous life. The next morning, I went to The Awakening, a statue nearby, which was a bit interesting. After passing by Washington University-St. Louis, the buildings on the campus are quite beautiful.

The last stop is the Cahokia Mounds Historic Site, which is very close to St. Louis, but it is actually in Illinois. This is the site of the Mississippi civilization of the ancient Indians and a world cultural heritage.

I finally arrived in Chicago safely on Sunday afternoon, ending a nearly two-week self-driving moving trip with a total of 4,500 kilometers. It feels like driving a long distance is like upgrading to fight monsters. Before driving for half an hour, I would feel sleepy, but I didn’t expect to drive all the way down. The experience value has increased greatly, and I feel that it is basically no problem to drive anywhere, and I admire myself. When driving into Chicago and seeing the landmark buildings in the city center from a distance on the highway, I suddenly felt an indescribable feeling. Although I just came here for a few days a year and a half ago, it was the first time I drove here. Returning to the same house I lived in when I moved to Chicago 12 years ago, just after graduation, the feeling is even more complicated, and I feel that time has passed too fast. Although I have lived here for four years, I have been away for too long, and I still need to slowly adapt for a while, looking forward to a new chapter.

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