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by 14dabucs from STL

Last Post 650 days, 6 hours Ago


My first trip to Soulard
Mar 11, 2007 | 11:23 AM
Category: Entertainment
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Okay, full disclosure:  I am a bit of a naive nut.  I'm the girl that is cynical on the surface, but deep down still holds out hope for the best in everyone else out there.  If a friend does well, I am (usually) genuinely happy for them.  I've been lots of places and had great experiences.  If I meet you, I love to hear about you.  People have genuinely interesting lives.  

Now, I'm not ripping on people who like things the way they are.  After all, I married one.  He loves Gulf Shores (and quite rightly so), but really has no desire to go to other countries ("Why do I want to go somewhere that is probably a lot like America except I can't understand anyone?" which, come to think of it, may also explain why we've never been to Miami).  When I ordered our wedding cake from a bakery in Carondelet, he could not believe I chose somewhere so FAR AWAY.

 So right from the start, things promised to get interesting when we joined friends in Soulard to see a rock band fronted by a marimba player.  I don't think my husband had been to Soulard in 20 years.  I'd never been there.  Right off the bat, we overshot the place and ended up on the south side of the Budweiser brewery before we realized we were lost.  Once we got directions back to the bar, I saw a place I fell in love with immediately.

 The old Smile building on the corner of 9th and Allen was gorgeous.  All the old buildings were awesome.  Then we went into the Shanti.  Now, keep in mind it was dark, so my view might be a bit romanticized, but it was interesting.  The bar area was narrow and reminded me of some of the great bars along Water Street in downtown Milwaukee.  The bar's backdrop was a massive mirror and wooden shelves.    Just past the bar was a large brick patio, hilariously uneven due to the large tree and its expanding roots.  This made for some entertaining walks to the loo by various overindulged patrons.  Surrounding the patio was a wooden fence with lots of knotholes and various screened areas which allowed for interaction with passerbys on the street and even led to quite a show as a couple that could barely walk stopped for a five-minute-makeout session.

 

 

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Member Comments Total Comments: 14
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jeanette read my blog view my photos
Mar 11, 2007 | 1:45 PM

So you enjoyed yourself?How was the marimba player in the band?
Cuteypops read my blog view my photos
Mar 11, 2007 | 10:06 PM

Did you eat dinner in Soulard? that have lots of nice resturants there.
stephan read my blog view my photos
Mar 12, 2007 | 2:22 AM

and I thought soulard was only good for quality produce. shows what I know about st. louis. Sadly I spent most of my life here and strangley know awsome places all over the world better than st. louis.
wackymom read my blog view my photos
Mar 12, 2007 | 9:22 AM

I'm glad you enjoyed yourself!
Please tell me what a marimba is...
14dabucs read my blog view my photos
Mar 12, 2007 | 9:30 AM

Oh! There is more to the story! I got distracted and had to go. So out on the patio was a nice fire pit. The circle around the pit was pretty tight, and it was still more warm than cool so we hung back at other tables. We were a motley group to be sure as it was my husband, his son and son's fiance, a friend of the fiance, my stepson's mom and adoptive dad, one of my old professors, a friend of the professor's and a buddy from school.

I was wonderfully surprised by the general niceness of the people gathered in Soulard. Our group made fast friends with a number of interesting people, including a guy who walked by, poked his head in and said "Hey! Hillary or McCain?" When we began a "Rudy" chant, he hurried in to buy a round. WACKINESS.

But the highlight of the evening (other than the drunken makeout session) had to be the band. I hope it's okay to say that they were the Kevin Lucas Orchestra. They were actually great. They played everything from Dave Matthews covers to Police covers to their own music (a cool song called "Cahokia Winds"). And all of them had this giant marimba included which made for a unique sound that worked well.

We ate supper in St. Peters, but trust me, I'll do more seeking out of unique places in the city from now on.

The Soulard experience was GREAT, and I highly recommend that anyone once again become "a tourist" in their hometown.
14dabucs read my blog view my photos
Mar 12, 2007 | 9:33 AM

Wacky... I'll see if I can dig up a picture or a link. It is this HUGE HUGE xylophone-looking instrument that stands at about waist level. It has a real neat sound to it, I think it was used a lot in the 50s and in Mamba-type music. The crazy thing is that you hold two mallets in each hand instead of just one, so the sound gets really crazy.
14dabucs read my blog view my photos
Mar 12, 2007 | 9:34 AM

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marimba
jana read my blog view my photos
Mar 12, 2007 | 11:15 AM

Hey hit me up today with an email, Im going to place the order today babe! Peace out! Jana
carmellion read my blog view my photos
Mar 12, 2007 | 12:26 PM

Hey like that commercial Cedric The Entertainer does about Missouri Tourism, Get to know whats in your backyard, there are sooooo, many great places to visit here but due to some apprehensions people have about certain area's, they never get to experience great things such as you did. I had no idea the winerys in Missouri were soooo, beautiful until i took a winery tour one Saturday with a girlfriend, i was hooked, it looked as if we were down in the southern states with all the beautiful green bluffs and open area's. Dont be afraid to venture out, you never know what you are missing....
kathymc read my blog view my photos
Mar 12, 2007 | 5:11 PM

Soulard has a lot of quaint places like you described. Travel where you want, but I think St. Louis has a lot of interesting places.
jana read my blog view my photos
Mar 12, 2007 | 6:06 PM

Hey girl Im ordering shirts today and tomorrow so if you want in on this order let me know.
Are you going on the 24th? Bloggetteshirts@yahoo.com Peace out! Jana
asmerelda read my blog view my photos
Mar 12, 2007 | 8:07 PM

I love soulard. My neighbor has a stand down there. they have been there for 30 years or more.It is at the 7th street end the very end.
14dabucs read my blog view my photos
Mar 12, 2007 | 9:55 PM

I will SOO go to the markets now!
Tiggerme68 read my blog
Mar 12, 2007 | 11:20 PM

I've never been to Soulard. I am sad to say I have no idea where it is or how to get there. I've been to 3 places east of the zoo (baseball game, football game, and the Arch) There are many places I'd like to go to in and around St. Louis. It's a shame that I've lived so close to the city and have seen so little.
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14dabucs

I'm boring. Very boring.

Member Since: 1/9/2007


 

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