15.-21.9.2008: Mississippi River (Minnesota & Wisconsin) - Galena - Loess Hills - Kansas - Jefferson City - St. Louis The route along the banks of the Mississippi on the Wisconsin side is very scenic and we had great weather which makes a big difference. The Minnesota side is probably also scenic but we just couldn't see it because of the driving rain! We stopped at "The Grotto" in Dickeyville which was built between 1925 to 1930 which is around the same time as the Wegner grotto that we saw a few days ago. So, who got the idea first? No idea! The Dickeyville Grotto is a lot bigger with larger structures and various pieces of wood and different stones used in its creation. We drove across the state border into Illinois and went to a lovely little town called Galena where we wandered around for a couple of hours, before driving into Iowa and taking a look at Dubuque's harbour on the Mississippi. We drove right across Iowa from east to west heading for the Loess Hills scenic byway, one of only two places in the world where large loess formations can be seen. (The other is in China in case you wanted to know!) After over 250 miles driving we took a look at the hills and decided we wouldn't be going to China to see the others any time soon! Instead we bought some Jonathan apples from a local apple farm which are supposedly the best eating apples and definitely get the thumbs up from us! Then it was off into Nebraska and a short stop for Kirsten to buy some new trainers at a factory outlet. She's planning on getting fit at some point but we'll wait and see if that happens! My apologies to all the Nebraskans out there but we literally only went across the state border to say that we'd been there. Is there anything to see in this state? Let us know and we'll come back! We drove into Kansas and made a beeline for Leavenworth. Most people may recognize the name only because there is a fort there which is a state prison. But we went there specifically because it is Melissa Etheridge's birthplace and Kirsten is a big fan. Now Helen knows why Melissa moved to California!! Of course we had to have the obligatory photo of Kirsten in front of the plastic white guitar-shaped sign with the famous name on it! (P.S. Helen was forced to take the photo. She does not expect to win any "Photographer of the Year" award!) Finally we went into Missouri. This is a landmark because Kirsten has now been to all 50 US states. Helen is missing Hawaii and so has only been to 49, and there are too many other places on the "to see" list before Hawaii so she won't be notching up the 50 just yet. We drove to Jefferson City and went to see the State Capitol which we really enjoyed. We joined a free tour and went to see the lounge where there is a huge mural on the walls depicting various scenes from state history including the fact that it was a "slave state" and the Mormon killings. Interestingly, there was an edict in force that said anyone could get rid of a Mormon by any means, including murder and the edict was not rescinded until 1976!!! (Oops!) The room for the House of Representatives is quite beautiful and we were even allowed to see the Senate chambers which is not normally part of the tour. Another great story is that the House of Reps wanted air conditioning installed but the Senate wouldn't pass it because the Senate was situated above the Ice House and they didn't need it. So certain Representatives put dead fish in the Ice House and it wasn't long before air con was installed! The tour was very good and our guide was very entertaining. Just east of Jefferson City we were driving along a scenic route but were diverted because of flooding from one of the hurricanes that had recently passed over the area. Our week ended in St. Louis to see the arch which was erected to celebrate the "soaring mind of Jefferson" the only architect president. It is also the gateway to the west, commemorating the Lewis and Clarke expeditions. The arch was completed in 1965 and is 630 feet tall. An inventor was given the job of working out how to get an elevator to go up around the curve inside the structure and visitors can go up for $10 each. There is also a free underground museum underneath the arch. After a visit to the Old Court House, we drove to the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis. This is an absolute MUST!!!!! It really is amazing, full of mosaic art and astonishingly beautiful. It took 75 years to build; there is 83,000 feet of mosaic art created by 20 artists. The exterior is Romanesque style with a Byzantine interior. It really is magnificent.