Chicago

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So, i left for Chicago with Matt and Nick at 5pm and we once again clambered onto a greyhound and endured a 12 hour bus ride. The highlight for me personally was when i had to pay $6 us dollars at the border, but had no US money on me and was consequently sent out into the very cold night (this was i think at about 12 or 1 in the morning) with fairly vague directions towards a place i could exchange my Canadian dollars for "real money".
Anyway i made it through otherwise with no worries and we arrived in Chicago fairly disgruntled at 5 in the morning. What is there to do at 5 in the morning? Sit in a greyhound bus station for a couple of hours until check in.
The greyhound is great if you're on a budget but otherwise certainly keeps you on your toes in terms of transporting some fairly interesting characters. And certainly has a reputation for it given the general cringe reaction when you tell people you took the greyhound.
None of us were especially keen on wasting the day so instead of napping (tempting as it was) we got some breaky, some much needed coffee and went sight seeing.
The first, and i will unashamedly admit the most exciting (at least for that day) was going to see the NBC studios where Jerry Springer is filmed. Day time TV would not have been the same were it not for Jerry and his hoes with woes and boyfriends who are actually gay and dating their 'girlfriends' mothers best friend/lover's son in law. We actually inadvertently made it into the building which most don't after following somebody in so managed to get some good photos.
Next it was onto the John Hancock building which is the tallest building in North America, is 100 floors high and was completed in 1970.
The observation deck is on the 94th floor but if you have the money you can go up to the 96th and have a drink. You can see lake Michigan, Illinois and Michigan from the top. Up there, Matt, Nick and I ended up getting a free Cartoon done which is pretty funny, i have a photo so it's going up here for sure.
After that we puttered around Chicago, watched some kids on the streets perform with just buckets and drumsticks (it was impressive) which we watched as we had to wait for 30 minutes when the lift bridge failed (it came back down on top of itself).
It was Saturday so naturally we went out for the night with a bunch of other travelers to a couple of places. Chicago has a pretty impressive night life, and we had a lot of fun. North Americans have a habit in bars of serving peanuts and the patrons crack them and just drop them on the floor. I personally think it's ridiculous but it's quite common.
Next day we headed to the Chicago Museum of Contemporary art which was great, i saw some pretty famous works, including stuff by munch and Van Gogh, but personally the photographs were my favourite.
I'd say the most interesting part of my day was the bizarre eating experience i had in a small diner not far from the hostel. Informed that while in Chicago i had to try an Italian beef sandwich i ordered one, all of us did. Apparently, the bun is meant to be moist (saturated). But it tasted pretty good. The diner is the kind of place where the owners' comical yet haphazard and rather blunt approach to customer service leaves you thinking that perhaps, by ordering, you put them out.
After that it was onto the Sears building which is another distinctive feature of Chicago's skyline, and then onto the biggest fountain I've ever seen by lake Michigan.
Something else you are supposed to try in Chicago in deep pan pizza. So we went to one of the more popular pizzerias, waited for 40 minutes to be seated and tried them out. They are basically a thick thick base and inches thick topping but probably one of the best pizzas you'll ever try. The concept would probably send jenny Craig into therapy but everyone there is clearly, really enjoying their meal.
Then we continued on and went onto the Hyat and into the bar/lounge there called 'BIG' where they serve 'BIG' cocktails...two was enough for the 5 of us. The concierge there, under the impression that we where guests, then offered us info about a range of blues clubs including free passes into one, so we piled into a taxi and checked out Chicago's blues seen. These places have such a great atmosphere and i really enjoyed myself. The music was amazing, and most of the atmosphere is due to the energy and talent of the musicians.

Monday it was to the zoo! The Lincoln zoo is a free zoo in Lincoln park, it was a little...ah...desolate? which actually suited me because it spelt the absence of spoilt and screaming children and large crowds all straining to get a look. But who knew that the crowds that usually frustrate you are what give a place like a zoo that certain friendly vibe. It was fairly standard as far as zoos go but was a little sweeter cos it was free.
On the way back we passed an impressivley large statue of Abraham Lincoln and i felt the need to climb up and sit on his chair, in spite of the consequential wet butt and sleeves in 10 degree weather, i thought it was worth it.

So i left Chicago that night. After saying goodbye to the boys at 9.30 i was left to wait, once again, in a greyhound station and start my 3 day journey to Seattle via Minneapolis.
I recommend Chicago to everyone, it's a fucking cool city, with no end of things to do, an impressive amount of culture. It's beautifully clean, and pleasant, and has that modern and contemporary vibe that you might feel in New York but with out the stressful and constant hustle and bustle.

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