st louis: the paris of the midwest

I guess we're closer to the weekend to come than to the one that's passed, but I went to ST. LOUIS for the first time last weekend, so please allow me to provide you with some details from my inaugural visit to the great state of Missouri.


 

For those of us not geographically inclined, let me inform you that St. Louis is located on the banks of the mighty Mississippi River. And mighty it is.

there she is. 

We rolled into town after a lovely 3.5 hour drive, completed in its entirety by Matt, in our rented Aveo.

HAHAHA. OMG look at that pose. I'll probably definitely get in trouble for posting this. 

Yes. I said Aveo.

I've never seen the man so excited to drive a car in his life. I've also never seen him consume a smoothie either. I credit that to the Aveo. I also credit the fact that we didn't bicker AT ALL the entire drive to the novelty of the Aveo.

It was smooth sailing.

So we get there and we get to our hotel which is smack dab in the middle of the arch and the St. Louis Cardinal's baseball stadium and we're like THIS IS PERFECT. Because the whole reason for the trip was that the Phillies were in St Louis, and as Phillies fans, we went to see them because the budget is a bit tight to make a trip to Philly this year.

that's our hotel. that's the arch. i got a little picture happy, being that i was a first time tourist of the city and all. 

Anyway, I purchased tickets to the Saturday game and surprised Matt with them months ago, but then my dad happened to 'know a guy' so he got us even better tickets for the Friday match-up, right behind home plate. Luckily the rich folk around us didn't razz us too much, because I've had the pleasure of witnessing Matt get into a screaming match with opposing fans in both Cincinnati and Chicago, and it puts me on edge.

i took this from our seats. pretty fancy. 

We both drank A LOT of beers at the game. Which was pretty stupid because they're really pricey, but whatever, vacation right?

Then this happened, and every time I read it I burst out laughing:

i came out of the bathroom in our hotel room and  he had mysteriously disappeared. 

On Saturday I woke up and my right eye was all stabby/scratched/red and angry, so I wore sunglasses the remainder of the weekend and drank a lot.

We went on several adventures and it was a great day:

this place is called Blondies and their food was mouthwatering. my mouth is watering just thinking about it

i was pretty obsessed with the swank level. 

brewery stop. 

in his defense, it was really really hot out. 

hog roast. no weekend is complete without pork. 

Matt got really tired of taking pictures with me and I continued to make him take them anyway because I'm documenting our life whether or not he wants to actively participate.

Our seats for the Saturday game were equally as awesome, if you ask me. But then again I did actually pay for these ones.

kyle kendrick pitched a hell of a game. here he is walking to the dugout before the game.

pretty city.

ACTION!

another picture! from our seats!

we were right next to the dugout.

wasted gatorade! good game!

Immediately after the game I went to bed because my eye was throbbing and tears were steaming down my face uncontrollably, like a deranged person.

On Sunday morning my poor eyeball wasn't improved, but we were going home that day and we still hadn't been up in the arch, so I powered through it and we went.

It was rad, obviously.

me and the arch!

UP!

UP!

AND!

AWAY!

And then we went to the only place that could have topped brunch the day before, a brewery with shaded outdoor seating.

I HIGHLY recommend Square One Brewery. 

Here I discovered my new favorite beer ever, a Maple Stout. God damn that thing was good. I could have drank an entire growler-ful, but it was only 9:30am and Matt probably would have gotten grumpy about it, wonky eye or not.

make sure you order biscuits and gravy if you go. you won't regret it.  

And then I fashioned myself an eye patch to block out the light of the piercing sun and we rode off into the horizon, leaving St. Louis and the mighty Mississipp behind.

But we'll be back, because St. Louis was badass, even if I only saw it with one eye.