Part 20 - Leaving Saint Louis

Part 20 - Leaving Saint Louis

Saint Louis had been good to us, we both loved our jobs, but my contract was up at the beginning of November.   

Graffitti right down the street from our RV Park. 

We really had grown to love the city, warts and all. Coming from Peoria, Saint Louis wasn't much of a change for us. Sure it is a dirty, dangerous town, but it is also a vibrant city full of culture and art. We chose to focus on the latter.

We loved taking drives or walks around Forest Park, and we got to see the Summer blossoms and Fall leaves changing color during our time here.

A steamy Summer morning at Forest Park.

Lots of green-space to get away from the city.

Fall colors at Forest Park.

Saint Louis was divided into communities that all had interesting names. Soulard was the old French inspired part of town to the South, just along the Mississippi River. The neighborhood is known for their Mardi Gras parades and celebrations, their love of blues music, and of course the Anheiser-Busch Brewery. The Hill was the Italian neighborhood. We learned that Provel cheese was created here, allegedly to create a pizza cheese that was not stringy like mozzarella. Look it up. We didn't like it, it had a really watery consistency.  The Dogtown area seemed to be predominantly Irish, and we found several Irish bars as we drove around the neighborhood.

Outside our favorite Irish Bar, the Pat Connolly Tavern, just across from the Zoo.

Website: Pat Connolly Tavern


Our favorite local brewery in Midtown by our RV Park was Urban Chestnut Brewery. They had a nice courtyard with bags outside of the brewery where they hosted Octoberfest and other events. But the best thing about them as a company, was that they supported local stray animals and rescue efforts.

Good beer and a good cause. 

You don't know what a wide-mouth can is until you have an Urban Chestnut. 

"Who wants Grandma's Nuts?" was the sales pitch for this old lady at the farmers market we had once a week at work. 

Grandma's nuts tasted old. LOL

There was also a woman who sold home-made dog cookies at the farmers market. The theme changed weekly, I was a regular customer, and the dogs loved them. 

2019 Stanley Cup Champions.

One of my work friends lived very close to us, she would give me rides home occasionally, and we became good friends. As it turns out, she had married into Chuck Berry's family, and still had the last name. They had been separated for some time, she was getting ready to re-marry, and invited us to the celebration. 

Love my STL peeps.

Jenny, Jennifer, and Scott.

Scott and Jenny at Lisa's Wedding reception.

The weather was unseasonably cold in the Fall of 2018, based on that, we had to decline the offer to renew our contract at the hospital. 

The lab group I worked with threw a Friends-giving party in November for current and former employees. They were nice enough to move the date forward to accommodate me leaving in the middle of the month. Kissel, my comrade from the temp agency, was leaving about a month after I was. We were made the guests of honor and got to decide where the winnings from the evenings gaming events would go.

Since animals dont have the ability to take care of themselves, and because Kissel and I both like animals more than most people, we suggested Stray Rescue of Saint Louis.  Jenny and I would see volunteers from Stray Rescue walking dogs daily on our way to work, so we knew the money would be well spent.  It is really sad when you realize how many neglected animals there are in the city, so we added a little of our own money to get the donation total up to $100.00.  If you are reading this, and care to donate, here is a link to their webpage:

Website: Stray Rescue of Saint Louis

We made it through the first cold snap OK, but temps dipped into the single digits for a couple of nights in October. Our tanks were frozen solid. For about 10 days, we had to take the cold walk to the showers...and even had to walk over there to use the bathroom. It was time to fly South for the Winter.

Unreal. I still can't believe that we lived in a camper through this storm. 

We had both really grown to like the people that we worked with, and even the places we worked for...and that was going to be the hardest part about leaving. 

Truckie all packed up with our kayaks and ready to hook up to the camper.

I still miss my STL peeps, but luckily, we stay caught up through Facebook.  

You can keep up with us right here by checking back next Monday for our new article. 

For now, here is a link to our previous entry:

Part 19 - Cache River Kayak Trip