Sorry... more "Arch" pictures.

Let me apologize in advance for the excessive quantity of photographs of the Gateway Arch that you are about to see and have already seen. It's just such a freakishly weird thing to look at that I can't seem to resist taking snapshots of it. And every time I go downtown, I somehow end up there.

It's fall break now, and I'm enjoying my time off. Yesterday I rode my bike all around the city, for a total of about 45 miles. There really is a lot of run down, abandoned warehouses in this city. I get the impression by cruising around the city that Saint Louis was once an extremely prosperous center of industry. Then there must have been a period of decline, hence the abandoned warehouses standing all around. In the last ten years, however, I'm told that various spots in the downtown area have been rebounding. There certainly are some very nice downtown areas filled with small locally-owned shops that give it a comfortable urban feel.

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Today, Sunday, I decided to try public transit and see some more of the city:

I woke up and hopped on the MetroLink light rail to head down to (oh, not again!) the Arch waterfront area.

First, I attended Mass at the Basilica of Saint Louis. Once Mass was finished, I went down into the museum and visitor center underneath the Arch. I watched a very well done documentary about Lewis and Clark and bought my ticket to go to the top.

To get to the top of the arch, one must climb into a tram of some kind. The voice narrating the whole experience explained that these very tiny tram cars, which remind me of some escape pods in a scifi film, were designed using the most advanced 1960s technology. These things LOOK like they're from the 1960s. Check out the groovy seating, man. And the far out lighting. When five people get in there it is rather cozy.

Once at the top of the arch, the space is rather small and filled with people. Finding an unoccupied window was a bit of a challenge.

But once I was able to get next to a window, I was able to see the great view of downtown Saint Louis. Here you can see the new Busch Stadium.

When looking down from up top, I saw tiny people looking back up at me. I waved. They didn't wave back. Jerks.

I know, I know... you're tired of Arch pictures. But I thought this shadow was kind of cool.

Before taking the escape pod back down to Earth, I took this last snapshot of the Old Courthouse (built in 1828) that is nearby.

After the exhilarating arch experience, I hopped back on the MetroLink to head back to the seminary in Shrewsbury. Along the way I decided I should check out Union Station. The historic train station has been converted into a large shopping mall. It seems nicely done. I had lunch at a Sbarro and continued on my way back to Shrewsbury.