New Thing #93 - StL Exploration

Month 5 - StL Exploration

I've lived in St. Louis nearly half my life, and I've made it my mission to visit a lot of what this beloved city has to offer - the Arch, Zoo, breweries, Science Center, Botanical Gardens, Grant's Farm, City Museum and the list goes on. When I first moved here, I couldn't wait to see as much of it as I could.

I soon found that friends who grew up here hadn't even been to half of what I had explored. I suppose with the Arch in your backyard, you feel less compelled to visit. The same can be said for Ikea. Once it opened up a short 10 minute drive from my house, I feel less inclined to go.

Over the years, I either got lazy about finding new places or focused too much attention on my international endeavors. For November, I've chosen a variety of StL spaces that are less known, but still famous in their own right, but dropped off my radar for various reasons.

#1 - Compton Hill Water Tower - November 3, 2018

This towering beacon in the St. Louis mid-town skyline has always been on my list, but for whatever reason has eluded me. It's not far from my house, and is always visible whenever I return home from a visit east of the Mississippi.

It's only open to the public one Saturday per month, which is probably what led to me forgetting about it. I saw the event pop up earlier this week on Facebook letting me know that this weekend it was available for viewing. While the weather wasn't great (cloudy and chilly), I didn't let that deter me from making my way up the 198 stairs to get a 360-degree of my home. The cool weather actually helped cool me off after the climb.

A quick history lesson about the water tower. It was built in the late 1800s as a modern solution to an outdated water delivery system. The standpipe – six feet wide by 130 feet tall – was built on one of the highest elevations in St. Louis, an altitude well above sea level. To camouflage it, an architect/artist was hired to erect the surrounding structure 179 feet tall out of limestone, terra cotta and brick. The bell shaped terra cotta roof tops an observation deck providing 360 degree views of St. Louis. While I wish the sun was brighter today, you couldn't really beat the fall foliage!

There is a small $5 fee to climb to the observation deck – open only the first Saturday of the month March through November from 12-4pm (whew, just made it!), along with a few select summer evenings. The volunteer at the base gave me a few details about the structure, but most of what I learned came from a pamphlet. She also told me that over 2000 photos were found from the construction of the tower in the late 1800s and the tower's early usage in the early 1900s. The favorites were reproduced and hung along the walls of the stairwell, while the remaining can be found at one of the St. Louis libraries.

I've found that I really enjoy climbing structures and getting that rare bird's eye view of places. The 198 stairs went by in a flash – so much so, that I had to force myself to stop and pay attention to the photographs adorning the walls on the way back down. When I arrived at the top, only two people were on the observation deck – a volunteer and a young lady interviewing him for a project. They stayed relatively out of my way, so I was able to get views out of every window without having to wait my turn or worry about someone in my way. It. Was. Delightful. I hadn't been sure how busy it would be since this was the last available weekend until spring, but I really lucked out.

I spent about 20 minutes up here, taking pics from every window (they opened easily for an unobstructed city view) before heading back down. As I descended, I probably passed 15-20 people on the stairs, so I timed my viewing damn near perfectly. I spent a bit more time at each landing on the way down to check out the photos more closely. Hard to believe it was built in 1898. Even harder to believe were the quality of the photos from those early decades.

Two reservoir tanks.

Final tiny steps up to the top.

Looking south on Grand toward the South Grand neighborhood.

Looking north on Grand toward SLU Hospital and campus.

Those trees though...

Looking east towards downtown and the river.

Looking west down Shaw at the intersection of Grand. The tall buildings on the horizon in the top right are downtown Clayton.

Lots of windows for viewing! You can tell this is in the US though. None of the structures I've climbed in foreign countries have stools to sit on at the top.

Up to the dome.

The Arch way off in the distance.

Steps leading up the reservoir walls.

The Comfort Station, aka the bathrooms.

#2 - The Awakening II Statue - November 4, 2018

My quest continues for the weekend. After visiting the water tower yesterday, I researched what other quirky or new places I had yet to visit in StL. My search turned up The Awakening II statue in Chesterfield. You guys. This giant (literally) statue has been here the whole time, and I'm just now finding out about it.

The original 72 foot Awakening statue was built in DC in 1980 by J. Seward Johnson, Jr, and the second one was unveiled in Chesterfield in 2009. It's essentially pieces of a man that protrude from the ground making it appear that a giant is trying to emerge.

It's been super gross and rainy all weekend, which fortunately made tourists very scarce. I had the whole sculpture to myself. Unfortunately, the ground was soggy AF, and the pieces were too wet to sit on and take pics. It was still really cool, and I'm surprised I've never heard about it in the last 9 years!

#3 - Butterfly House - November 4, 2018

A few miles away from the statue is the Butterfly House, an extension of the Missouri Botanical Garden. While I did know this was here, I never made any effort to stop by. Which is a shame. It's a cute place with more butterflies in one place than I've ever seen. What I failed to think about was that in order for the butterflies to have a habitable climate, they needed a warm environment. Meaning it was a billion degrees in there. And I was wearing entirely too many layers.

Inside is a small gift shop, with you guessed it – a plethora of butterfly themed chachkies. Tchotchkes? However the heck you spell that word. A few spaces for educational programs, an outdoor garden, and more cockroach species than I've ever seen in one place, completed the building. I immediately headed out into the butterfly house, stripped out of my coat and scarf and took in the sites.

The employee gave me this to identify the butterflies I would see. Um, yeah, I didn't use this thing once.

Very busy butterflies. Trying to get photos of them on the flowers was tough, but I did the best I could.

Snack time!

When I walked in, I immediately thought it smelled like banana bread. Now I know why.

Perty!!

This would make two batches of banana bread!!

I tried to get a video of them swarming around. They were definitely everywhere, and it took all of my instincts not to flinch when they were flying at my face.

The employee warned me to watch where I stepped b/c apparently butterflies like to take little naps on the ground. I nearly stepped on this before I realized it was just a leaf.

Love this bench!!

Picked a bad time of year to see some foliage in the garden.

A 30' long lopatapillar statue created by the same StL native that created the City Museum, Bob Cassilly.

Another Cassilly sculpture.

#3 - Faust Park Carousel - November 4, 2018

The Butterfly House is located in Faust Park, around the corner from the Faust Park Carousel, a traditional 1920s carousel with hand-carved horses and deer. My new coworker helped with a remodel at one point, including the bathrooms, so I thought I'd stop in and see what it was all about. I also wondered if I could ride it. Turns out, adults are not allowed to ride (based on their website), and I was too chicken to ask if I could. There was only a guy and his daughter riding it, along with two employees, so the place was empty. Everyone just kind of stared at me while I looked around, and I quickly realized I looked a bit creepy, so I took a few photos and got the heck out of dodge!

Super cute little carousel.

New Thing #92 - Float Spa

Month 4 - Mindfulness

October 21, 2018 - Flotation Therapy

I'm not a huge fan of enclosed spaces. I never really thought I was claustrophobic until I spent the weekend at the City Museum with one of my nieces a few years ago. In her innocence, she plead for me to follow her into the tiny tunnels and wall passages that make the St. Louis City Museum so unique. Of course, in her adorable 11-year-old self, she could fit in nearly every space, twisting and turning and sliding through all the fun tunnels. This 30-something year old body didn't fit the same way, and in a moment fraught with panic one day, I nearly got stuck shimmying through a hole after her. It was then that I realized maybe I wasn't cut out for small spaces. Or at least anything enclosed with a tight fit.

While I'm certain the idea of small spaces wasn't the issue, but rather the threat of getting stuck, I decided to test the theory today with a flotation therapy pod. Me, encased in a sealed tub of water for an hour. What could possibly go wrong?

I've heard good things about flotation therapy: floating - weightless - in magnesium-rich water to alleviate stress, muscle cramps, fatigue and a whole host of other things. Why not give it a shot?

Groupon to the rescue again. Oh how, I love me a good Groupon deal. When I called to make my appointment, they informed me that I had the option of doing the sealed pod or an open "walk-in" style room. While the concept of just walking in to the room intrigued me, I decided I need to do the pod to get the full experience. And conquer any lingering fears of enclosed spaces I might have.

When I checked in today, the spa was mostly empty (I picked late afternoon on a Sunday for this reason). The receptionist showed me to my room, gave me a quick tutorial on what to do/expect, then left me to prep. I had about 8 minutes before she turned it on.

Step 1: Shower. She informed me that I needed to take a shower and wash my hair before I got into the pod. She also recommended that I put my ear plugs in before my shower (so they wouldn't be wet when trying to put them in afterward). The ear plugs were obviously so I didn't get salt water in my ears during the float. I hadn't really thought much about ear protection, but I'm so glad they had those. I HATE getting water in my ear.

Since the room was just one big square, I showered in the corner, then waited for the cue that the pod was ready. So, you know, just me hanging out wet and nekkid in the corner, with ear plugs in blocking out most of the sound.

Corner shower.

One of the worst shampoos I've ever used.

Looks like a clamshell!

Step 2: Get in the pod! I heard a soft woman's voice, which I assumed was the track telling me my float would begin. It was so quiet, I couldn't really discern any of what she was saying through my ear plugs. I turned off the light to the room and everything turned dark except for the blue light shining inside the pod. Once I stepped in, I sat down (which is slightly difficult when you're so buoyant), and attempted to shut the pod door without knocking myself unconscious. I was successful, albeit ungraceful as hell. Thank goodness I was in that room alone!

Let's set the mood, shall we?

The pod was surprisingly spacious (8' long x 5' wide), and although it shut tight on all sides, I didn't feel suffocated or closed in. There were two buttons that allowed me to adjust the lighting inside and the volume of the music. Turns out the light just goes on or off, with no in between settings. I found the complete darkness to be one big NOPE, so I left it on. It was fairly dim though, so it didn't intrude on my solitude. I liked the music that was pumping through and it was too eerily quiet when I tried turning it off. It was just low enough, that it didn't distract me.

Step 3: Float. For the first 15 minutes or so, I found this to be harder than I thought. Not physically harder, but mentally harder. I struggled to relax and empty my mind. Thoughts of my to do list for the week ran though my head, along with a myriad of other things, so I was just restless. I kept moving around in the tank, finding it tough to let everything go. I was worried about my ears getting water in them (they were cheap ear plugs after all), so I couldn't fully relax my head.

About 10-15 minutes in and I calmed down. I realized the water wasn't getting through the ear plugs, and I truly felt myself relax. The Epsom salts (magnesium sulfate) is what gives true buoyancy, but this isn't like a regular Epsom salt bath. These pods use 900 POUNDS of Epsom salts in about 10-11" of water. Once I relaxed, I realized I was floating with ease and I felt the pressure release from my muscles. I also couldn't feel where the water ended and the air around me began. The pods keep the air and water at the same temperature as my body, so I couldn't really tell where the water line was hitting my body. It was super weird.

When I started, I thought that 60 minutes would go by so slowly and I would agonize over being in there for so long. But, a true mindfulness came over me. Tension and stress left my body, and I felt almost like I was in a deep sleep, though I was completely conscious. With the high concentration of magnesium, it also soaked in to my skin. Epsom salts help with a number of issues that most people experience because of a magnesium deficiency.

When I did touch my skin, it felt a bit slimy and slick (but, not in a gross way if that's possible to imagine). I guess that's what happens when there's 900lbs of salt in your bathwater. I wonder if this is what the Dead Sea feels like. Hopefully, I can experience it some day!

Eventually, I noticed that the light inside changed and the music faded. Another garbled voice came on, presumably telling me my float was complete. I took my ear plugs out, and awkwardly made my way out of the pod. Not only was it difficult trying to stand up while also opening the hatch, but I also felt a bit groggy and weak, like I'd just woken from a nap.

Step 4: Shower. Again. The water dried quickly as I headed over to the shower, and I noticed how dry and scaly my skin was. The salt was sitting on the surface of my skin and hair, and I quickly worked to wash all remnants of it off. I kept the main light off in the room, but the glow of the pod was enough to see what I was doing. Shortly after I exited the pod, the whirlpools started in order to clean and sanitize.

The video above is during the cleaning cycle. It did not do this during the float. The water was completely calm while I was in there. This agitation was just to sanitize. Here's what the website had to say about the cleaning process: "The water in the float pod is completely filtered through our high-tech filtration in between each float session. Every individual is required to rinse off in the attached shower immediately prior to entering the float pod as well as after floating. Although the high salinity of Epsom salt kills 99.9% of bacteria in the water, our sophisticated engine system filters all the water in the tank three times between floaters. The water in our float pod is hundreds of times more sanitary than the normal swimming pool or hot tub."

Once I finished showering, I attempted to put my clothes back on (easier said than done when your skin is damp) and left the room. I suppose I could have worn the supplied robe across the hall to put on lotion, but I felt weird doing that. I had no idea who else was hanging out back in the float rooms. The receptionist checked in on me and started cleaning the rest of the room once I left.

We talked briefly about my experience, and she showed me the open air step-down room in case I wanted to use that next time.

It was definitely a unique experience. Knowing how beneficial Epsom salt baths are (I take them at home to relieve muscle tension or as a detox bath when I'm sick), I can see the benefits of doing these more frequently. I'm definitely going to look into doing this again. Next time should be easier than the first, allowing me to immediately relax.

I highly recommend trying one of these!