On The Road to DeMaskUs: September 2012

Just back from a long weekend visit to Chicago! Wow! What a fun trip! We hit the ground running…..our Southwest Flight boarded at 7:10am and we even arrived in Chicago early. We took the train from Midway Airport to State-and-Lake and got off, lugged our suitcases down a steep flight of stairs from the El Platform and we took off walking. Only thing was, we went about 10 blocks the wrong way! Haha! We did get to see a cool part of town and then we found our way on Steve’s GPS iphone Ap and made our way back and took the RIGHT turn at Alberquerkie. (I know that’s misspelled, but I somehow feel that Bugs Bunny would approve of my intentional misspelling!)J

We finally found our hotel and were able to check in early and rest a few minutes before setting out to secure some lunch. Our first stop was The Billy Goat Tavern, made famous by John Belushi in an SNL skit about “Cheezeborgers.” The place wasn’t much more than a total dive and all they served were Cheezeborgers and chips (no fries, no Coke)…they also had no iced tea…..and since I can’t drink Sodas anymore…I was out of luck. I had to argue with the waitress for about 5 minutes before she would consent to allow me to order a single burger. She kept saying, “NO! DOUBLE Cheezborger! It’s BETTER!” I finally had to say, “Look. I’ve had 2/3rds of my stomach removed surgically. I can only eat a single burger. I only WANT a single burger and will only PAY for a single burger!” I was beginning to get a little antsy…..and I blame low-blood sugar. My minuscule packet of peanuts and spicy tomato juice from our plane ride earlier that morning were LONG gone by this time and I was hungry, hot and tired. She finally gave me my single burger…..which I happily ate with mustard, ketchup and onions….but without the top bun. I can’t say it was the best cheeseburger I’ve ever had…..but I was hungry and it filled my tummy.

After the Billy Goat Gruff adventure, we set out to explore some more. We walked around town, checked out the ‘Merchandise Mart’….which we THOUGHT was like the general food market in Baltimore with fresh produce, meats and what-not…..but it turned out to be a giant building filled with VERY posh, high-end home goods. I’m talking Kohler free-standing tubs that cost as much as my HOUSE……sleek red Italian kitchens that didn’t even look like kitchens (but like uber-modern jet propulsion laboratories!) and showers with 100 shower-heads!!! I’m not exaggerating. The manikins they had posed in the display windows even looked disdainful….like they KNEW that we were mere mortal interlopers who couldn’t afford such luxurious furnishings. I swear one snooty manikin decked out in faux-furs even sneered at me with indignation when we walked past!! We walked up and down a few stories and gawked at the displays before giving up and heading back out into the gorgeous sunshiny day.

We wove our way around the river….across the bridges and up and down city streets and I was mesmerized by the tall buildings surrounding us on all sides. I’d stand on the side walk and look up….feeling tiny and insignificant in relation to the sheer size and scope of our surroundings. I was amazed at the detail of some of the architecture….the Gothic carvings, the pointy towers, the lightening rods on the rooftops, the trim work, the rock, brick, glass and steel. Just like when we visited Japan, I loved seeing the juxtaposition of old and new standing side-by-side…..like the Old Gothic Style white Wriggly Building just down from the sleek and ultra-modern grey-and glass Trump Tower. One of my favorite buildings was the Chicago Time Tribune building…..very Gothic in design. I also loved the way the buildings were reflected in the river, like a wavy mirrored image.

There were a lot of homeless people and a lot of panhandlers along the streets near the river. Chants of “Spare some change?” and “Please help me feed my children” along with a menagerie of street performers with tip jars…..there were magicians, balloon artists, guitarists, banjo players, saxophone players, singers, and one old lady who just wailed, “Help the Poor, Help the Needy!” over and over in a pitiful hoarse voice so loud that it echoed off the buildings and made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. People were sleeping in building windows, underneath ledges on the bridges and even right on the sidewalks. I can’t imagine what it would be like to live on the street, holding a cardboard sign proclaiming your homelessness and then spend every day begging passers-by, shaking a cup of coins and asking for their change. I noticed that most of them didn’t make eye-contact and most of them didn’t look like they had much human dignity left. It was very sad.

As we walked around town, I noticed how very, very noisy it was! Horns honking incessantly! Chicago drivers LOVE to blow their horns!!! At every stoplight, just as soon as the red turned to green, folks started honking….before the first driver in line could even have time to react, the horns were blaring. We saw a city bus driver driving and texting at the same time…..and holding up traffic in the process…..and SWIFT was the honking judgment of those in the cars behind the bus. The city buses were HUGE!! They were actually 2 buses long, joined together with what looked to be a giant dryer vent in the middle!! It was the craziest thing! We rode one of these buses out to Lincoln Park and it was full to the point of being standing room only….both buses! But back to the racket……the honking horns, the air-brakes of the buses, the cries of the panhandlers, the noise of jackhammers and people hailing taxis and the sound of the boats tooling along the river, the sounds of delivery trucks beeping as they backed up to buildings, the low rumble of the El as it lumbered across the elevated tracks….it was such an overwhelming cacophony of sounds!! One thing that I would probably never get used to was the way the sirens of police, ambulance and fire trucks sounded as the noise would bounce from building to building with nothing to buffer the echoes. It literally made my eardrums tremble inside my head!!

We walked all over town and then headed out towards the Navy Pier to see what we could see. We saw plenty! The colors at the pier were vibrant and bright! Reds, yellows and blues all shimmering in the 94 degree warm afternoon city sunlight. The saving grace on hot days like that day along the pier and by the water was the breeze that blows off of Lake Michigan. NOW I understand why they call it “The Windy City”….because it really is windy. The breeze actually made the walking pleasant, despite the heat. We saw yachts, tour boats, ferries, sail boats, kayaks, pedal boats, water-taxis and even a giant yacht with a private helicopter on the top deck! The smells were amazing too….it smelled JUST like the State Fair out in Texas! Churros, Funnel Cakes, Popcorn, grilled meats and hotdogs….all those tantalizing aromas filling the breeze with deliciousness! There is a giant red Ferris wheel and a swinging ride and a carousel, along with a miniature golf course and coin-operated toy-boats….so you could hear laughter and screams of delight from children of all ages. There was a giant row of American Flags at the end of the pier and the sound of them snapping proudly in the wind was musical as well. Well off the end of the pier was the lighthouse and a marina full of sailboats. So beautiful to see as they skimmed along the sparkling water of Lake Michigan. We walked back inside the buildings and took in an exhibit of stained glass that was beautiful. We saw the Crystal Gardens….which reminded me a lot of something we saw at Epcot a few years back…..it had a giant glass geodesic domed rooftop and was filled with tropical palms, ferns and water fountains that spit water up and over the walkways in little starts and spurts….like the water was playing tag and having a terrific time with the chase. We skipped the Children’s Museum, mostly because we don’t have little children now (and don't want to have to deal with other people's not-so-well-behaved little children)….and we headed back from the pier to town. We decided that 1. We were EXHAUSTED from all the walking and 2. We wanted to see the city from the level of the River and 3. It was about a 2 mile hike back across town……so we bought tickets for the Water Taxi and headed out to catch our boat.

The water-taxi ride was one of my favorite things we did all weekend. I enjoyed seeing the giant tall buildings from down below on the water…it’s such a different feel than being up on the sidewalks. We got to see down alleyways and look up to the tops of the skyscrapers and it was just magical! There’s just something romantic about floating down the river too…the gentle lulling bob of the boat in the water rocked me into a state of wonder and delight. We held hands as we floated down town and I was so happy we were floating instead of “hoofin” it like we had been all day. It was a much deserved and very peaceful rest.

We disembarked from the water taxi a few blocks from the Sears Tower, which is now called Willis Tower. It’s the tallest building and we were headed to the TOP! We found the entrance to the Sky Deck, made our way through security in record time (the online reviews said that some folks waited hours and hours in line to get through security). We walked right up, went right through the metal detectors and walked straight through the lines in less than 2 minutes from door to elevator!! We bought our tickets and got in line for the elevator. 117 stories up….in less than a minute!! The elevator went so quickly that the changing pressure made my ears pop a little bit. We exited the elevator and the world sure did look a lot different from 117 stories in the sky!!! We took in the view from each and every window in the place....and we stood in long lines to step out into the glass cubes that project from the building.....so that all that separated us from 117 stories of thin air was the glass cube. I experienced a good bit of vertigo and I will be honest...a good bit of nausea looking down. I never really thought I was afraid of heights....and I wasn't really afraid....but it was a spooky feeling looking down and seeing the street so far below my feet. We didn't get to stay long in the cube....the lines waiting for their turn were long and we snapped our pictures and headed back out along the wall of windows. It sure was something to see!

After our elevator ride, we descended in the elevator and made our way out the building (thru no less than 2 gift shops where you could buy almost ANYTHING with a picture of the Chicago skyline....from coin purses to backpacks to t-shirts to souvenir mugs. We opted to just keep our photos that we took as our souvenirs and headed out to explore some more of the city. We stopped at McDonald's for a drink....they have 99cent iced tea in a giant Styrofoam cup that doesn't sweat when you hold it! Yay for Mickey D's Tea!!! It was a wonderful treat to sip my iced tea as we walked along....because it was still in the 90's and still quite warm. We walked the approximate mile and a half back to our hotel, getting there just in time for their afternoon cocktail reception. They were serving white and red wine, a sherry cocktail and watermelon sangria. I tasted the sherry cocktail (just because I'd never tasted sherry before.....it wasn't awful....but it wasn't amazing either). I decided the delightful iced watermelon sangria was more my cup of tea (so to speak). The sangria was indeed AMAZING. I was very thirsty, in spite of my tea....and I downed 2 glasses of sangria before I even thought about the effect it might have. Steve offered to get a third glass....which I accepted and sipped while we rested on the lounge chairs and read a few chapters in our books. Then.....I made the mistake of standing up. Hahaha!! I was so dizzy!! The sangria was deceptively strong and it hit me all at once and with the force of a speeding Mack Truck. Good thing we were headed to dinner.....I hadn't eaten anything for hours and I don't usually drink, and we'd been walking about 6 hours at that point....so I really needed some food.

We went to the Star of Siam, a Thai food place that was very highly reviewed and located on the street behind our hotel. The food was EXCELLENT!! I had a chicken and broccoli dish covered in some of the best peanut sauce I've ever tasted! And we had Thai Tea....which is darkly smoky and sweet and topped with delicious cream. After we ate, I felt 100% better and we headed back to our hotel to rest up a bit and then after dark, we set out to see what Chicago looked like after dark.

Chicago after dark is SPECTACULAR!!! The sight of the lights of the tall buildings reflecting off the dark water in the river is nothing short of stunning!! The street performers were out en masse and folks were dressed to the NINES as they made their way out for dinner dates and the clubs and what-not. We walked around, just people watching and taking in the sights for a little more than an hour or so and then headed back to our hotel because we were exhausted.

Sleeping in our hotel room was interesting. We had floor to ceiling windows on 2 sides of our room and the views were spectacular! The lights streamed into the room from the windows....so we closed the curtains when we were ready to sleep....but the noise never stopped. The sounds of the cars, buses, police sirens, honking horns, people yelling, laughing, talking, music from the bars across the way......the sounds never stopped. It was charming at first....then I couldn't sleep because those sounds were so foreign to me....but then finally all the walking and excitement from the day caught up with me and I drifted off to sleep and didn't hear a thing! haha!

We woke up the next morning to another beautiful, sunny day. We showered and got dressed and had breakfast in our hotel's restaurant, Sable. It was a fancy breakfast too! I ordered scrambled eggs, peppercorn bacon, sourdough toast, home-fries and it was all served with fresh butter and blueberry jam. Steve ordered marscapone stuffed French Toast topped with strawberries! I tasted his and it was heavenly! After we had stuffed ourselves and gotten coffee/hot tea from the hotel's reception area....we headed out on foot.....and found our way to Millennium Park. The fountains, the statues, the giant stainless Steele bean called "Cloudscape".....it was all pretty amazing! We walked through the autumn garden and rested in the shade while we waited on the Art Institute of Chicago to open. We made our way around the museum and found a delightfully cool garden area with giant fountains and shady moss covered trees and we sat there to rest and wait. I laid back on my back on the cool marble slab and looked up into the tree branches spreading out overhead and the sky above that...so blue it made my eyes water. Listening to the trickle of the fountains, the laughter of some nearby children and the cool breeze that blew across my face, I even dozed off in contentment for a few minutes. It was the perfectly refreshing spot for a good rest.

When the museum opened, we were very happy that Steve had bought our tickets online...because we didn't have to wait in the impossibly long line to get in...we were able to just walk right up and enter! I had figured we'd spend about 2-3 hours tops at the art museum....but we ended up staying almost from open to close. We saw the Japanese exhibits, we saw the India exhibits, then we made our way to the medieval art and then the Impressionists. We saw Monets, Renoir, Picasso, Salvador Dali, American Gothic, the "dot" paintings, and so many, many more! We saw carvings, statuary, paintings, collages, mosaics......architecture, clothing....furniture....armor....jewelery....you name it! There was so much to see!! We took a break in the middle of the afternoon and walked across the street to Potbellies for sub sandwiches and a rest. After we ate, I took a picture of the sign that marks the beginning of Route 66....which is located right in front of the Art Institute. Then, we headed back to the museum to complete our tour.

Once we had digested all the art we could handle...we headed back out to our hotel. We got there in time for the afternoon reception and had watermelon sangria (and I SIPPED, not gulped it this time! Learned that lesson!) and then we took a short nap to rest up before we went back out to dinner. Steve made reservations for us at a very nice Italian place called Quartinos.....located about 3 blocks from our hotel. We walked there as dusk was just starting to descend. The restaurant was crowded and LOUD!! But the noise was all happy sounding. We had a cozy table for 2 and we ordered a salad greens mixed with curls of fresh Parmesan cheese and a vinegar and oil dressing for me, some pizza for Steve, some bread with balsamic/EVOO for dipping and I got a white-sangria that was laced with brandy and fresh apples. That was some of the best food I've ever had! We spent the very pleasant meal alternately watching the 1940's style Italian movie they were showing on their big-screen TVs and laughing at the antics of a very self-important jerk and his elderly mother who were sitting behind us. The man complained about EVERYTHING.....including the size of his bead slices. He sent his bead back twice, insisting they serve him larger slices. It was incredibly entertaining to watch. We thoroughly enjoyed our meal and then on our walk back to our hotel, we thought we would stop and listen to some live music at the roof-top bar across from our hotel....so we trudged up 4 flights of stairs, only to find that it was standing-room-only and way too crowded with drunk people. Ugh. We abandoned that idea and instead went back to our hotel and we went up to the rooftop to the Al Fresco seating area outside the pool. We found a table on the rooftop there that afforded us an excellent view of the city lights and it was nice and quiet. We sat there for about 45 minutes, just talking and enjoying the evening.

The next morning, we got up early and had breakfast at Sable again. This time, I decided to be more adventurous with my breakfast selection...so I ordered a vegetable and goat-cheese egg white omelet with fruit. The omelet was good...but the goat cheese tasted a little bit like a dirty sock would smell...it was quite pungent. The fruit was lovely and I enjoyed my sourdough toast. We got coffees and teas and then went across the street to the subway to purchase a CTA ticket for the bus. We took one of those giant double-buses out to Lincoln Park. The park was amazing! We took in the zoo and the conservatory....and I couldn't believe that they were both free of admission charges! What a boon to the folks of the city!! Both were beautiful, clean and very well kept. The animals were adorable and we saw all sorts of critters! It took the entire morning to explore both areas and for lunch, we hit up the Chicago Pizza and Grinder Company, located across from the site of the infamous "St Valentine's Day Massacre" of Al Capone fame. It is said that the house were the restaurant is now housed was the lookout point for Al Capone's men as they watched and then gave the signal to mow down the marks with their machine guns. I kept telling Steve that the owners of the restaurant looked like they were Mafia-Men too! haha!! I had a giant salad and some flat-bread and Steve had a deep-dish pizza pot-pie. We were stuffed to the gills as we caught a crowded bus back to town. We got off the bus on Michigan Avenue and made our way back to our hotel. We were very tired and had some time to rest before the afternoon reception and some more watermelon sangria. Since it was our last afternoon in Chicago, I wanted to get some of the famous Garrett's Popcorn that I'd heard so much about. We walked to the shop on Michigan Avenue...but it was PACKED....with a line going out the door and down the sidewalk. So we decided to go across town to another location. We walked all along the Magnificent Mile on Michigan Avenue and across to State Street....the site of our first wrong-turn as we got off the El the first day. We walked for almost 2 hours!!! We finally found the Garrett's and there was not a single person in line. I got a medium bag of popcorn....the caramel and cheese kind mixed together....you know, like a tourist is supposed to get. It was DELICIOUS!!! We walked back along a different route, taking in as much of the city as we could on our last night. We decided that fast food was sufficient for dinner...so we ate at a McDonald's under the El just off State Street....because it seems all the other fast food places closed around 4-5pm and by that time, we were starving!

We made our way back to the hotel and by the time we got back, it was well after dark. We had to get up at 3:45am the next morning to take the El to the airport....so we went to bed early and slept soundly. All the walking we'd done the last 3 days had worn us out!

We got up at 3:45am and made it to the El in time to catch our early morning train back out to Midway. Riding the train at that time of the morning reminded me so much of riding the trains in Japan.....and nobody made eye contact! haha! I dozed off a few minutes on the train.....just out of sheer exhaustion and the early morning hour....but mostly, it was too exciting to sleep because I wanted to see everything. The train ride lasted about 40 minutes....and then we were off for the marathon sprint through Midway to find our gate. Security wasn't too awful....we were in/out and through the lines in less than 10 minutes total....which isn't awful. We had time for a quick chicken biscuit and coffee at our gate before we boarded our flight...and we were back in Nashville by 8:45am! It was a whirlwind weekend...and EVER so much fun!!!!

I can't wait until our next adventure!

On The Road to DeMaskUs

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

I'm a Motorcycle Momma with Biker Boots, Black Eye-Liner and a KICK BUTT attitude!!!

Saturday, September 8, 2012

Weekend Get-Away to Chicago!