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Location: DFW, based in ONT, wishing I was in Maine
Posts: 3,808
Let's see... Did I miss anything? (Chicago M&G)
OK... first of all... thanks to Jeff (avi8tor) and Zack (kfour) for coming out to downtown Chicago to show me a good time! We must have hit as many sites as you could on foot in one night! It was pretty awesome.
We met in the hotel lobby @ 5pm... took a 4 block walk to pick up a free trolly that would take us to Millenium Park and met an overly friendly young lady while we were busy stareing up at the bus schedule like a bunch of tourists.
Rode the trolly to the park and wandered around visiting some very unique sculptures including the 20 million dollar Chicago "bean"! Also saw these multi-story LCD "faces" that shot water out of them too. Pretty freaky... and probably would have actually been cooler if the water had been turned on.
From there we walked to the water front and took the waterfront path to Navy Pier. There was a huge ferris wheel that I wanted to go up in... so we did that and had an awesome view of the lake and the city. After that we finished walking to the end of the pier and on the way back off the pier I hit the "tourist" shop to buy my daughter something "Chicago-y".
We had walked a great deal at that point and it was now up to Zack's trusty GPS phone to show us the way to the nearest Giordano's Chicago style pizza. It was probably a mile and a half walk even though it should have been only about a mile... but the GPS kept going out on us when we were under some of the roads (Lower Whacker & such...). Thank goodness Jeff had the state of mind to go against the "guy code" and spit in the face of technology by actually "asking" a real live human being for directions. 2 seconds later we were in the Fairmont Hotel's lower ballroom area crashing a formal party and working our way through the crowd to the escalators to take us up the the next street level...
Once back outside and one time around the building... Bam! Giordano's was in sight.
It takes 45 minutes once your order your pie to get it... actually that wasn't so bad because it gave a bit of time to chill out at the bar and wait on two American Eagle friends that were also meeting us downtown. I ordered them their pie as well since it was going to take them about 40 minutes to get there via the blue line.
We finally got a seat (busy saturday night), and got our pizza shortly thereafter since we "pre-ordered" it. Now... this is Zack's favorite pizza place in the whole world... and I gotta tell ya... it was pretty darn tasty... especially after having walked half of the city already that night.
My other friends show up about 5 minutes after the pizza arrives and we all have a great chat catching up on things and eating some great Chicago Style Pizza Pie.
After that, my friends head back home since they had an early show the next morning. We then left Giordano's and hit the "Magnificent Mile" on Michigan Ave. Crossed the Chicago River and enjoyed the many architectural wonders of downtown Chicago. I gotta tell ya... this is a totally cool city.
The ambiance was awesome and this night was perfect for walking... no wind in the windy city tonight and fairly moderate temps made the walk and the sights that much more enjoyable. We saw the "Trib", The Wrigley Building, The new Trump tower still under construction, and many other cool buildings along the way.
We walked past the Watertower and continued on the the Hancock Building where we took the elevator up to the Signature Lounge to have a few drinks to top off the eve. Unfortunately there was a huge wait just to be seated so... we all agreed that at least it was cool being up there and seeing the awesome view and that we really didn't need a $10 drink to complete the evening. We headed back down the elevator... trying desperately to make it stop at the observation deck with no luck. One more ear popping express elevator ride to the bottom and our evening was just about complete.
We took a cab back to the hotel... said goodbye and parted ways. All in all... quite an awesome evening!
Thanks guys for showing me the sites and treating me to an awesome downtown Chicago experience! You guys were super cool and very patient while putting up with my many questions about the city. I really appreciated it.
Pics to come shortly...
Bob
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My head is in the clouds and my heart is still in Maine... but my devotion and love belong to my wife and children.
Re: Let's see... Did I miss anything? (Chicago M&G)
What a great night last night. We definitely saw a ton of stuff in Chicago. I dont think I've ever covered that much territory in one trip! It was great to meet Bob and Jeff...they popped my proverbial jetcareers cherry.
It's too bad the FO didnt make it out to join us, I'm sure he would have had a great time! Next time, I'm bringing my camera though.
Re: Let's see... Did I miss anything? (Chicago M&G)
I had a great time last night also. I don't think I have seen that much of the city in one night either, we covered a lot of ground. It was also good meeting Bob, and Zach we all had a good time last night.
Location: DFW, based in ONT, wishing I was in Maine
Posts: 3,808
Re: Let's see... Did I miss anything? (Chicago M&G)
Jeff & Zack up on the wheel... & some other wierdo that got in the same carriage...
End of the pier
Cheezborger, Cheezborger... Pepsi... No Coke!
Walking the Pier
Art... I guess. Passed a few art galleries on the way... This is a bed tilted up with a bunch of rope hanging from the top... a pillow at the bottom and a crate sitting at the foot of the bed with a large kitchen knife sitting on it. Hmmmmm.... art.
The Wrigley Building
Part of the bridge over the Chicago River
Quote:
Originally Posted by Blues Brothers
This is definitely Lower Wacker Drive! If my estimations are correct, we should be very close to the Honorable Richard J. Daley Plaza!
To Be Continued...
__________________
My head is in the clouds and my heart is still in Maine... but my devotion and love belong to my wife and children.
Location: DFW, based in ONT, wishing I was in Maine
Posts: 3,808
Re: Let's see... Did I miss anything? (Chicago M&G)
This is the very place we ate at... I forgot to take pics of us inside... so I "borrowed" someone's pics from a yahoo search!
The "Trib" = The Chicago Tribune Building
Watertower Place & three wierd guys who jumped in front of my camera as I tried to snap a cool shot of the Watertower...
John Hancock Building... and in the express elevator...
That's it...
I can't say enough about this cool city... I loved the architecture and it was very pedestrian freindly too. I just wish I had more time to see more of it... the museums, the stadiums, etc...
Hope you all enjoyed the tour!
Bob
__________________
My head is in the clouds and my heart is still in Maine... but my devotion and love belong to my wife and children.
Re: Let's see... Did I miss anything? (Chicago M&G)
Well after seeing those pictures and know what Captain_Bob looks like, I am now certain that what I suspected was true. Captain_Bob, you were in IAH today around 3PM weren't you. I didn't have time to walk over and say hi and I wasn't even sure if it was actually Captain_Bob but now I know it was. Oh well; next time!
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Even those who arrange and design shrubberies are under considerable economic stress in this period in history.
Let's see... Did I miss anything? (Chicago M&G) 
Re: Let's see... Did I miss anything? (Chicago M&G) 
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