Stunning Chicago

Contributed by Trish Gau, Hive Overland Park

I am not a city girl but a recent trip to Chicago has made me rethink that just a little bit. My 3 days in Chicago were lovely. Maybe it was the absolutely perfect weather we had - not too hot and not rainy or windy or maybe it was the company, but my mom, sister and I left with a new appreciation for the windy city.

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We rented a hotel room right off Michigan Avenue with a little kitchenette and a table (for game playing, of course) so our first stop was Trader Joe's for some breakfast items and snacks. There are a lot of options in the area for grocery items including TJ's, Whole Foods and Bockwinkel's, where we picked up a bottle of wine (check that it's a screw top or make sure you have a bottle opener - learned that one the hard way;)

Our hotel was just a few blocks to the Navy Pier so we headed over there to make sure we got our steps in before the day was done (my mom needs her 10,000). There is no shortage of places to walk to in Chicago so getting our steps in was not a problem the remainder of the trip. On our evening walk, one thing we immediately noticed, that I remembered from my previous time in Chicago, was the gorgeous plantings all around this area of the city. They are all over the Navy Pier area and along Michigan avenue as well. Beautiful blooming flowers and ornamental plants all over the place! We really wondered how they keep them looking so healthy! After our walk we headed over to Eataly for a quick bite before calling it a night.

The next morning we had signed up for the Chicago Architecture Center River Cruise so we walked to the meeting point down by the river. There is no shortage of river boat architecture tours in Chicago but we picked the one given by the Architecture Center because who knows the architecture best?! It was excellent; the guide gave us so much interesting information about buildings old and new , how they were built, why Chicago is where it is and even how they reversed the flow of the river! Choosing one of the Architecture Center tours also gives you access to the actual Chicago Architecture Center (CAC) located just above the river boat meeting point at street level.

We got off the boat and were a little hungry so we headed down the Riverwalk to find something to eat. The Riverwalk is another beautiful place to walk with plenty of bars, restaurants, kayak and boat rental kiosks, and lovely places to sit a minute to take in the city views. We found some seats at the Chicago Brewhouse restaurant and ordered a sampling of some Chicago favorites. The Italian beef sandwich was our favorite and we sat outside enjoying the beautiful day before our next scheduled tour.

For the afternoon I booked the Chicago Walking Tour-Must See Chicago which was also given by the CAC so we headed over a little early to take a quick look at their exhibits. The guide for the walking tour was very knowledgeable and we saw some different places that were not visible from our boat tour. The sculptures in the various plazas were especially unique and Millenium Park was definitely a place we needed to go back to in order to see all of the cool areas like the famous Bean scultpture, the fountains and the colorful gardens. We found out that on Wednesday and Saturday nights in the summer there are fireworks at the Navy Pier. We headed toward the pier but we sat on the (north) beach side thinking that we would have no problem seeing the show. We didn't have the best view of the fireworks. . .the pier itself or Millenium park would have been better, but we did see a little bit of it and a nice sunset, too.

After an early walk along Lakeshore Drive, we spent the morning window shopping on Michigan Avenue. None of us are big shoppers but if you are, there are some amazing stores on the "Magnificent Mile". We had lunch reservations at one of my favorite restaurants, Joe's Seafood Prime Steak and Stone Crab, and it did not disappoint. We opted for the $39.95 Joe's Classic 3-Course Lunch instead of the 1.5 lbd of King Crab legs for $199! It was delicious and we ended with a trio of desserts (my peanut butter pie was the best).

After lunch we needed to burn some calories so we headed back to explore Millenium Park. We took the obligatory Cloud Gate (Bean) photo and enjoyed watching children splashing and the faces of actual Chicagoans on Crown Fountain. The beauty of the architecture of the Jay Pritzker Pavilion and the BP Bridge are really a sight to see. I never really appreciated the things I don't notice about buildings, landscape architecture and city planning after taking the tours from the CAC!

Before heading to the airport the following morning we went to the five story Starbucks Reserve Chicago Roastery. Even if you aren't a Starbucks fan, it is a sight to see; it's an immersive coffee shop, restaurant, bar, and tasting room experience. Check out this link to see what I'm talking about!

We enjoyed our laid back time in Chicago, but there is so much to do if you like to be more active. The Shedd Aquarium, the Field Museum of Natural History, sporting events or Broadway in Chicago are just a few suggestions. And don't forget a quick stop in The McCormick Bridgehouse & Chicago River Museum while you are down by the Riverwalk. Hopefully the weather will cooperate for you and you'll enjoy and appreciate stunning Chicago for yourself!

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