The Magnolia Hotel in St. Louis has beautiful architectural details throughout… okay, sure maybe my room had a few “issues”… but the hotel itself was quite nice!

As I had mentioned, I went to CITY MUSEUM yesterday in St. Louis… and finally worked my way through editing my photos to share! I’ve heard about CITY MUSEUM for years, but really had no idea what to expect… and if I did, it wasn’t this!!!

This might be the CRAZIEST “museum” I’ve ever been to… in the best way possible!!! I LOVED it!!! Such a crazy & amazing collection of stuff… stacked, piled, installed & layered all over the multi-level building. Including stuff on the rooftop and sticking out the side. Tons of slides, ramps, spiral staircases, tubes & crazy ways to get around. Think steampunk meets jungle gym… meets flea market… meets vintage carnival… meets caverns… meets aquarium… and so much MORE!!!

The guy at the Front Desk said that if you feel lost, you’re doing great. So much fun… and yet so eclectic & wild. A definite must-see in St. Louis… but wear your gym clothes if you really want to play!!!

Better?… or was Melissa the only one who noticed that my earlier post somehow “demoted” Patrick away from being a Saint?! Too funny… I totally didn’t notice that one! My bad.

Shining in the morning sun… a colorful lime shamrock mug with a lot of wonderful crackling in the glaze. Looks like a perfect way to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day today!!!

I’ve always been intrigued by old-school glazed bricks… especially when they’ve survived in fairly good condition on old city buildings. These ones are particularly cool on a special ST. PATRICK’S DAY today!!!

Well, we’ve waited a very long time for Spring colors to start coming back… I’m tired of Winter’s grays & browns! But in this case, I had to drive all the way down to St. Louis to see some Spring flowers just starting to bloom! And I’ll take ’em… and try my best to bring some color back to Chicago too!!

Fanciful butterflies flitting around on this large sculpture at the St. Louis Library. Pretty impressive as the late afternoon sun was still illuminating a few of the butterflies… err, mariposas!

After spending time at the Gateway Arch, I had a little more time left to explore St. Louis. Admiring some of the architectural details & craftsmanship around town. Textures, patterns, reliefs, rusty metal, patina finishes & so much more!!!

I also made it to CITY MUSEUM… but that’s a whole ‘nother crazy post unto itself. Those of you who have been there, know what I mean… CRAZY!!! But in the best way possible… you’re gonna have to wait while I sift though all of those photos!

It’s pretty hard to miss… so you totally know when you’ve made it to ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI!!! The gleaming Gateway Arch National Park right along the Mississippi River. And it’s pretty cool how the angles & geometry of the arch seem to change as you walk around the park and see it from different vantage points… with a special little sunset gleam on the side!!!

A beautiful day for a road trip… blue skies… puffy white clouds… just cruisin’ through Chenoa on my way to St. Louis. Always enjoy getting my kicks on Route 66!