Today is a short trip to St Louis and the Mississippi river.

So there was plenty of time to look around Springfield and in particular the Abraham Lincoln museum which was well worth it.

Then down on Interstate 55 South all the way down to St Louis.

And what a disappointment this turned out to be. It is falling apart.

Has anyone ever heard of an American city without a shopping mall? Basically everything is closed and boarded up. Most high rise buildings are empty. Very depressing

Lunch at Caleco’s to recuperate.

Today the local baseball team “The Cardinals”

were playing in town so there were many supporters around. I am afraid to think how the town would look like otherwise. Simply dead I guess.

On a brighter note, this is the first view of the Mississipi river (on this trip). View from our hotel balcony on the 9th floor.