Catania, Sicily at Dusk

Catania is the provincial town of the Catania Province on the eastern coast of Sicily and the second largest city on the island after Palermo. Destroyed in the great earthquake of 1696, much of the reconstruction was done in the Baroque Style of the time. Being in the shadow of Mt. Etna, lava rock has been used as the main construction material for centuries. The Piazza del Duomo is wonderfully lighted at night and is a popular meeting point. It is also very good people watching.

St. Louis is Beer and Baseball

St. Louis is one of those cities that people either love or hate.  To me it's a great city with plenty to offer even with its rough edges.   What city doesn't? Every year around the 4th of July, we try to make it down for a Cardinal's game on the way to visiting the parents in the Ozarks.

Having grown up in Missouri, I'm still a Cardinal's fan at heart. The new Busch Stadium is a beautiful baseball park. The open design allows for good sight lines, good air flow and a beautiful view of the St. Louis Arch if you sit on 3rd base side. It goes without saying a beer is almost required to beat the summer heat in St. Louis. It seems only appropriate to have a Bud. 

Unfortunately Anheiser Busch is no longer a locally owned brewery in St. Louis, but the beer is still brewed just a few miles away down I-55.  It's how things go in this age of globalization and corporate consolidation. Either way, Budweiser Beer is still a big part of St. Louis so I'll drink to that! Cheers!