Day Five- IN/IL/MO

After making it through the night unscathed, we left the Motel 6, got our usual Starbucks and headed down the road. Originally our plan was to spend the day going to Springfield, Illinois, but when we saw St. Louis on the map we headed in that direction. What’s one more day on the road? We got back on US-40, which runs parallel to I-70. (We are trying to stay off the interstate as much as possible.) We drove through all these small towns, seeing the coolest things: covered bridges, beautiful farmlands, and wildlife.

Our car going through a covered bridge.

At the Toll Sign of the Covered Bridge

Covered Bridge in Illinois

The most eye-catching attraction was a giant 181-steel ton cross that stands 198ft. tall and spans 113ft alongside the interstate. You really have to see it in person to believe how big it is! Even though we saw it clearly from the town of Effingham, Illinois it was a little tricky to get to. We wound up eating at The American Bagel Cafe which advertised free wi-fi. After lunch we asked for directions which indicated we were simply around the corner from the site we had probably spent almost twenty minutes trying to find.

Jessica at the Cross at the Crossroads

Then it was on to Vandalia, Illinois where we came across more Abe Lincoln history. Vandalia was the state capitol from 1836-1839 and the statue below marks the original end of the National Road.

Orit in front of the Madonna of the Trails Statue.

As we approached St. Louis from the Interstate our Let's Go guide book suggested a Taj Mahal-esque motel and with an open mind we got off the interstate to check it out. After witnessing the neighborhood and Jessica was asked for money at the gas station, we got back on the interstate and into St. Louis. The view of the city was great. We immediately saw the Arch. baseball stadium, and the river filled with barges and river boat casinos.

Busch Stadium

We tried one more suggestion from the travel book : a hostel in the Soulard district. The sight of the hippy woman running the place and the tenament-like set up of the rooms we practically ran out of there. Despite, the scary steps, the bad smell, and the deafening silence, there was fire hazard written all over that place and we weren't going to risk it. After that intense experience we felt we deserved better and got a room at the Adam's Mark hotel :) With a room on the 10th floor our view was incredible. Anyone wanna contribute to the hotel fund? haha!

The view to the East.

The view to the West.

We got ourselves together and made our way to Laclede's Landing which is a small area along the river filled with bars, breweries, and restaurants. We were so happy last night to have a swanky hotel to come home to :) Until tomorrow! We will be heading Northeast back to Springfield for some Lincoln heritage, then west to Moline, Illinois, home of John Deere!

p.s. Thank you to everyone who has left comments! They really keep us coming back to the blog!