Itinerary

Hello guests and prospective guests,

I thought I should give you out-of-towners some heads up on hotel choices before all the rooms book up!

But first, I should tell you a little about the wedding day itinerary to justify my choices a bit!

Here's the deal: the wedding is at 4:30 at my momma's church, at the intersection of Lindberg and Manchester. Then we all go to the reception restaurant, Mandarin House--in Overland Plaza--at the intersection of 170 and Page. The dinner should last a hefty 3 hours or so, cause we need to move our way through eight courses and do all that cute stuff like the toasts and the cake cutting, yadda yadda.

And instead of hiring some lame ass dj and staying at the restaurant, I wanted our group of friends to hang out without my mother's 160 or so Korean friends...so shortly after the end of dinner, I'd like us to drive to Saratoga Lanes, a cute little upstairs bowling alley in Mapelwood (Manchester and Big Bend). I've rented out half the space (four lanes, 2 pool tables) for us to play in from 10:30-1:30, so if any of y'all have your own ball, bring it! They have a little bar there in the center of the space, and it's just a cool, laid back establishment.

After 1:30, I wanted to find a place we could hang out in if we were still going strong, so I chose the Cheshire Lodge at the intersection of Clayton and McClauslin (sp?). This is a really cool hotel, modeled after English inns, and their lounge is open till 3:30...think leather, dark woods, burgundy velvets. I thought it would be nice to also book rooms there so we can head back to drink or crash, depending on your mood.

The only problem is that their rooms are more expensive than say, a Days Inn or something, and if I reserve a block of rooms for you all, it won't be any less expensive (to just call and make a reservation for a standard room is $136, a block offers a slight discount at 131). So, here's my tip. Go to the Travelocity site, search for the Cheshire Lodge in St. Louis. They offer a corporate rate of $96 for September 4th, or a $121 "rack" rate, or a $145 rate for their suites.

It's a bit embarrassing, but I think Dan and I are going to be in one of their "fantasy suites" (I know, I know) called the "Captain's Quarters". Go to www.cheshirelodge.com if you want to see a pic of it and make fun of us some more. But, we can also move the party up to that room and have some card games going and use the wet bar there if we want to. There are also two more fantasy suites available at this time if any of you all are interested. :) The fantasy package is $250, but that includes champagne, and a free stay in a standard room within 60 days before or 60 days afterwards of your original stay a year down the line for your anniversary.

So, although I know you have friends in St. Louis and can crash on a number of couches, if you would like the option of staying in a room or sharing a room, you should reserve one soon.


Another more affordable option is Best Western Inn at the Park, on Lindell Blvd near Forest Park. This is also near the Loop area, the Central West End, and the Cheshire, and offers a rate of $70.81. Their number is 1-314-367-7500. You can also shop around yourself if you like and know the St. Louis area.

So please contact each other to see if you can split a room with someone else to reduce cost, and e-mail me back if you have any questions! Also, I did not have everyone's e-mail address on hand or might have forgotten someone, so please pass this letter on (dan, please forward this to kang and your brother).

Kisses,

Yumi