We started at the zoo on Friday afternoon. I will again not bore you with pictures of the animals, except this one of a headless penguin. No, he's not really headless, but from this angle he looks it and the girls found it hilarious. The penguins are one of the main reasons we like this zoo.
The other main reason we love this zoo--polar bears and grizzlies. This polar bear was active, and it was neat to see.
Macy loooovvves snakes--weird, I know. This enormous python was moving around, and then literally starting moving towards and watching Macy. She got down right in front of him, and he crawled right up next to her, little tongue slithering around. It was pretty cool. We hoped the glass didn't disappear ala Harry Potter. FYI--Macy told me earlier this week she wanted to be a vet.
Then Kaylin found this little snake, no idea what kind it was, but she started playing with it and it was following her around with her hand. Cute!
We checked into our hotel, and discovered the worldwide annual Build-a-Bear manager's conference was being held in our hotel. You know how much my girls love Build-a-Bear. I was worried the incessant asking "When can we go to Build-a-Bear?" would start, but it never did.
We headed out to the Hard Rock Cafe, a first for the girls. Those of you who know me know I am obsessed with seeing how many Hard Rock's I can eat in. This brought me to 15. The food is okay, overpriced, and an obvious tourist trap, but I love it anyway. I'm done buying overpriced merchandise from each one, thankfully. We ended up eating in the bar, which sounds a lot worse than it really was. They were closing for a private party, but there was room at a bar that overlooked the restaurant and other people like us were eating there. Macy counted 10 guitars and 102 pictures on the walls.
After a swim and a restless night rest (Kaylin was a little sick) this was the view from our hotel in the morning. We can see people already arriving at the Arch, so we begin prepping the girls that we might not be going up.
As we're leaving the hotel, Bobby's sister calls and says that Barack Obama is in St. Louis. At the Arch. Yikes. We keep walking and end up in what they estimated to be 100,000 people--largest rally ever on record for a political candidate.
We aren't interested in trying to get into the rally (you can imagine the line!) and after several conversations, we find out the Arch itself is still open, and we head the way we were instructed. It was a long walk, but worth it. Bobby had a nice conversation with a Secret Service Agent.
If you've ever tried to take pictures at the Arch, it's a tad difficult due to the height. The sun was in the wrong place too, making it hard also. To get the following two shots, I was laying on the ground. In front of 100,000 people. I like the artistic nature of them--the girls are back lit, and you can see their shadows on the wall. Other pictures I got of them just look like they are standing in front of a silver wall.
I liked this one of Kaylin--the reflection in the water is cool.
We go through all the security checkpoints, and find out we can get right on a tram to the top. So much for the notorious long lines! I think we can thank Obama for that. Into our little egg we go.
I'm a little claustrophobic--I wasn't sure how I'd do. But it was very manageable. They are small; Bobby said it was a tight fit. It was a smooth ride to the top, and took about 5 minutes. The girls held on to one of us with a death grip.
Views from the top...the new Busch stadium.
Kaylin checking out the Mississippi River.
We had a pretty neat view of the rally. The organizers arranged it so the people were in the shape of a dove. If you look, you can see the outline and shape. There weren't 100,000 people here yet, but I would guess 20-30,000 at this point in the dove area and walking across the lawn, but you know my math skills.
The ride down was faster. I snapped this picture of the Secret Service right behind where Obama would speak in an hour. After I took a few more steps, I could see even more Men in Black--probably 30 or so. Jay Nixon was speaking,and the girls were impressed with the echo of the sound system.
Final shot of the rally from the ground.
We then maneuvered through closed streets and people to our car and headed to Bobby's dad's and grandmother's for scooter rides and more swimming.
Regardless of your political views, today was pretty neat. To see the enthusiasm and energy for a presidential candidate--again, regardless of your affiliation--is an uplifting thing for a country where we have low voter turnout. I really wished we could have heard him speak, but it was going to be a while and we needed to get on the road. To be a part of a historic rally was special.
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