6:00 AM We got up early and had breakfast with Gene and enjoyed his beautiful gardens. He is about the most liberal Presbyterian minister we know. Well, maybe he’s the only Presbyterian minister we know. He and his wife, Sharon shared a deep interest in the Asian culture and created a garden that any Japanese gardener would surely be proud of. We were sad leaving Gene. He is grieving for Sharon but readily agreed to come and visit us in Hawaii next year. I wish all ministers could be as accepting of people no matter their race or culture or beliefs. It would be a far happier world.
8:40 We left Springfield and headed for Cahokia Mounds in Illinois.
10:45 We arrived at the Cahokia Mounds. Unfortunately, the visitor center was closed! There were many visitors there who were turned away by the sign saying it was closed on Monday and Tuesday. We were disappointed because it sure didn’t say that online. Tsk! Still, we enjoyed climbing the 150 steps to the top of the Monk’s Mound despite my broken toe. We could see the St. Louis Arch.
11:45 We passed the St. Louis Arch in Missouri.
1:00 Lunch in Rolla, Missouri at the Hardees. It cost us about $10.00 for both of us. We really are cheap travelers.
3:00 We discovered that Oklahoma does not accept the Illinois I-Pass toll. We had to pay cash but Art was excited to get his change because it included an Oklahoma 2008 quarter for his collection. The 2008 quarters are rather scarce and hard to find.
7:12 We arrived in Tulsa, Oklahoma and checked in at the Motel 6.
Unfortunately, we thought we would have Wifi at this Motel 6 but there weren’t any rooms left available with it. When we mentioned that it was advertised, the desk person said you had to reserve it. She acknowledged that it was true that it was not indicated on line that you needed to reserve a room with Wifi but oh well…
We were on the road for 10 ½ hours of driving at 65 miles per hour or under to economize on our gas consumption even though the speed limits in Missouri and Oklahoma were between 70-75 mph. Everyone was passing us, especially the big truckers. However, we calculated our mileage and have found that we have been getting about 25 miles per gallon which is great considering we are driving a van filled to the brim with our son, Jon’s things. The cheapest gas we’ve found so far is in Oklahoma at $3.66 per gallon. Maybe we should move here. One thing for sure, we have met the nicest servers at the little restaurants we've eaten at.
