What We Do in the Lou - updated 7/31/15 with Superhero Sunday @ the Melting Pot - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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What We Do in the Lou - updated 7/31/15 with Superhero Sunday @ the Melting Pot
So I usually include all our little side trips and adventures we have at home (or nearby) in my trip reports, but sometimes feels that takes away from the actual trip report. So I’ve decided to create this ever evolving thread based on “what we do in the Lou” so everyone can get a little taste of us and what St. Louis has to offer.
I will try and update this first post with all the places we go so it will serve as a table of contents.
A place we all love to visit is the St. Louis Zoo. The zoo was started in 1910 and is currently located on 90 acres and home to 655 species of animals. It is open every day except Christmas and New Year’s from 9am to 5pm (closes at 3pm on select holidays as well). It is also one of the few free (yes free) zoos in the nation. We’ve been members for the past 2 years, much in thanks to my company that matches donations. And you may wonder why we’re members when the zoo is free. Well not everything is free. With our family membership we get 6 parking passes (normally $15 each visit), 48 anywhere plus passes (this gets you into things that cost extra like the sea lion show, the children’s zoo, rides on the train or carousel, feeding the stingrays), plus extra savings on food, at gift shops and special events. There is also a member’s only event in May and we’ve gone the past 2 years and is almost worth the membership alone.
Our most recent trip to the zoo was on Dylan’s 6th birthday as this is where he chose to go. All the grandparents joined us as well. The plan was to arrive at opening so we could get into the Children’s Zoo right away and not have to use any of our passes. Another perk of the zoo is most of the attractions that are an extra cost are free in the first hour of opening. We were a little late and it started pouring on our way and even into the parking lot. We sat in the car for about 10 minutes until it let up enough for us to venture out. All the grandparents were already there with their rain gear on and ready to go. So off to the Children’s Zoo we went (within the first hour still).
A little information about the Children’s Zoo – There is an inside portion and an outside area. The inside is divided into four areas: desert, forest, water, and the backyard. Outside they have play areas, a goat petting area (no feeding), a few other animals, and a small theater for shows. We went during Ottertoberfest and this is where the otters are located. But no otters were out playing. L I did learn on the website that one of the slides actually goes through their habitat – cool!
Back to what we did. The boys pet the guinea pigs for a bit. Then they looked at the birds, fish and jellyfish. They checked out the play areas – a little tree house and boat. We looked at all the animals on display – frogs, tree kangaroo, naked mole rats, meerkats. Lukas wanted to play in the sand too.
Eventually we made our way out and there was a volunteer with a snake. He was an albino cornsnake if I remember correctly. And Dylan was fascinated! I think he could have stood there the rest of the day and just watched and pet the snake.
We moved on to the alpacas where a zookeeper was feeding them. She had to hold the bucket for one otherwise the other would eat all her food!
Then we let the boys burn off some energy going down the slides, climbing, running around. I think the one thing we didn’t really do was visit the goats.
Look! A caged animal!
As we made our way out of the Children’s Zoo there is a face paint/tattoo kiosk. So I asked the boys if they wanted something. Both said yes. The girl working said the rain might make the face paint come off so they decided on airbrushed tattoos instead and both went with the Halloween options. Dylan went first as it was his birthday and he got a gargoyle which reminded me of Chernobog. Lukas chose 3 pumpkins which he said were a daddy, mommy, and baby pumpkins. J I saved 10% off the cost for being a member.
These suckers lasted forever! They still had them on the cruise over a week later!
As we made our way to the Herpetarium (snakes, turtles, alligators, etc.) we encountered a meet and greet with some animals. I was unsure how Lukas would handle this as up to now he hasn’t been too keen on seeing characters larger than him. I couldn’t have been more surprised when he wanted to visit and hug each one! This was a very good sign for our upcoming Disney Cruise vacation.
We made it to the Herpetarium, which was built in 1927 and renovated 50 years later. It used to be the reptile house and is now named, the Charles H. Hoessle Herpetarium in honor of the Zoo's Director Emeritus. Dylan loves visiting here so since it was his birthday we made it a point to come early as once we didn’t and it was closed before the zoo closed. We won’t make that mistake again! I didn’t take hardly any pictures in here as I must have taken a ton that last time we visited. The most interesting thing we saw on this visit was an anaconda that had been fed recently and you could still see where that lunch was. Speaking of lunch…I think this is when we decided to fill our growling bellies. We timed this trip right as the boys had each been sent a postcard for a free kid’s meal at one of the dining locations so it made it easy to pick where to eat. I have no idea what everyone had, but there were burgers, chicken, hot dog and fries involved I’m sure.
Can you see his lunch?
It was now time to see the sea lion show. Before visiting the snakes I had gotten us all tickets to the show with our passes. It was raining off and on today so I checked to see what would happen if the show was cancelled. If it was raining they’d still hold it, but if it started to thunder it would probably be cancelled as it scares the sea lions, but we could get our passes back. This was probably one of the last shows of the season as I see on the website it is now closed for the season. We’ve seen the show several times now, but it’s still fun to see as you just never know what the seals might do. The sea lions (not to be confused with seals) are amazing animals. This time we waited in line to see the main star a little closer as it wasn’t as crowded as it has been in the past.
He throws frisbees into the audience.
I think he was saying hello in this picture.
We asked Dylan what he wanted to do next and he wanted to see the gorillas so off we went. According to the zoo’s website the group of lowland gorillas was the first all male group to be formed and the zoo still has a bachelor pad for the gorillas. We saw 3 or 4 of them today. The area is usually crowded but today there were only a few other people watching them and 2 gorillas were up close to the viewing windows. They’d just been given some lunch or a snack and we all watched them. We have no idea what they had but it was inside a plastic soda or Gatorade bottle. Those gorillas worked hard to get everything out. Most of us were done when the biggest gorilla’s lunch came back out into his hand and then he proceeded to eat it again and then he did it again! Three times a charm so it was time to go!
We ventured to the Red Rocks area where the antelopes, giraffes, zebras, big cats, and lions are located. Nothing too exciting happened over here today, but we had fun looking at the animals.
Here you can kind of see where my Dad had his surgery (for those that know). Tomorrow he's having the skin fixed and it should be the last one!
love those giraffes
Everyone was in need of a little snack so we headed back to the middle and everyone had some ice cream.
Bellies full we headed to River’s Edge where the main attraction are the Asian elephants and of course the new baby elephants, the newest being Priya that was born on April 26, 2013. You can also find hyenas, cheetah (rarely), rhinos, and hippos here. This is one of my favorite areas and is currently under construction to add Andean and Sun bears as well as painted dogs.
saw the elusive cheetah!
baby Priya!
The zoo was now closed and we had a great day as usual even though we didn’t do some of the things we normally do, but that’s why we go back. I hope you enjoyed a glimpse into the St. Louis Zoo where Animals are First.
I'll chip in when you cover the Missouri Botanical Garden, Toodles. It's really a very fine garden still known by the locals as Shaw's Garden. Quite a wonderful story of how this magnificent pleasure and botanical research garden came to be.
The story of how the sculpted image of Mr. Shaw that's atop his tomb came about is one of my favorites. Lots to see and do for not much of an admission fee there, too, if you're interested in growing things.
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“People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.” —Winnie-the-Pooh
What a wonderful start - and you're right, this definitely deserves its own trip report.
I felt like I could go into so much more detail if I keep them separate. Thanks Cheryl for confirming that belief!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Her Dotness
I'll chip in when you cover the Missouri Botanical Garden, Toodles. It's really a very fine garden still known by the locals as Shaw's Garden. Quite a wonderful story of how this magnificent pleasure and botanical research garden came to be.
The story of how the sculpted image of Mr. Shaw that's atop his tomb came about is one of my favorites. Lots to see and do for not much of an admission fee there, too, if you're interested in growing things.
We will have a visit there. We plan to go for the Garden Glow this year! Next up will be a visit to the Butterfly House which we got into free because of our membership at the Botanical Gardens. It sounds like you could teach me some things about it too.
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We will have a visit there. We plan to go for the Garden Glow this year!
You have to go before Dec. 19th and post pictures! I know it's new and that is on our list for our trip home! Usually, the in-laws head to Tilles Park (sometimes to Our Lady of the Snows as well) but we figured we'd see what else there is to see.
Great idea! From your pictures and descriptions I believe there are quite a few new things since we last visited here. Of course that was like 13 or 14 years ago.
Will probably be a short report on the Butterfly House. It's significantly smaller than we expected. The butterflies' room is really exciting, but some of the educational displays looked like they needed some redoing. We were last there in mid-summer, so perhaps it had had lots of visitors.
You do learn lots about the various butterflies and their preferred living conditions. Very nice little gift shop, too, with great stuff for kids' gifts.
__________________
“People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.” —Winnie-the-Pooh
I'm glad you are doing this, Kelly! Now I'll have a one-stop planning thread to turn to when I finally head your way. It WILL happen, I promise you! I know there's so much I want to see and do there. The zoo looks like a really great one. I won't be too surprised if Dylan ends up working there some day!
Sounds like a really awesome day at the zoo! Great pictures!!
Despite some rain it was a really good day!
Quote:
Originally Posted by DopeyGirl
You have to go before Dec. 19th and post pictures! I know it's new and that is on our list for our trip home! Usually, the in-laws head to Tilles Park (sometimes to Our Lady of the Snows as well) but we figured we'd see what else there is to see.
We're planning on December 8th I think right now. So I'll try to do that ASAP after we go - or at least post them on facebook for you. We may go to the zoo for their Wild Lights too. Mike & I have been, but that was before the boys were around. There's a pretty big display in O'Fallon MO too. We tried to go last year but waited too long and the line to get in was crazy! So we just drove around the neighborhoods instead.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cam22
Great idea! From your pictures and descriptions I believe there are quite a few new things since we last visited here. Of course that was like 13 or 14 years ago.
I'm sure there has been. It went through quite the renovation from 2000-2012. The sea lion sound opened and where the show is held is all new. They just bought a bunch more land across the highway and their talking about making a hotel similar to AKL and possibly a skyway across the highway. All talk, but very cool talk!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Her Dotness
Will probably be a short report on the Butterfly House. It's significantly smaller than we expected. The butterflies' room is really exciting, but some of the educational displays looked like they needed some redoing. We were last there in mid-summer, so perhaps it had had lots of visitors.
You do learn lots about the various butterflies and their preferred living conditions. Very nice little gift shop, too, with great stuff for kids' gifts.
It was a quick visit, but overall enjoyed it. The bugs/insects were a hit with my boys.
Quote:
Originally Posted by lauriep
I'm glad you are doing this, Kelly! Now I'll have a one-stop planning thread to turn to when I finally head your way. It WILL happen, I promise you! I know there's so much I want to see and do there. The zoo looks like a really great one. I won't be too surprised if Dylan ends up working there some day!
Glad to be of service Laurie! You'll have trouble narrowing things down I'm thinkng. And you are right about Dylan. At the moment I bet he goes into doing something with animals. He brought a book home about dinosaurs from the school library this week - almost always an animal book. When he's a little older I want to sign him up for some of the programs the zoo offers.
Mike & I found ourselves kid free on a Friday and were trying to figure out what to do. We were going to go to the movies but there wasn’t much of anything out at the time that interested us so after some looking online I suggested the Art Museum. On Fridays the museum is open later, the special exhibits are free, and we wouldn’t have to worry about the kids being bored! Cheap date night awaits!
We grabbed a quick bite to eat at the Kayak’s Café which is nearby. I had a Chicken Caesar Salad with a Dark Chocolate Frozen Toddy (no alcohol) while Mike had one of their sandwiches and a soda. It was a nice, quiet meal.
We headed over to the Art Museum after that and arrived around 7:30pm. The current exhibits we toured were: Postwar German Art in the Collection (feature painting, sculpture, drawings, prints, and photography), A New View: Contemporary Art (The collection galleries in the East Building explore the development of postwar American art. Home to works by artists such as Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, Frank Stella, Ellsworth Kelly, Anne Truitt, Andy Warhol, Donald Judd and Richard Serra, the galleries also include more recent works by artists such as Kiki Smith, Kerry James Marshall, Leonardo Drew, Teresita Fernández, and Julie Mehretu.), and Chiura Obata: Four Paintings, Four Moods(The Museum recently received the gift of Setting Sun of Sacramento Valley, a stunning painting by the Japanese-American artist Chiura Obata (1885–1975). This monumental work from 1922 depicts a glowing sunset scene in California. The composition is largely given over to the darkening dusk sky, energized by flame-like clouds over a blue-tinged landscape. The slightly domed horizon not only emphasizes the vast distance between the viewer and the sunset, but also the immense geographical coverage of the Sacramento Valley. In recognition of the generous gift, the Museum has assembled three other major works by Obata from the 1930s. Together, they demonstrate his treatment of close and distant elements in landscapes, from the focused depiction of a single plum tree to the atmospheric and bird's-eye views of different California locales.)
exterior of the main building
No photos are allowed of the special exhibits, so sorry about that. And honestly I can’t remember a lot about them all now. I remember the Contemporary art the best and maybe I’m not into art or I just don’t get contemporary art. Some things I felt I could do myself and then just say this is how it made me feel or this is what this means and make a few hundred/thousand bucks. I enjoyed touring the halls to see the Monets and Van Goghs better. And those I did snap pictures of – never said you couldn’t and I didn’t use flash but Mike wouldn’t stand near me when I did take a picture.
This photo I took for Melissa - there's a squirrel in it!
close up of the squirrel
Soon the lights were being shut off and we were ushered out. I’m sure we could’ve spent more time just enjoying ourselves and the quiet, but it was time to go.
statue of King Louis outside the museum
old & new next to one another
new - East building
Sorry this little trip wasn’t more exciting, but when you can’t take pictures it’s hard to remember all the details. The Art Museum is free every day and closed on Mondays. It was founded in 1879 and the main building was built for the 1904 World’s Fair. The East building (connected to the main building) opened this year on June 29 and increases the public space by 30%.
Oooo, do lunch or dinner (Fri. only) sometime at Panorama, the art museum restaurant. It's fantastic with a lovely view of the fountain across from the drive to the museum. I just ate lunch but am drooling thinking about how yummy the food there is. A bit pricey but very much worth it. Reservations highly recommended unless you arrive as it opens at 11:00.
Membership gives you parking in the new underground garage just beyond the new addition for only $5 instead of $15 without. You simply get out of your car and trot over to the museum entrance in the garage, go to the info desk where you show your membership card and get your parking ticket validated. A wonderful benefit when weather is nasty or free lots are packed as has often been the case since the expansion opened.
The museum has a good Monet and some nice Picassos, a really fine collection for a modestly-sized city. There are some interesting pieces of furniture in the basement room as well as a few on third floor in the American art section.
The main gift shop to the left from the foyer off the garage has some gorgeous clothes. I got a beautiful handwoven silk scarf there not long ago, 10% off--another member benefit.
If you're a "Louie," check with your employer's HR dept. Several companies will match your half of the membership fee which may enable you to get a much higher membership level than you could otherwise.
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“People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.” —Winnie-the-Pooh
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It sounds like you could teach me some things about it too.
From your pictures and descriptions I believe there are quite a few new things since we last visited here. Of course that was like 13 or 14 years ago. 
Love the pictures! 
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