Posts Tagged “missouri”

Our day began in Okawville, Ill., with a lovely breakfast at the Hen House Restaurant:

We got on the road and before we knew it, we met up with an old friend.

Brian and I both have enormous fondness for the Gateway Arch. Our first trip together (in September 2005) was to St. Louis (for a conference for Brian), and we actually went inside the Arch. It was terrifying but really fun! You guys may also remember that we passed through St. Louis on our way home in the fall. Good times!

An hour or so outside of St. Louis, we saw a sign for the World’s Largest Rocking Chair (in Fanning, Missouri), so obviously we had to go see that for ourselves. And now you can see it for yourself too:

It’s 42 feet 4 inches tall and weighs 27,500 pounds… and was just erected in April 2008! I’m sure it has a great future as a roadside attraction ahead of it. Congratulations, World’s Largest Rocking Chair! And sorry you got displaced, World’s Now Second Largest Rocking Chair, where ever you are.

Another interesting thing we saw on the road today was this:

(We think this is a Google Street View camera car. Can anyone confirm or deny?)

Then, we had our big moment:

HOORAY!

Our first stop in Oklahoma was here:

We came here because we needed to fill the gas tank, but it turned out to be a very special place. Not only does this highway-bridging rest area include the Will Rogers Mini-Museum (the “museum” consists of some posters and one small display case of paraphernalia — seriously), but you’re allegedly looking at the World’s Former Largest McDonald’s. (Brian and I went inside to use the restroom and we both find that claim hard to believe. This McD’s must have held the title a long time ago!)

We continued on to Tulsa, where we went here:

This is Hank’s Hamburgers, which is a Tulsa landmark that’s been operating since 1949. We had a really great time here. Everyone was so nice to us, the place had a wonderful authentic small-town air (despite being in a relatively large city), and they have these homemade chocolate-covered peanut butter candies that are amazing. And also they have tater tots. And they hilariously say “Hank’s” instead of “thanks” on their signage:

After that, we drove for a long time. We made it through Oklahoma City all the way to Ardmore where we are now all set up in our Super 8. Tomorrow we’ll keep heading south. Yay!

How long have I been waiting to say that? Actually, we’re not in Missouri or Illinois anymore either. Today was probably the biggest distance push we’ve made so far. We realized that if we tried, we could actually make it home tomorrow!! So, that’s the goal. Huzzah!

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After we left Junction City this morning, we got on the road and left I-70 for a quick lunch break in Kansas City. On the way, we saw this guy:

Soon, we were in Missouri!

We drove straight through and went down to visit our friend the Gateway Arch in St. Louis:

We met the Arch in 2005 when we had been dating for a few months and Brian had to go to St. Louis for a conference, so I tagged along. At that point, we actually took the tour up to the top of the Arch, which was a terrifying journey in a very small, rickety space pod–looking thing. This time, we could only stay for a quick visit.

Then we crossed the Mississippi River and were in Illinois!

And then we drove through Illinois and found ourselves in Indiana!!

As you can see, we are really focused on getting home now. We’re staying at a Super 8 in Greenfield, Ind., and we are hoping to push ourselves to make it home tomorrow evening. Woo hoo!