2009 Anniversary Trip - Day 2

On Sat morning we went to Cahokia Mounds, a World Heritage Site and is also a U. S. National Historic Landmark. We had originally planned to visit on Fri but were unable to do so. It is just a short drive east of St. Louis. When we arrived at the Interpretive Center and was told that the Orientation Show, City of the Sun, will start in a few minutes... Great! =)

Looking at the model of Cahokia Mounds while waiting for the show to start... The largest mound is the Monks Mound which we visited later...

The show was very informative as it gives an introduction about the Cahokia site and the people who built it.. After the show ended, we looked at the exhibits while waiting for the guided tour to start... The exhibits are really informative as they tell you about the life then in the city of Cahokia and also displays many artifacts from the period...

This is the Birdman Tablet which was found in the Monks Mound area and dates to AD 1300. The front is of a man with a bird-like mask and winged costume in a dance pose, a common bird-man symbolism of Mississippian culture. This image is adopted as the Cahokia Mounds logo.

Birger Figurine - a carved stone figurine of bauxite depicting a female kneeling behind a snake-like creature with a cat-like face. She probably represents the "earth mother" and agricultural fertility.

Monks Mound which name comes from French Trappist monks who lived near the site in the early 19th century. It rose to a height of 100 feet and is thought to have been built over a period of 300 years from AD 900 to 1200, containing about 22 million cubic feet of earth.

The Woodhenge which is a calendar that marked the seasons of Cahokia. On the 1st day of summer, fall, winter and spring, the sun lined up with specific poles in the circle. The Woodhenge shown here is the third, built about AD 1000 and was 410 feet in diameter consisting of 48 red painted poles. each spaced 27.4 feet apart around a slightly off-center pole. The poles were 15 - 20 inches in diameter and about 20 feet high.

There are different mound shapes for different purpose... This is a model of Fox Mound, which is a platform mound. Platform mounds served as elevated bases for the largest and most important buildings. At least 35 platform mounds were built throughout the Cahokia site... Fox Mound is one of a paired set of mounds (the Twin Mounds) and is 46-foot high, 125 feet wide and 160 feet long...

This is a conical mound which are burial mounds... Mississippians buried important people of Cahokia in conical mounds and their families, members of their clan, their friends and their advisors may be buried together as well. Conical mounds are generally smaller in size and lower in height than platform mounds with dimensions varying from 20 - 30 feet up to > 100 feet in diameter... Today many conical mounds are barely visible, rising just a foot or so above the landscape as farming equipment have plowed them down... This is a model of Roundtop Mound, linked with Fox Mound to form the Twin Mounds...

This is a ridgetop mound. Ridgetop mounds are marker mounds and at least 4 of the 6 ridgetop mounds may have been markers of the Cahokia city site... The shape of a ridgetop mound was linear and vary in size. This is a model of Powell Mound, the 3rd largest mound at Cahokia. It is 310 feet long, 180 feet wide and 40 feet high. This mound marked the western boundary of the city...

Soon it was time for our guided tour and we would be visiting Monks Mound... Me on the path leading to the Monks Mound...

Our guide telling us some info about the mound before we approach it...

Stairs leading up Monks Mound...

At the top of Monks Mound...

View from the top of Monks Mound...

St. Louis and the Gateway Arch seen from Monks Mound...

The Twin Mounds that is south of Monks Mound..

At the top of Monks Mound... Love the sky on that day!! =)

St. Louis in the background...

Another photo at the top of Monks Mound before we made our way down...

Photos of us with Monks Mound in the background... We had to cross a busy road with 4 lanes to take these photos... =p

The Stockade, a defensive wall which enclosed the central ceremonial precinct of Cahokia. It was built of upright logs placed in 4-5 foot deep trenches and probably stood 10-15 feet high above ground. At regular intervals were bastions, guard towers with raised platforms for warriors to protect the front of the wall...

Woodhenge - a prehistoric solar calendar. The one reconstructed here in its original location was the 3rd Woodhenge built... It is 410 feet in diameter and has 48 posts...

Us taking photo with one of the posts of the Woodhenge... See how tall it is...

A video showing the whole Woodhenge...

It was nice to see the mounds and learn about the history of the place and people... The guided tour was very informative and enabled us to know more about the Cahokian site... We did not have much time else we might have gone on the self guided trails to visit the other mounds... We only had time to visit the Woodhenge...

Website: http://www.cahokiamounds.com/

There was a slight jam on our way back to St. Louis and these photos of the Arch were taken from our car while stuck in the jam...

We headed to Pappy's Smokehouse for lunch...

The place was really crowded and there is already a long queue formed in the restaurant... All the tables are occupied and you just have to hope that by the time you order those people have finished eating and you can get a table... =p

Interesting display near the counter... Think they are some awards...

The 3 sauces - Pappy's Original, Sweet Baby Jane and Holly's Hot Sauce that are available for purchase and for consumption at your table... We both prefer Pappy's Original sauce! =)

While waiting for our food to be delivered... You leave your name when you order your food and when it is ready the servers will shout out your name... You have to signal to them where you are and they will deliver your food... You can see that the queue is still as long... =p

Our food is here!!
Left: 1/2 slab of ribs and pulled chicken with sweet potato fries and deep fried corn on the cob.
Right: 1/2 slab of ribs and pulled pork with sweet potato fries and coleslaw.

We could not wait to dig into our food! And they all tasted great!! But it was too much for us and we had to pack my fries... =p Very full after lunch...

Website: http://www.pappyssmokehouse.com/

Then we went to the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis. The Cathedral was designated a basilica by Pope John Paul II on 4 April 1997.

Close up of the door...

The interior is really awesome!! It is covered with mosaics!! The following photos are of the entrance area...

The main cathedral area... Very nice!!

Videos showing the mosaics in the main cathedral area...

More photos...

These are very nice too!

The original Kilgen pipe organ console in the basement museum...

More photos of the cathedral from the side...

The Angel of Harmony sculpture at the side garden. The sculpture was a gift from Adelaide Schlafly in memory of her late husband, Daniel Schlafly. It features a winged angel with African-American features, standing behind three children with Hispanic, Asian and European features, playing a song of peace on their instruments.

Me with the pretty flowers around the sculpture...

Website: http://www.cathedralstl.org/

Next we hurried to the Saint Louis Art Museum located at Forest Park... We had about half an hour to explore the place before it is closed...

The main lobby area...

We only had time to visit the main level before the museum closing time... While there we managed to see 2 paintings by van Gogh which are painted shortly before his death...

The Apotheosis of St. Louis statue in front of the Art Museum...

The fountains in the Grand Basin viewed from the top of the hill...

Then we drove down to the Grand Basin area... There are people paddling boats...

The Art Museum viewed from the Grand Basin... Very cute as there is an arch in the grass...

Us with the Art Museum and fountains in the background...

This seems to be a popular spot for wedding photos as there were many groups taking wedding photos at the fountains... Besides the sky blue, lavender and black groups in the photos, there are also dark blue, orange and yellow groups taking photos there...

Next we visited the Saint Louis Zoo, also in Forest Park... General admission to the zoo is free! =)

The Hermann Fountain which can be seen when you enter the zoo...

Aldabra Tortoise..

California Sea Lions...

Malayan Sun Bear...

Orangutan...

Various water birds...

Flamingos...

Chimpanzee...

Humboldt Penguins... These penguins do not live in cold climates, they live in a part of South America where the temperature can hit 108F! No wonder they are living in the outdoors...

Penguin Cove indoors where the temperature is cooler...

King Penguins...

Puffin...

Andean Bear...

Grizzly Bear...

Cute!!

The Zooline Railroad, a small passenger train that encircles the zoo, stopping at the more popular attractions. You have to pay if you want a ride on the train...

Black-Tailed Prairie Dog...

Website: http://www.stlzoo.org/

Our last stop in Forest Park was the Jewel Box, a large greenhouse... A wedding was being held there so we only looked at it from a distance... Nevertheless it still looked pretty!

Then we went to St. Louis Union Station... It is a former passenger train terminal and was converted in the early 1980s into a luxury hotel, shopping center, and entertainment complex... Hmmm... This is a rather disappointing place as there was nothing much here...

The Memories Museum on the second level shows the history of St. Louis Union Station...

The view from outside of Union Station and Marriott Hotel located inside the station... It is a very nice building!

Marriott Hotel

Hard Rock Cafe at the Union Station...

Website: http://www.stlouisunionstation.com/

Then it is dinner at Schlafly Tap Room... It is a microbrewery so we also had beers... =p

Waiting for our food...

We ordered the sampler so we could try the different types of beer... =p It is very interesting as the beers were placed on top of their name so we knew what we are drinking and also the info on the beer...
Top (left to right): Weissbier, Hefeweizen, Kölsch
Bottom (left to right): Pale Ale, Dry Hopped APA, Oatmeal Stout
We liked the Dry Hopped APA best!! =)

We had their appetizer special - stuffed portebello mushroom. Very nice!! =)

YH had Cuban (shaved pork loin, ham, swiss, pickles, mustard) with vinegar slaw whereas I had Tap Room Burger (ground sirloin, burger slaw, white cheddar, english muffin) with warm potato salad... They all tasted great!! =)

Website: http://www.schlafly.com/index.html