I love walking around a city full of old brick buildings.
Post for June 11-14, 2021
I used to think St. Louis was just another mid-western city, like a bigger Minneapolis. I was wrong and thoroughly enjoyed the city. I ended up staying a few days on my first long break of this trip.
My reaction could also have to do with Covid. All of us missed something deeply. I missed coffee shops, libraries, and the buzz of the city. So far on this trip, I’ve saved money by eating very simply, often spreading peanut butter on a tortilla and having dried fruit for dessert. In St. Louis, I spent much more money on nice coffee.
When I lived in London, I used to tell people that the best museum in London is London, by walking around the city. The same is true of St. Louis, and many old cities. I walked a lot and saw a lot. One night, I saw a guy on dirt-bike revving his engine at a red light. I was annoyed at the nose, but when the light turned green and he did a wheelie for about a block, I was impressed. Of course, that dangerous, but there were few cars on the street. I love that quirky side of a city.
Another quirky side of St. Louis is the Mural Mile. It’s graffiti with more passion, or maybe more practice. And once a year, there’s an event on called Paint Louis. Artists get a section of the wall and paint amazing murals. Many murals get painted over, weeks or months later, but I saw some from 2018. Enough words about paintings. Here’s what it looks like.
The song today is Father and Son. It’s one of the few songs where the singer sings from 2 different viewpoints, a father and son in this case. Seeing St. Louis made me appreciate a place I underestimated, and that’s what part of the song is about.
I didn’t take many pictures of St. Louis. I enjoyed the city so much that I forgot to take many pictures. There’s no map showing a bike route today since I rested, for a few days.
Loved the video of the wall. Just like I was there with you.