Wednesday 23 April - St Louis & Anhauser Busch!

Breakfast of scrambled eggs and toast with coffee hit the spot!  Al showed us one of his childhood haunts at the Bluff Cave near his house.  Great view of the Mississippi River and some birds of prey!

We farewelled Patricia and Al and headed into the downtown area, via our hotel.  We managed to find the parking of the Anhauser Busch brewery and wandered into the lobby just as the 1pm tour was about to leave.  Luckily, we were able to join it!

The one hour tour included a visit to the Clydesdale stables to see the horses and the Budweiser carriages; then into see the brewing vats, the lagering tanks, a taste, then to the packaging and bottling facility.  We finished up in the Biergarten for one free sample.  By this time it was well after 2pm and we were starving!  They serve meals so we ordered a late lunch - which was delicious!!!  At 3pm daily, they do a toast to Brewmasters past & present - we were handed a sample after 3pm (they were a bit late) :  A Toast to the 4 's' - see the beer, swirl, smell it and sip it (we thought 'skoll it' was a better ending!)....

St Louis is celebrating its 250th birthday and there are birthday cakes all over the city!

The clydesdale horse is brought around daily at 3.30pm, in full regalia for a photo opportunity - so went and met Lance - he was magnificent!

Next, drove downtown to see the Gateway Arch.  Traffic was a bit of a nightmare due to road works, road closures, detours, and afternoon rush hour....  Had some difficulty finding a safe place to park, but luckily found a garage nearby.  Walked over to see the arch and take photos.  Didn't really have to time to go up.

Spent the evening with a quick look at Sears and then to Cracker Barrel for dinner!