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was in southern Minnesota. The scenery was pretty, but nothing special. There were rolling hills, farm country,
some small towns and roadside stops. Once in Madison, I drove around downtown. The State Capital is located
in the heart of the city and is an impressive building architecturally and by its imposing size. I asked a local where
to go for dinner and he suggested State Street. Here the street is closed to traffic for approximately three blocks
and there are shops and restaurants. I chose the Kabul restaurant (Afghanistan cuisine) and sat at the outdoor
section on the sidewalk. I guess I was looking to support the new, liberated Afghanistan and its people (ha). The
lamb over rice with veggies was very good. This part of town has a very nice, laid back feel. After dinner, I
walked down State Street towards the water, Lake M_______ . I noticed many people going this way. I
followed the crowd and ended up at an outdoor concert by the water. Nice group of people.
Saturday, July 17: Drove to Chicago. Walked along the beach at the Gold Coast on Lake Michigan. People
were jogging, walking, biking and roller blading by the beach. On the beach there were people lying out and many
empty volleyball nets. It was a little chilly and windy on this summer afternoon. I ended up at a rooftop bar by the
beach with a small band playing. There, I met a couple local guys who gave me some good information about the
city; where to stay, have dinner, go out at night and where to site see. People here seem pretty open and friendly
for a big city. After settling in to my hotel, a Best Western, downtown, I headed to dinner in Old Town on N.
Wells. I got a bar spot at O’Brien’s for dinner. I enjoyed the food and atmosphere and met a couple nice local
girls, Michelle and Rita, who gave me some more insight into the city. After O’Brien’s, Michelle, Rita and I
walked over to Adobe for Margaritas. When the girls suggested that the Margaritas were the best in the country, I
was a bit skeptical. But, after tasting one, I agreed that they might be right. They press their own limes and serve
the drinks in chilled Martini glasses. The liquid is pre-chilled in a shaker and served with no ice. They use a top
shelf tequila – awesome. We had a good time hanging out. I dropped Rita and headed back to my hotel.
Sunday, July 18: I slept in today catching up on some rest after all my driving cross country. This afternoon,
since the weather was so nice, I went back to the beach at the Gold Coast. I walked on the sidewalk by the
beach. There were a bunch of people playing volleyball today, unlike yesterday, because, today was much
warmer. There were many more people biking, roller blading and running too. This city has lots of young, single,
active people. After a while walking around, I went back to the same rooftop, second floor bar as yesterday,
Castaways, for some food and to listen to the band. I met a couple more local guys. They were from a good
ways outside the city and were more blue collar than most of the other people there. From there, I headed to
Starbucks in Old Town to check my e-mails. Then dinner at the Fireplace Inn on N. Wells. Busy for a Sunday
night.
Monday, July 19: Today was a touristy day. I walked from my hotel to Michigan Avenue. This section of
Michigan Avenue I walked is known as the Magnificent Mile, because of all the hi-end shops. On the way, I
stopped in at the historic Water Works building. Built in 1869, this historic landmark building was one of the only
two buildings in this section of downtown (the other was the pumping station) that survived the Chicago fire of
1871. It is a beautifully designed building, a combination of beaux arts and gothic, I believe. After, I went to the
John Hancock building for some wonderful city views. My next stop on my walking tour was the Navy Pier. This
concrete pier jutting out into Lake Michigan has had many incarnations, since it was first built for the World’s Fair
of _____ , including a Navy pilot training base during WWII, where fighter ace George H.W. Bush was trained.
Today, it is a combination Amusement Park, shopping mall and outdoor recreation pier. From here, I caught a
boat which gave an architectural tour of most of the important buildings in downtown Chicago from the Chicago
River. I found this tour very informative and interesting. Along with learning about the architecture of all these
great buildings, you also learn about their history and how they fit into the evolution of the city. For example,
during the city’s growth it was determined that the city needed more utilities and transportation placed
underground. Instead of digging under the existing building, they raised all of the buildings up in downtown
Chicago and placed fill beneath them – quite ingenious.
After this productive day of touring, I went back to my hotel to change for dinner. I met a friend of mine,
Wendy, who had moved here from DC, for dinner. I met her in the Gold Coast District, where we had dinner on
Rush Street at the Whiskey Bar & Grill. We sat outdoors to enjoy the weather and the people watching. Her
friend, Stacy, met us for a drink after dinner. We all had a pleasant evening hanging out. Wendy recommended
that we walk back, so that I could get exposed to different parts of the city. We walked through a neighborhood
filled with contemporary art galleries on our way to River North, the neighborhood in which Wendy and Stacy
live. I walked back to my hotel from here.
Tuesday, July 20: I drove to Wicker Park for lunch. I went to the Bongo Room on Milwaukee, a place Wendy
recommended. Their specialty is various flavored pancakes. I had the lemon, sesame seed pancakes with
raspberry butter on top. They were unusual and pretty good. I walked around this artsy neighborhood with its
funky shops. Next to Wicker Park is Bucktown, another neighborhood with retail shops, restaurants and bars that
are a little more mainstream. Then, I drove back over to Rush Street to see it during the day. Here, there are
higher end shops and better restaurants. I went to Grant Park to see the new exhibits at the recently finished
Millennium Park. I saw the large glass brick walls with projections of people’s faces upon them and single stream
fountains coming from their mouths – a play on more traditional European fountains. There is also a giant silver,
shiny, reflective, bean shaped sculpture. This strange sculpture reflects in an irregular way the landscape around it
and the people walking by, like a funny mirror at an amusement park but much grander. From there, I went to
Wendy’s gym, Eastbanc. This extremely large gym has every facility imaginable and then some for an athletic club
and I took full advantage. This evening Wendy, Stacy and I went to Division Street near Bucktown for dinner at a
popular Sushi Restaurant. It was an enjoyable evening with good food and company.