How to Combine a Southern Illinois Road Trip and Christmas or Birthday Gift Shopping

You can combine a road trip in Southern Illinois with a little Christmas or birthday shopping and come back with a nice experience to show for the day as well as a unique gift to stash away for the appropriate occasion. Drop by Metropolis with its Superman statue, Giant City State Park with the well-known all-you-can-eat Sunday chicken dinners at the lodge, visit Grand Tower to see Tower Rock standing in solitude in the Mississippi River, hit Fort de Chartres and see the reconstructed French outpost, go to Alton to where you can see the Piasa Bird or pose next to the life-size statue of Robert Wadlow, the world's tallest man, drop in on Cahokia Mounds where paleoIndians thrived, Vandalia Courthouse where Lincoln was a lawmaker, Hartford from which Lewis and Clark set out West, the largest manmade lake at Carlyle Lake, Benton where a wooden scaffold marks where the last man in Illinois was legally executed by hanging, or any of the many other sites in the region. As for Christmas or birthday shopping, there are some unique offerings you'll find along the way. These are only a few:

CHESTER. Located in Randolph County on the Mississippi River, Chester is the smalltown hometown of Elzie Segar, cartoonist and creator of Popeye the Sailor . A statue of Popeye stands at the foot of the Chester Bridge which crosses the river into Missouri. There are also statues recently unveiled around town of Olive Oyl, the Jeep, Swee' Pea, and Wimpy. Wimpy is in a gazebo park, next to which is Spinach Can Collectibles, a combined museum and collecitble store, everything with a Popeye theme. You can buy Popeye-themed placemats, posters, books, videos, knick-knacks of all types, as well as get a chance to see some of the artwork and rare souvenirs connected with the popular cartoon character. The owner says people from 61 countries have visited her museum/shop.