Olive. To most people, it’s a fruit, but to me it’s the street I spent 30 minutes on the night of Prom.

I told my date to get off at the wrong exit, so we had to navigate all through the city in search of the Hyatt. It ended up being fun, driving around and looking at all the sights because we still made it in time, but others were not so fortunate to arrive on time after much confusion during the drive down.   

Almost everyone I know got lost on their way to Prom. People exited the highway too early, tried to go the wrong way on a one-way street or ended up in Illinois.

The biggest problem is we all live so far from the city that we get confused when trying to navigate through the streets the night of Prom.

My friend’s mom mentioned that they should have Prom somewhere closer to Eureka. Although there are a lot of nice hotels in West County, changing Prom out of the city would be a travesty.

I am so grateful I grew up in Wildwood.  I love that I grew up with a big backyard and being able to walk to all my friends houses knowing I was safe.

But I also love the city. I have been fortunate enough to have parents who like the city and grew up in St. Louis. My parents have always made the effort to take me to the city, Forest Park and the Loop because they are such cool areas.

They offer a unqiue atmosphere because there are several different kinds of people. There are people of different cultures, races and ages all together. This exposure to different cultures is difficult to find in the Wildwood/Eureka area. Walking down the streets of old town Eureka you don’t see a hookah sitting on the sidewalk, a sight common on the streets of the Loop.

It always surprises me how many people that live in West County don’t ever leave West County. St. Louis is actually a city with a lot to offer from the Art Museum to the History Museum to the Loop to the Central West End to the Arch.

I overheard someone say it was their first time in the city since the summer when they went to a Cardinals game. Having Prom downtown gives us all a chance to leave our West County bubble and glimpse a little of what is to come when we leave the high school nest.