We slept at the airport. Establishments closed at 12 MN so we can't buy anything. It was 12 MN when we landed from SF to Chicago, and the next flight (Chicago to Philly) is at 6 in the morning. Man. I hated it. X[

New to me

The historical and enchanting Drake Hotel is the ideal place to stay when you are in Chicago. Throughout history the famous have stayed there and as soon as you enter you will know why.

Some random pics from the Windy City.  I was here I believe 3-4 times in the last year?

I stayed at Hotel Sax last year when I visited Chicago for the first time. It was a combined business / pleasure trip. So, I started out at a different hotel. My boyfriend arrived on Friday for the weekend and had a Friday and Saturday night stay at the Hotel Sax. This hotel is located downtown right next to the House of Blues. Actually, it used to be called the House of Blues Hotel. I was lucky that I knew someone who worked at the hotel and could get me a great deal. I got the room for $99 per night which is great for the quality of the hotel and its superb location. Normal price would be like $250 - $300 per night. The lobby is gorgeous - all white marble and so crisp and clean. Our room was (see picture) was a decent size very modern with a really comfy king size bed and 42" plasma tv. Bathroom had a marble vanity and was a good size. I loved that the hotel was within walking distance to pretty much everything we wanted to see. Would definitely stay here again.

Bike the Drive is an annual event (started in 2002, I believe) that occurs on the Sunday of the Memorial Day weekend.

The City of Chicago closes 15 miles of Lakeshore Drive (Highway 41) that runs along the coast of Lake Michigan to vehicular traffic and opens the lanes for several thousand bicyclists.  The Lakeshore Drive (LSD) closure lasts about 5 hours and begins around sunrise and ends around 11 am.  

I have ridden in this event several times since it’s beginning and I always enjoy the view of a car-free Lake Shore Drive. 

I have to admit the views along the northern side on the Drive are more scenic given the tree-lined median, the architecture and of course North Beach.  But the ride on the southern segment is a lot smoother with a mostly concrete pavement - there aren’t as many potholes.

One thing about the ride that may be a surprise is that there are some small hills that would give riders who are used to a flat landscape a nice workout.  These "hills" also occur on the northern segment of LSD.

In particular, the bridge that goes over the Chicago River is somewhat steep.  When I go downhill in the NB direction I can almost get to a speed of 30 mph - I am pretty sure the true, avid riders can get an even higher speed.  Of course, this means that the climb on the SB lanes can be a struggle.  A number of people just decide to walk their bikes up the road rather than try to ride up.

This year I had a little problem with my bike - the crank arm fell off - bad bike maintenance by my usual bike shop.  Or maybe I should say bad bike maintenance on my part since I didn't check that every bolt was tight. 

The great thing though is that the event is organized to provide support with cars ready to take riders to the main staging area where several bike repair shops are set-up.  The repair shops are meant to provide minimal repairs such as flat tires but luckily for me, the owner/worker for the Cycle Smithy was willing to use one of the bolts of his bike to repair mine. 

And with that I rode quickly southward to catch up with my sister and her boyfriend at the rest stop by the Museum of Science & Industry.  Unfortuantely, the delay with my bike maintenance didn't allow any of us to finish the whole course before they began directing riders off of LSD.  So we were only able to ride the whole length of the south leg of the ride and a portion of the north leg.

Overall though it was a good way to spend a beautiful, sunny morning and a nice workout.

After yet another ridiculously early train departure (come on, 4:30am??) I arrived in Chicago at about 10am.  I was in Chicago for a couple of days in 2006, and the weather was crappy, but I still really liked it.  So I was excited to be back, even just for a day, and even more excited that the sun was shining & it seemed quite a nice day. 

However after spending 20 minutes in the information centre planning my day, suddenly it had clouded over & become quite chilly.  Suddenly my carefully crafted plan seemed not so great - going up the Sears Tower (oooh look! The inside of a cloud!), and taking a river/lake cruise (a grey day on the water in the Windy City?...)

Although, today's trivia: the nickname "Windy City" for Chicago has no basis in the weather - it was originally used by a journalist way back when, referring to Chicago's politicians.  There you go.

I ended up walking down Navy Pier anyway, and there was definitely a breeze coming off the lake, so I headed to the Museum of Modern Art, and once again things turn out for the best because it was Free Tuesday! 

There was some pretty cool stuff there, and then I wandered a few shops & headed back downtown & got back on another train to head to New York City...

hilton ohare is AT the airport. its located just outside the doors of terminal 2. i pricelined and got this hotel at a pretty decent rate. the room was nice. came with a desk, flat screen tv, recliner(lazy boy), and a radio that a mp3 player recepticle. the restroom was very small tho. had to lift the toilet seat to get the door open all the way. hilton is not walking distance to anything. two restaurants in the hotel(i didnt try them). for more choices you'd have to go back into the airport. there's a train stop at the hotel. i cant swear to it but i heard the ride into the city is close to an hour. this is more of an overnight(layover) spot. would not recommend if coming to chicago for vacation. the biggest thing that sucks about this hotel is $45 per night charge for parking. a self parking lot is across the street but its like $35 per with no "in and out". decent enough hotel but rack rate + high valet + no close by entertainment = not a good value.

I arrived in Chicago aboard American airlines twenty minutes earlier than the scheduled 5:10 p.m. arrival, the weather was a little over seventy degrees which compared to Tucson was almost thirty degrees cooler. I was cold as you can imagine, at seventy-five degrees in Tucson I’m wearing a sweater, hahaaa. Anyhow, Michael was at the airport to meet me, he had arrived earlier following an early end to his three days training in Chicago. I had carried with me only one piece of luggage as a carry-on so we were on our way as soon as we exited the terminal. Michael agreed to take me to Millennium Park; the one place I had researched that I could tour in less than two hours before nightfall. Funny to think I had argued with Michael the night before about the traffic and how he should not make a big deal out of it �" now sitting in the traffic for almost an hour, I dared not comment on the traffic. It was moving but at a snail pace, we kept in line and I commented on how the roads and bridges from the airport to the city need to be redone/ painted to impress upon visitors to the city.

As we approached the city, the skyline was visible but the haziness in the sky made it impossible to take any clear pictures of the Chicago skyline. The sears tower unmistakable as we approached; I had googled the different towers that make up the Chicago skyline and found out that the tallest and most visited of them all was the Sears tower.

Millennium Park is covers twenty-four and a half acres of land and is located in downtown Chicago on Michigan Avenue between Randolph and Monroe Streets. The park was opened on July 16th, 2004 and is one of the most popular attractions in Chicago. I was so excited being down there and looking at some of the greatest art pieces and unprecedented landscape design and skyscraper architecture. In the park are so many highlights that make it one of the more fascinating parks in the world. The Chase Promenade that runs across the park creating a walkway between Monroe and Randolph streets. One of my favorite things was the Crown Fountain with two fifty-foot high glass block towers at each end of a shallow reflecting pool, the fountain was designed by Spanish sculptor Jaume Plensa. The more exciting reason for me choosing Millennium Park over anything else in Chicago was "The Bean". The bean is one hundred and ten ton elliptical sculpture designed by the celebrated British artist Anish Kapoor. According to the world of art and design, Kapoor happens to be one of the world’s most respected sculptors. The sculpture is made of a series of seamless stainless steel plates that from an ordinary man’s eye looks like the vacuum of a flask. The polished stainless steel is so clear it reflects like a mirror bringing to light a dramatic backdrop of Chicago’s skyline. I have said this before, and I will continue to say that the English language is inadequate when it comes to describing beauty and emotions; one has to see the bean to understand what Kapoor did. It is an extraordinary work of art and architecture. No doubt he is in a class of his own when it comes to design. Because of time constraints and the fact that I was starving, we did not have enough time to go around the Lurie garden to view some of the great sculptures and lighting designs.

Wrigley square was the point of our entry into the park, it is right at the corner of Michigan Avenue and Randolph Street. It has the best-kept lawn, almost like the green of a golf course and lawn benches for visitors to sit on. I understood that in the late eighteenth century there stood a peristyle, which was destroyed, and now an almost original size replica has been remade gracing the square. The columns of the peristyle are reminiscent or the Roman Empire pillars, they stand at forty feet high.

I would like more time next trip to visit lake Michigan and see some other attractions.

Simply put, you're hungry, you want a lot of meat, and you care not about the decor, but only that the top piece of bread jiggles on all the meat that is in the sandwich, you want Perry's Deli. These sandwiches are sinfully large and delicious, despite the fact that they are probably 3000 calories. They are known for their corned beef and roast beef (and its best if you have both at once with a large slather of their famous russian dressing!) There are a lot of different sandwiches, though my favorite has gotta be "The Ormond Street Special". This sandwich is a triple-decker sandwich which includes corned beef, roast beef, covered with cole slaw, sliced tomatoes, and muenster cheese, and a generous slather of Russian dressing. So, if you're looking to eat one meal for the day, get one of these at Perry's. Be aware - the lines run out the door during lunch, but it is definitely worth the wait. Also, do not use your cell phone in line as they WILL SOUND THE FIRE ALARM!!! How cool is that?

Now, I know that some people rave about this place, but to be completely honest, this place is Joe average. I would equate it to an upscale Olive Garden, except the food is pretty oily. I got ziti with meat sauce, and there was definitely globs of oil that I had to avoid while eating my meal. The plus side to this place is the atmosphere, which really does feel like a little Italian village inside. I believe it is actually 3 restaurants in one - upstairs/downstairs/main level. This review discusses my experience at the upstairs restaurant only. The service is friendly and attentive, just stick away from pastas or anything with olive oil, as it may be overdone with oil.

This steakhouse in the Gold Coast region of the city is simply the best steakhouse I've been to in Chicago. This place, much like Morton's and others like it is extremely pricey, with a top cut steak going for about $50 without any sides. The steak melts in your mouth and they have about every high-cut available and will show you the raw cuts on a tray before you order. The ambiance feels just like every other steak house you've ever been to and this place is always packed. The wine list is very extensive and pricey, but then again, look where you are! All in all, great place to entertain clients and spend the bucks if you have them!

The Chicago Oven Grinder and Pizza Company is definitely a unique place. I invited a whole group of people out to this joint on a Tuesday night and it was absolutely jammed-packed. Thank God I had a reservation! This place is tiny inside and reminds me of someone's basement with a bar in it. They serve pizza pot pies (not real pizzas, almost like pizza without a bottom). They are quite delicious, but take forever to cook. The pounder is easily eaten by a grown man. The salads are enormous and come with every possible piece of antipasto you could imagine. The one horrible, horrible, thing about this place: THEY DO NOT ACCEPT ANYTHING BESIDES CASH. Overall, big thumbs up for beer and pizza pot pie.

Giordano's is quite simply the best pizza in Chicago. They are known for their "Stuffed" pizza, however their thin crust pizza is phenomenal as well. All in all, Giordano's appetizers are quite disappointing. They mostly have run-of-the-mill cheesesticks and breadsticks that taste as if they were frozen. My personal favorite pizza is the "Special" which comes with Sausage (crumbled), mushroom, green peppers, and onions. An extra large pizza easily feeds three really hungry men. The staff here are usually pretty friendly and will politely warn you that the stuffed pizza takes about 45 minutes to cook, which sucks when you're starving and drooling for it when you finally get seated. Great eats in Chicago.

Nice little indoor pool with a cool view of the city. Great bar (very fun to watch working girls pick up on banker types). Good food / drinks. Centrally located. Expensive, but worth it. Especially if you're traveling for business.