Meet me in St. Louis (5/25-6/1)

Our stopover in St. Louis was planned to also meet up with friends.  There were not too many camping options close to the city for a week's stay so we opted to stay a little further outside the city in an area called St. Peters, MO. 

The campground 370 St. Peters Lakeside Park, a bit of an odd name, was quite obviously fairly new and spread out on a large piece of land near Hwy 370, hence it's name I suppose.  Folklore from the area indicated this area was flooded several years ago and has since been developed into this family friendly park.  Probably due to the flooding, there were not many of trees on the campsite loops themselves, but it still had a rustic, outdoorsy feel as it is situation right on a small lake. 

We had a lovely lakeview spot.  The place bustled with transient campers and others taking advantage of the large pavilions on the property for dance recitals and even a wedding.  There was also a very long paved bike trail around the entire lake that was busy with bicycles, walkers and joggers. 

Ruth's home by the lake

Our lakeside view

While the campground was very nice, we actually spent very little time there.  

Our first morning after arrival we played a little pickleball at an indoor tennis center about 30 minutes away from our park.  After some "administrative' tasks in the afternoon it was time to meet up with our friends to see their new home and attend a cooking class at Kitchen Conservatory.  

The team at work

The cooking class was well attended by 10-12 folks in this "are you vaccinated" or "are you not" period.  The four of us worked together and the other people were paired up based on their tribe as well I guess.  

Honey Grilled Chicken salad with Citrus Arugula Orzo Salad

The menu for the evening was technique heavy including risotto, crepes and much chopping.  Our group was assigned a dish with a lot of steps, but not that difficult.  Even so, we tackled the tasks with gusto and nailed our Honey Grilled Chicken salad with Citrus Arugula Orzo Salad.  The star of the night in all our opinions was the Grilled Peach "Schnapps"Cobbler. It was a fun night. 

The next morning started with rather angry skies and severe storm warnings all around. Even so, we headed out into it as no trip to St. Louis is complete without a visit to the Arch.  The museum was very informative and interactive.  There was much to learn about how St. Louis became the "Gateway to the West". 

We made the trip up to the top of the arch in our little pod of 4. For some reason there was only 1 other group at the same time as ours so it was a semi-private visit to the top.  It was a terrific view and we could see the very dark clouds rolling in towards us.  I am glad we were down on the ground before the storm came through.   Rain would not dampen our fun though so we got a quick lunch at Mission Taco.  We also had a lovely Italian dinner that evening on "The Hill" at Lorenzo's.  One "corked" bottle of wine later we had a tremendous meal and evening. 

Our friends were gracious enough to host us at their home for a couple of nights so we didn't have to drive back and forth to the campground. It was all the more magnanimous by the fact that they had just moved in less than one month ago.  It was a lovely little break from Ruth to wake up in a "bed and breakfast" and not on wheels. 

The weather continued to surprise as a cold front moved in to St. Louis.  Instead of a planned bike ride, we strolled Forest Park.  It's beauty is really indescribable.  The zoo is located there, miles and miles of trails and gardens, museums, a tennis center (which just happened to be hosting a 700 person pickleball tournament)  If you are in this area, make it a point to visit.  It was a great night to stay in for pizza and games.  The pizza was delicious and the ladies dominated at Codenames.  The men vowed revenge on the next game night. 

Our lovely hosts

That next evening our friends treated us with homemade morel pasta, caprese salad, a special bottle of wine and ooey, gooey butter cake. (A St. Louis tradition responsible for many Weight Watcher sign ups)  It was all divine. I am sure that the gentlemen will blame the wine and food coma they were in for their Canasta losses that evening.  Just sayin'...

Pappardelle with Morel and Prosciutto

Roasted tomato caprese

We ate, we drank, we laughed, we walked and talked and had just a lovely visit.   We even got to play a little more pickleball to work off all that we consumed. It was time to saddle up Ruth again and begin our trek toward the west.  We have a one night stopover near St. Joe, Missouri and then a one-week stretch in Akron, Iowa. 

Prior to departure, we noticed that my sink was loose and had moved in the main bathroom vanity, more on that later. 😃