Chicago
Well we meet again. Here. On the internet. Um, I just got back from Chicago and IT WAS AWESOME. Like ‘I want to live there’ awesome. It was a quick trip- but super fun.
I won’t tell you about the day spent traveling because, I think you get the gist of how those go 😊 Just know I started the day with some Huey Lewis and the News so... it was a good day. My sister flew in from D.C., and I met her at the O’Hare airport in Chicago. Then we headed to our AirBnB. |
DAY 2 Ashley turned 26 officially. The weather in Chicago is PERFECT this time of year. Heavenly. Also I like humidity. Thick air and all that stuff. The first thing we did was walk into the city. That was cool.
We went into a few buildings and talked to some people. Real specific stuff. For breakfast I had a muffin but Ashley had this really good salmon and caper bagel. And being the true millennials we are… we of course took pictures of all of our food. Sometimes I’m not proud of that, but the food we ate was really good so we both want to remember it. It’s for US not for INSTAGRAM!
After walking and breakfast and stuff we did an architecture boat tour on the river. It was my mother’s birthday gift to Ash and I LOVED it. I love learning about the city. I didn’t take notes (like I’ve been known to do) but I soaked in all of that info about Montgomery Ward and the 5 different architectural waves that I could. I kind of want to move to Chicago and go to architecture school. And by ‘kind of’ I mean ‘I would really love that’. Maybe that’s the next thing for me?
After the boat cruise we went and saw that famous ‘big shiny bean’ at Millennium Park and took some pictures. It was pretty crowded there at Millennium Park. They were having a Jazz Fest of sorts with vendors, and, as you might imagine, jazz music.
After Millennium Park we strolled along Navy Pier. There's a spot along the Chicago River where, on the hour, they spray a jet of water across the river. If you're kayaking or boating you'll get sprayed. The point of this water jet is to commemorate that one time they reversed the direction of the river. It was at a toxic level and it was emptying into the lake. So, in a feat of engineering, they reversed the course and had it flow south towards the Mississippi. Cool right? Not for the people in Missouri... apparently they tried to sue the city of Chicago for emptying their garbage water the other way into St. Louis.
The water in the river is no longer at 'toxic' level where it would self ignite... now it's just 'highly polluted' :)
The water in the river is no longer at 'toxic' level where it would self ignite... now it's just 'highly polluted' :)
ANYWAY after the stroll along the pier we rented some bikes and biked along the Lake Front Trail. It was awesome. The city is pretty flat and the trail is right alongside Lake Michigan. I can now say I have seen and touched one of the 5 Great Lakes!
We biked over to Wrigley Field. Neither of us are really into baseball but we looked at the field from the outside 😂
I decided I wanted to get a Cubs baseball shirt because I like how they look. I know many of you sports fans are guffawing at my irreverence and nonchalance for watching people physically exert themselves… but what can I say? I was born this way.
I decided I wanted to get a Cubs baseball shirt because I like how they look. I know many of you sports fans are guffawing at my irreverence and nonchalance for watching people physically exert themselves… but what can I say? I was born this way.
For dinner we had reservations at a Michelin star restaurant. IT WAS SO GOOD. We were enchanted with the atmosphere first of all, and then the level of food was so much better than I expected. I’ll start with a detailed description of dessert. Dill and crème fraiche. It was so light and airy but just the right amount of creamy sweetness with a hint of dill. We also had a strawberry jelly roulade. I don’t remember if that was what it was called, but it had a subtle goat cheese filling and homemade strawberry pop rocks. You read that right. Pop. Rocks. Cool eh?
I had ravioli with 3 different fillings and a pistachio sauce. Ashley had pineapple and halibut. The halibut was like butter that melted in your mouth. Super delish. For appetizers we had gnocchi and a salad. We were goofy-happy all through dinner (the level of happy where we can’t sit up straight because we’re weak with laughter) and the waiters were laughing at us dancing to the mood music and giggling. I know you’re supposed to be refined at a Michelin Star restaurant, but I couldn’t help myself.
Here are some quotes from dinner:
“This gnocchi is STUPID fluffy”
“Grandmother Willow is at least, like a hundred and seventy”
“New rule, you’re not allowed to make me laugh right before I lift my glass to drink”
After we ordered dessert I plead with Ashley to promise me we would split each dessert in half and she merely laughed coldly at my request and then took a picture
That was true, except for the ‘laughed coldly’ part. And then we went halfsies on dessert. Also the staff melted the bottom half of a candle and stuck it to Ashley's dessert plate! It was the best! I loved them all.
So we were still in a giggly mood but full of good food and we ran into this little vintage clothing shop called ‘Outskirts’. Clever right? I tried on this really old tablecloth-like dress and weirdly loved it. The guy who owned the shop thought it was hilarious- not sure if he thought it was hilarious how it looked or if he thought it was hilarious that I actually liked it 😊
I could totally have rocked the 1890s. Or the 1980s. Whichever you think this dress belongs to:
I could totally have rocked the 1890s. Or the 1980s. Whichever you think this dress belongs to:
After day 1 we were exhausted. Day 2 we were much chiller.
Day 2 breakfast was at Meli Café. Eggs benedict and Berry French Toast.
Then we stopped by this flea market that only pops up one day of the week and bought some perfume. Mine was in a tiny little roll-on bottle that was clearly homemade. And I almost didn’t buy it because of the awful name, but it smelled real good. I’m never gonna be able to find that scent again, so if you want to smell me you better do it soon.
After the market we biked along Lake Front Trail again. There is a street called Lake Shore Drive and I made Ashley listen to that song by Aloitta Haynes Jeremiah. Not that I support the use of LSD or anything, I just have soft spot for catchy old music. It’s my downfall. Well, one of them at least. There are a couple of things in this world that I can’t resist 😉
I don’t think you realize how magical that bike ride was so here are some videos:
|
|
Also we laid on the beach for a while:
After the beach we went to Lou Malnati’s and after I had said it aloud like 5 times I realized… (say it out loud a few times… try it) it is ILLUMINATI! ILLUMINATI CONFIRMED! My youngest sister used to say that all the time. So we made a video and sent it to her to support her paranoia.
After lunch we went to the park to walk around Lurie Gardens. We ended up listening to and discussing Harry Potter a lot. I’m still astounded by my sister’s knowledge of Harry Potter. Like who remembers what names Ron, Harry, and Hermione each give Greyback after they’re caught in book 7? I mean you might remember if you had just read it… but what if it’s been years? Her mind astonishes me. Though I remember other types of things I suppose. If we combined our powers we could definitely conquer the universe. Too bad she’s not power hungry.
After chillin’ at the park we headed to the John Hancock building. We had received advice that instead of going to the Willis tower (which we learned on our tour is known by true Chicagoans as the Sears Tower) and standing in that famous glass box for $25 and a picture… we should go to the bar of the John Hancock building on the 96th floor because we didn’t have to buy a ticket and the views were just as good.
Um it was BEAUTIFUL. Also I had lemon blueberry crème brûlée and it was so silky smooth you wouldn’t believe it. Well you might believe it… but only if you have a tactile imagination.
And that was the last of our Chicago experience. Every street was covered in planter boxes or vases. The sidewalks were surprisingly clear of trash, and the weather was sublime. You should all definitely visit. I’ll leave you with this video that was made back in May when Ashley lived with me for a couple of weeks. Ciao friends!