My last day in Saint Louis was a good one. I spent the morning packing my suitcase , trying to cram all my new swag into it. At 10 AM, I walked to the Lenox Room in the hotel for the Chess Fair, hosted by Chess Collectors International. Vendor had specialty chess sets and historical chess items. One vendor had the chess board used during the first World Chess Championship between Steinitz and Zukertort in 1886. Also, one vendor had the heaviest tournament-size wooden chess pieces I've ever held. After the chess fair, I drove to visit my friend Jeff Elden. I had lunch with him and his daughters.
I caught the 960 portion of Kings vs. Queens Day 2, before I had to head back to the airport. (All the details can be found here: http://saintlouischessclub.org/kings-vs-queens-tournament) I went upstairs to watch the last minutes of the Irina Krush and Kevin Cao match, then the Martha Fierro and Jacek Stopa match. I congratulated Martha on her win, and she had the biggest smile. It was cool.
I squeezed into my Fiat rental and drove to back to the airport. Time to go home.
The last photos from my trip have been posted to our Facebook page.
Later today, I'll post some commentary on what I've learned from this trip and how it applies to Chess Club of Arlington.
