missouri

I guess a lot has happened since last Wednesday…but we just haven’t made the time for blog updating! I’m hoping not to write too much to bore with details, but we’ll just see what happens.

Still in Des Moines, IA, Thursday morning we got up to go check out the leaky windshield on the van (which Guy had JUST replaced), and luckily (or should I say hopefully), it was an easy and free fix. We then went to Target to purchase a few items. I went to take out my wallet, at which time I discovered I was missing my check card and driver’s license. I couldn’t believe it! With all of the lists I had made and times I checked my bags, I forgot two of the most important items for the trip. Of course I panicked, felt stupid, etc., but to make a long story short, I discovered it was at my parent’s house (thank God), and they offered to mail it to me at my next destination.

After spending some time with Guy's uncle Jeff, that afternoon we started on our way towards St. Louis, MO. During this time I’m pretty sure the walls of the van were closing in on us (read about it in the book), but somehow we managed to stay alive until dusk, at which time we decided to pull over for the night to do some stealth camping in Nauvoo, IA. And yes, for our first night of pulling this off, we went down by the river. How appropriate. I had my first "wilderness bathroom experience," which I successfully pulled off. I woke up in the night a bit chilly (it got down to about 34 degrees!), but we made it through the night without any knocks on the window. The biggest “disaster” of the evening included me managing to drop my cell phone into the depths of the van between the exterior and interior paneling via a cup holder. After several scrapes, burns, and tools pulled out, it was finally retrieved. I think Guy is beginning to think I’m a walking accident (which, to those who know me, its kind of true.)

Friday morning Guy woke up all excited to explore the quaint little town of Nauvoo. He couldn’t wait to see what all the little tiny buildings dotted around the city were all about, since we couldn’t see clearly the night before. As we headed to the first building, Guy noticed they were starting a tour, and so we joined.  The little brick building included a man talking about the history of making bricks (how appropriate). As he spoke, the subject matter slowly began to morph into the Mormon faith, and his testimony. I think we both realized at the same time that the cute little buildings were part of an entire Mormon village. After we were asked where we had taken our "Missions", we decided to skip town and keep moving south.

Hannibal was the next town we stopped in that day, which is the hometown of author Mark Twain, and the setting which he draws upon for his books Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. It was a lovely little town, but thought it was a little over the top that absolutely everything was related to Mark Twain: restaurants, hotels, riverboats, even Tom Sawyer’s fence that you could write on for $10. We took a trip up to "Lover’s Leap", (you know, one of the those cliffs where couples who for one reason or another aren’t allowed to be together so suicide is the better option than not being together). A certain gentleman friend of mine got a bit upset when I decided to demonstrate what a flying leap might look like off the cliff. His response: “I told your mom I wouldn’t let anything happen to you!” Well, needless to say, I survived and lived to tell the story.

It was quite refreshing for me to end the day in St. Louis, Missouri, where we were going to be staying with my cousin Katie and her boyfriend Mark. I admittedly didn’t know a whole lot about St. Louis, but it turned out to be a beautiful city with lots of pretty brick buildings, dogwood trees in full bloom, and rich with history and culture. It felt as if we had fallen right onto summer’s doorstep. Katie and Mark had the most adorable house and were gracious to let us stay with them. They took us to dinner in the Soulard neighborhood, where we enjoyed some delicious St. Louis style pizza and great conversation outside on the patio.

Saturday morning we said goodbye to Katie and Mark, and went to pick up my forgotten cards at the downtown post office that my parents mailed to me. We both took our turns of feeling pretty sick that day, but managed to walk a little downtown, shoot some photos of the Gateway Arch and just enjoy the beautiful weather. I was a bit disappointed we didn’t go for a ride up the Arch, but due to the wait, we decided to skip it and get back on the road.

We pulled into a campsite just west of St. Louis, where we were able to cook some dinner, do some laundry and just relax. It was a gorgeous night and nice to be able to just be outside and enjoy it. Sunday we got a late start driving west, (attempting to get close to Oklahoma), where we secured a campsite in Cathage, MO. We had dinner at a local diner where the locals proceeded to peer at us with uncertain looks and the portions were GIGANTIC! Everything was smothered in sauces and gravy, and I got over 3 oversized filets of fried catfish.  I think its safe to say we are in southern territory.

As we were settling in for the night last night at our campsite, Guy decided to make one final trip to the restroom. It seemed like only seconds passed and I heard the van door open again.  “There is a goose by the men’s bathroom, and its scaring me,” he said.  Sure enough, I look down at the bathroom, and there is a large white goose honking loudly and appearing to be guarding the men’s bathroom door. My mother has told me stories of how I used to always love the geese when I was little and tried to pet them even if they hissed at me, so what was there to be afraid of now? I walked down to the bathroom with him, and after a closer look, decided maybe it was best if I just escorted him to the women’s bathroom. “What if we get trapped in here?” he questioned. There was no way I would let a goose hold me hostage in a bathroom all night. We peaked out of the door and looked, and our goose had luckily moved on, for now. Throughout the night, I heard him wildly honking, roaming the campgrounds as if he lost his baby. I felt terrible for this goose and was so worried for him! The next morning we discovered that the goose belonged to the campground owner, and it likes to be petted by men, but hisses at women. Maybe he was just hoping to be Guy’s friend, and needed some love…

Well, today are presently in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where I have spent the last few hours in a library.  I am enjoying blogging, but realizing that I need to write more often so I don't have such huge blog posts.  Either that, or just write less!  Tune in soon for more stories along route 66.