Delmar Loop in St. Louis, MO!

Most cities pride themselves in being on the cutting edge of urban development and city planning. But very few do it well. Personally, Baton Rouge is doing a heck of a job but I'm more than slightly bias.

I opted to stay out of the downtown area of St. Louis, where the #SoFresh conference was being held, during my stay and hang out in a cool, hip and cultured side of town known as the Delmar Loop. Recently designated as "One of the 10 Great Streets in America" by American Planning Association, the Delmar Loop area entertains a wide spectrum of people. With 140 speciality shops, including 48 resturats, 10 art galleries, 25 clothing boutiques and much more, the area is buzzing with energy and excitement 24/7.

Instead of walking the street like a lonely tourist, grabbing a bike from Big Shark proved to be the optium way to view the entire area in a really cool way. Honestly, my biking skills have suffered because of my excessive spinning for exercise so I'm sure the Delmar Loop faithfuls found it funny to watch me ride up and down the Blvd.

Some things of special note:

The St. Louis Walk of Fame: All along the sidewalk in the Delmar Loop are informative plaques that highlight the lives and times of people who are from St. Louis or those who have had a significant impact on the city of St. Louis. Some plaques that caught my eye include Chuck Berry, who apparently still plays at the Blueberry Hill at least once a month, Bob Petit, a graduate of my high school Baton Rouge High and Louisiana State University and my St. Louis fav Nelly! Check out more at http://www.stlouiswalkoffame.org/

Delmar Loop Planet Walk: Tourists and locals can take a 3 billion mile walk from Sun to Neptune along the sidewalks of "The Loop." The sidewalks feature informative markers that give great info about each of the planets! Here's more http://www.loopplanetwalk.com/.

Blueberry Hill Restuarant:  A St. Louis landmark restaurant and music club filled with pop culture memorabilia including the Simpsons, Chuck Berry, the Bealtles, Star Wats and more. Voted #1 restuarant Bar in St. Louis and has the #1 voted Hamburger! http://www.blueberryhill.com/.

Moonrise Hotel:  the signature hotel in "The Delmar Loop" area. Features a rooftop bar and full service restuarant. If you're looking to get a new experience in St. Louis this is the place to do it. Book your next #STL stay at http://www.moonrisehotel.com/.

Bike Shark Bicycle Company:  A great bike shop right on the edge of "The Loop." Excellent service and bike rentals available. More at http://bigshark.com/!

Check out more on "The Loop- Delmar" at http://www.visittheloop.com/!

WB