St. Louis and Baseball Season

The sounds of a ball hitting a bat or glove, the screaming fans, and the over excited announcers are the soundtrack to St. Louis during Cardinals baseball season. When people say that St. Louis has the best fans in baseball, they are not lieing. Baseball starts this week, which starts St. Louis' favorite season.

Baseball is one of America's oldest and favorite past times. In St. Louis it is no different. Cardinal home games, at Busch Stadium, are some of the greatest days and nights of summer. Not just in the stadium, but all of downtown St. Louis is red and white, swirling with people, live music, and other forms of entertainment for hours. Fans and visitors from any city can get a full taste of this baseball city. Even if you are not seeing the game from inside there are over 25 bars and restaurants with in 5 miles of the stadium that you may sit and enjoy some Cardinal baseball.

One of my favorite things about the Cardinals and Busch Stadium is Sunday home games. Fans from all around can get into the stadium early and enjoy pictures with Fred Bird, walking around with players, and many organizations entertaining on the main concourse. When i worked for the Magic House we would be at every Sunday home game 3 hours before encouraging kids to make Fred Bird beaks and Cardinal flags, while of course promoting the Magic House. But seeing how excited little kids get are baseball is one of the best things to see.

Even if you are not a Cardinal fan and you are in the St. Louis area around baseball season, swing by Busch Stadium and enjoy the baseball atmosphere.

 

Westport Plaza

Westport Plaza


Westport Plaza located in the central area of St. Louis and right off of Hwy 270 (one of the most accessible hwy in the St. Louis area) is a 42 acre mix of businesses, restaurants, entertainment clubs, and hotels. Westport is a great are for St. Louis natives to go out and have a great night or day with out spending loads of cash. It is also a great place to bring family and friends who are visiting the city or surrounding parts.

Some of the most noted attractions in the plaza are The Funny Bone comedy club, the Train Wreck Saloon, and Pujols 5 Restaurant (yes after the baseball player). There use to be Ozzies which was a restaurant started by and for the St. Louis Cardinal Ozzie Smith. Westport provides walk-ways and sidewalks that make walking around to the different attractions and building easy.

One of my favorite memories was going to dinner at Ozzies and then seeing a show at the Funny Bone with a ton of family members including my mom and dad. Another moment was when I was in an Emerging Leaders group in high school and had the opportunity to interview the owners of Dierdorf & Hart's, one of St. Louis most accredited restaurants.

Cardinals Spring Training

No, the St. Louis Cardinals do not have Spring Training in St. Louis, as you all may know seeing that it is snowing in the 636. However, I am currently on Spring Break in Florida and my mom and i decided to take a trip to Jupiter, Florida where the team is currently wrapping up their spring practices.

Today the team started the majority of their current roster starters, including Albert Pujols who, most of you may know, is in a tight contract negotiation battle with the Cardinals management, and went on to defeat the Atlanta Braves. Atlanta drew a lot of Brave fans and from what i experienced alot of Jupiter locals are die hard Cardinal fans which made the experience that much better. Spring training also brings out the kids eager to get autographs for their favorite plays. Although I was on the Braves side sitting near their bullpen it was hilarious to see the kids jumping and running around people twice their size to get their hats, pictures, and gloves signed.

Below is a pic with my mom in front of Roger Dean Stadium where the Cardinals play. If you are a Cardinal fan and you are ever willing to take a road trip or are in the South Florida area, take a trip to the up-scale Jupiter area for some great baseball memories

The St. Louis Zoo

     

"Celebrating 100 years The Saint Louis Zoo has educated, entertained and earned a place in the hearts of St. Louisans for generations. We invite you to help us celebrate our rich history with a year of special activities, events and a new Zootennial exhibit in 2010." http://www.stlzoo.org/

The St. Louis Zoo has been entertaing tourist, school field trips, and families for many years. The Zoo to anyone is a place to experience nature in its raw form. The Saint Louis Zoo currently has about 17,955 animals and more than 700 species of animals. Broken up into different areas such as The Wild, Rivers Edge, and Historic Hill, the Zoo offers a fun and creative way for visitors to get up close and personal to their favorite animals. The Zoo also offers many live shows that will grab and hold your attention and help you learn many different things about the animals.

The St. Louis Zoo is free for visitors of all ages. If you want a more indepth experience, more exhibits, behind the scene tours, and train rides are avalible for an extra fee. Overall the Zoo is worth visiting and enjoying the experience.

My favorite Zoo memory was camping out in the Whale room during my sixth grade school year. We were able to run around Big Cat Country at night which was just as exciting as it was terrifying! This is just one of the great Zoo memories I have. With many more to come

St. Louis Science Center

 http://www.slsc.org/

 The St. Louis Science Center is one of my absolute favorite places in St. Louis, yes I'm 22 and I still love it, in fact I went over winter break.

The Science Center is a place where kids of all ages, young adults, families, friends, grand parents any person, can enjoy learning about different sciences, see over 30 amazing exhibits, visit the up-to-date Planetarium, and Omnimax Theater. It is easy to spend hours in this exciting museum. O and did i mention its FREE!!! General admission is free, however, if you want to enjoy all the extras the museum provides those prices are listed separately on the website. A combination of all these aspects will ensure a great day and lots and lots of learning.

Some of the most well-known exhibits are straight from the website. "The Saint Louis Science Center is a three-building complex (the main building, the EXPLORADOME and the James S. McDonnell Planetarium) with more than 700 hands-on exhibits. In the Science Center galleries you can":

• Visit a life-sized animated Tyrannosaurus rex and Triceratops in the Ecology and Environment Galleries
• Play a laser harp or create a "virtual fish" in Cyberville
• Explore the science of engineering
• Cross over the interstate and watch the cars go by on the Bridge
• Visit the Flight Gallery in the tunnel between the main building and the Planetarium
• Enjoy innovative live Amazing Science Demonstrations and Science Goes Splat! 

The most memorable experience I had at the Science Center (not including school field trips) was seeing the Omnimax presentation of Space. It was a crazy really adaptation of what life or lack there of is like in space. However, I think I was only ten so yes, it was scary and made me sick. BUT!!!! I was with my cousin, brother, and gma so that is what makes me remember the day.

Forest Park: The Muny

http://www.muny.org/

Drive to Forest Park: $8.00 for gas (from Ashtons house)
Dinner from Rizzi's on the Hill: $25.00 (for Ashton + Dad)
Tickets to the Muny Show: $40.00 (depending on seats, I don't mind paying more)
Parking at the Muny: Free
A nice summer night, picnic in the park,
live musical at the Muny (located outside), a night out with dad: PRICELESS

Some of my favorite memories are spending summer weekend nights at the Muny. Located in Forest Park. My dad and mom used to take me all the time when i was younger and the traditions only continued as i grew older. Now every summer i come my dad and I try to see at  least one show. We distinguish it as a father daughter night which includes dinner in the park from our favorite on the Hill restaurant and a great musical.

The Muny is an outdoor Opera House in the beautiful Forest Park, about ten min. from downtown. Forest Park includes attractions such as; The St. Louis Zoo, Science Center, Sculpture Park, ponds, playgrounds, and more. The Muny is only open during the summer season and is centered around the performing arts. Every summer the company come out with a series of 6-7 musicals to highlight the season. Other activities such as weddings, graduations, school plays, local theater companies also use the great Muny setting to host events. There is a variety of seating options, everything from free seating to the upper price of orchestra seating, concessions are available, as well as pre-show performance from local St. Louis groups.

If you want to get away for a night of music and fun, something different, visit the Muny. Trust me it will be worth your time and provide with amazing family/friends memories.