Mike and I arrived at our hotel around 5pm (Chicago time) and got all settled in. The traffic wasn't too bad, pretty stressful for us though. The hotel, The Hilton Garden Inn, was amazing and the service was so great. Everybody was really nice and helpful. Our room was on the 21st floor. Looking out the window for the first time made me want to pee my pants....but the view was spectacular.
Above is the view out the window at night...look at the little cars...still makes me squirm... The picture below is from the next day. It shows the reflections of the buildings next to us.
Mike and I cleaned up and were ready to leave at seven. We took a cab to the theater and then got in line to have our tickets taken.
They don't call it the windy city for nothing!! BRRRR! But we didn't have to wait very long, and were soon ushered to our seats. The seats were FANTASTIC!! You could see everything....we were on the floor, dead center, about 30 rows back......amazing.
We didn't have to wait very long before Keith Urban came on stage. I can't even explain to you how great it was; his voice sounded better than on his CDs and the energy he puts into his performance makes the experience that much better. He played for about two hours and it was AWESOME!
Mike and I walked back to our room. We were thinking we walk ahead of the crowd a bit and then try and get a taxi, but it wasn't necessary. Our hotel was only a couple blocks away...it took longer to get to the theater in a cab than it did to walk back!! For the rest of the night, we ordered in room service (ouch! expensive!) and then hung out and watched cable. We didn't last very long...kinda pooped out early because of all the excitement of the day.
The next morning, got up, got ready and went down to the resturaunt in the lobby, The Weber Grill. We recieved breakfast passes as part of our room package. The breakfast was set-up buffet style and was delicious.
After breakfast, we went upstairs and packed. We took all our stuf down to the lobby and checked out. We found out that the valet parking we used the day before was good until four so we were able to put all our stuff in Mike's car and go explore the city a bit.
We got a cab and took it down to Millenium Park. I had been there before, but it is such a cool place. We took our pictures in the Bean...the reflective statue that shows you and the whole city line behind you. The last time I was here, the Bean wasn't finished, but this time it was! We could walk under it and everything...very cool.
Above is a picture looking into the city from Millenium park. Below is a picture in the Bean....The Bean is lookin' a little dirty......
We started waslking up the streets back toward the direction of our hotel so we could check out the downtown area. However, the wind was soooooo cold that we didn't really want to take our time to stop anywhere. We stopped at a Starbucks to get some coffe and hot cocoa to warm up. We made our way back to our hotel area and found the coolest buildings.
Above are twin buildings....the upper sections are offices, I think, but the bottom is parking...Below is a better picture....I wouldn't want to leave my car there....
Back at the hotel, we gave the valet parking stub to an attendent to go get our car. We went inside for a few minutes to thaw and go to the bathroom before we left. We walked around for only about 45 minutes, but it was too cold to be out any longer than that. The city was gorgeous, but I think it would be more fun in a little warmer weather.
The car was brought down to us and we were out on the road again by about 1pm. We got turned around once, but stopped and asked a cop for directions. After that, we made it out into traffic and on our way, no problems. We stopped for dinner at the Cracker Barrel (YUM) on the way home and made it back around 7pm (our time) last night. Whew! It felt like we were gone for several days, instead of just one night. I already miss the hustle and bustle of the city, but don't think I could live there for extended periods of time...nice place to visit. Overall, I would definately say that this was one of the best trips I have ever taken! :D
1 comment:
Awesome photos, Chelle Belle! I'm glad you & Mike had such a great time.
On your next visit to Chicago, try to check out Shedd's Aquarium. Last time we were there, they had a seahorse exhibit that was outstanding. Even the architecture of the building is interesting... seashell lamps, etc.
The bean photo was cool! & I liked the one of the 2 of you at the concert; you both look super happy. I'm assuming that photo was via Mike's long reach with the camera...?
Love,
Aunt Julie
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