Even though it was mid-August, the air conditioning on our overnight Greyhound bus trip from New York to Chicago was so cold that my husband bought two blankets at a gas station in the middle of the night to keep us warm. I had a bad head-cold and was reasonably doped up, so at least I managed to sleep away most the 18-hour trip. Nevertheless, we were excited to be visiting a US city that so many people had raved about.
We had arranged to stay in Irving Park in Chicago with a local who rents out a room on Airbnb. Although the area is far from downtown, we were within walking distance from the blue metro line into the city. Also, a great little Irish pub was on the way back from the metro station – a perfect stop for a drink or entertaining quiz night after seeing the sights in the city.
With a highly entertaining metro trip into the city, comprising an older guy in a camo kilt and strange young girl dressed in an outfit that your granny would have crocheted for your dolls and placed over a net petticoat, we were wondering what other great people-watching we were going to be able to do once we hit downtown.
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| Jay Pritzker Pavilion, Millennium Park, Chicago |
A day in the city involved a fascinating walk to Millennium Park, with a quick and awesomely free stop at the beautiful Chicago Cultural Centre (we love anything free). The building itself is lovely to look at and meander around, but there are also plenty of art installations to view. As it was a gorgeously sunny Sunday, the park was filled with both local and foreign visitors taking a look at the Millennium Monument, the Jay Pritzker Pavilion and Cloud Gate – that gigantic shiny silver bean you have seen in many films or TV shows featuring Chicago.
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| Chicago Cultural Centre |
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| Schalk in fron of Cloud Gate, Millennium Park, Chicago, USA |
Our walk took us via Monroe harbour, to the large and lovely Buckingham Fountain in Grant Park. We were even entertained by a group of clearly regular Joes who were obviously not professional dancers, participating in a friend’s cause to make a dance video. Their enthusiasm far overshadowed their lack of talent keeping us entertained as we walked around the area.
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| Dance group rehearsing in from of Buckingham Fountain in Grant Park, Chicago, USA |
One of the biggest advantages of travelling for an extended time is that you get to see what it is like to live like a local. This involves what some would see as mundane activities like doing laundry at the local laundromat, but for us is a complete novelty. While your laundry gets done, your hands get stinky from pumping all those grungy quarters into the machines. The laundromat is also a prime spot for watching people, seeing arguing families and loners making loud and very personal phone calls, all while the owner’s two pugs scrutinise each visitor.
We were determined to try the neighbourhood Golden Nugget Waffle House for an authentic local experience. This was very disappointing to our Airbnb host who had made recommendations for some fabulous award-winning eateries in Chicago. However, bottomless soda or coffee, soup, Chicken Parmigiana, and cake of the day – all for just about $10 – was a like meal made in heaven for us.
On another day, we took our recently acquired blankets and our Kindles and headed to the park. Although we kept moving into the shade, we both managed to get royally sunburnt and two pulsing red beacons headed home on the subway – that day we were the entertainment for the people-watchers.
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| Lauren's very sunburnt face matches her shirt |
Overall, we thoroughly enjoyed our stay in Chicago, and although we can’t be sure we would say the same in winter, it is a great city to be in in the middle of summer – just remember your sunscreen.
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