Gateway Arch

Looking to get some attention for your city? You could always try building a ridiculously huge, and largely impractical structure. Not only is it a good way to show Mother Nature that she's not the only one that can make big things, but people love jumbo-sized stuff. The ancient Egyptians knew it. Installation artists know it. Now you know it. Take the city of St. Louis as an example, they built an enormous arch right on the mighty Mississippi and, by gum, it put them on the map!

The Gateway Arch was completed and opened to the public back in 1967 as a monument to the westward expansion of the United States. It was designed by the one and only Eero Saarinen, and when you've got an original Eero in your city, you know you're doing something right. It is the tallest man-made monument in the western hemisphere which makes it a perfect backdrop for almost anywhere you might find yourself in the city.

The Arch isn't just for scenery. You can also go right up to it where almost any attempts to photograph it will leave it virtually unidentifiable, but that sort of makes it better and more artsy, right?

You can even walk right up to it and touch it.

This is almost certainly good luck so be sure to really get the most of it and then sit back for all the good fortune that awaits you.

If all of that is not enough, then go to the top of the arch. You get to ride in a super cramped little pod that amazingly looks bigger in a picture than it actually is. Oh, there are seats for 5 people in each pod.

Once at the top you can look down at what is probably the best view of the city.

Yep, over-sized structures are definitely the way to go. It doesn't have to be an arch, but as the "gateway to the west", a giant arch was fitting for St. Louis.