The relatively sleepy and uneventful journey suddenly changed when 7 fucking insane deer ran out onto the highway, bearing in mind we were in the fast lane I saw one dart through two lanes of traffic before getting mowed down by our coach.. sorry to be graphic. It felt like we'd hit a car and we were all in total shock whilst the deer sort of lay by the roadside half dead and the driver drove off. However the locals from Detroit barely blinked and one large black woman sat opposite me sits up in her seat all angry when we hit the deer and goes 'We ain't EVER gon' get to Chicago!' then sits back down all pissed off. Took all my strength not to die laughing in her face.
After our first cab ride and wowing at the amazing hostel we went straight out sightseeing on very little sleep and very empty stomachs. The weather the entire weekend was absolutely perfect, not a single cloud, a gentle breeze and not too hot or cold, we were the luckiest ever. Our first meal turned out to be a similar experience to the rest; the Americans we met in Chicago were not the friendliest! Being used to Canadians and living in a small city where people obviously have more time for you, the people who served us barely gave us a second look, and as we discovered later, our British accents actually seriously worked against us! A guitarist sang a few English songs for us as we ate, and we made our first stop at Millennium Park, which contains Cloud Gate, or 'The Bean', a big concert ground, ice skating rink and various sculptures, all alongside Lake Michigan. Cloud Gate totally tripped me out and I fucking loved it, it was much more impressive than I expected, I was so in awe. The city is so clean and vast, the land they have isn't stuffed with every possible thing they can fit in, instead all the attractions are spread out and beautifully presented which I really did love.
We then headed down Michigan Avenue, or the 'Magnificent Mile' as it is famously known; this is basically Chicago's high street with all the major shops and attractions. The main aim for the day 1 was to explore the mile but not go in any shops, as at the end of the mile sat the John Hancock Tower, where we wanted to visit to get the recommended best view of Chicago! Our impressive willpower meant we only popped in a couple of shops, and I was beyond excited to go in them properly. Chicagoans have impressive style, and I found myself wanting every single thing I saw, both in the shops and on the people walking around the streets. The walk took longer than we thought though, as we were all just wandering and staring at all the buildings and shops and people, the buildings in particular are beautiful.
By about 3.30 we made it to the John Hancock, with the idea of going up still in sunlight and waiting until it turned dark to get views of day and night. This was the best idea we had, the view as we went up was absolutely gorgeous, all hazy and sunny, and the tower was situated one block from the lake so the views stretched right across the city. Everyone got snap happy and we waited for the sun to go down, there were plenty of attractions to busy ourselves with for an hour or so, and I managed to get a spot inside the bar/cafe area where the view looked right out over the sun setting. The sunset was a bit of a 'wow' moment for all of us I think, it was like a huge red orange pink ball and it was potentially one of the most beautiful views I've ever seen, in such a different way to the natural landscapes and scenery I've seen so far.
At the bottom of the Tower conveniently sat The Cheesecake Factory, so it would have been rude not to go in for a meal! Meals out were very cheap, and I managed to get a pulled pork sandwich, drink and the BIGGEST slice of cheesecake you've ever seen for less than $20. And it is DEFINITELY no lie about the American portions! I actually hate cheesecake but had the Red Velvet and fell in love. Oops.
Considering we'd been up for over 36 hours, night 1 was spent passing out ready for Day 2.. shopping! We first stopped off by the Buckingham Fountain and for a peek at the lakeside, unfortunately the fountain was turned off as the cold weather is approaching, but the lake front basically looks like the city is on the coast and we got some gorgeous views of the skyline! Shopping was hectic but AMAZING. Absolutely my favourite ever day shopping, never have I had to stop myself buying so much stuff! The shops are so cheap when you convert them back to £, with the exception of Topshop.. I actually wanted to cry wandering around looking at everything I needed in my life and realising the prices were literally double what they are at home. Second homesick moment since moving here! Macys felt like Selfridge's but I did treat myself to a little bit of Mac.. it would be rude not to.
One of my favourite things about visiting the city was listening to the accent.. Chicagoans have SO much attitude and I had to stop myself laughing on so many occasions.. personal highlight was wandering past a 14 year old boy frantically shouting in his mum's face 'IT'S 2.15 MOTHERFUCKER GRAB YO' SHIT'. Almost died on the spot. I also loved their style, and the performers on the streets playing music. Also the fact that every McDonald's was decorated as thought it was a proper restaurant.. I suppose as it is the birthplace I should have expected that!
However this was where we discovered a pattern in our meals out.. at the Cheesecake Factory we'd been shortchanged $20.. luckily Greg spotted it and the waitress instantly handed over the $20 without questioning it which made us suspicious. Then this evening we counted properly, as the bills are all identical and so confusing.. yet still ended up being short about $15. We all paid the extra when I realised I'd put in $20 instead of $1.. and we didn't get that back. The combination of student + tourist + British definitely = easy target. It was the only fault of the weekend!
The newly lit streets made for a stunning and Christmassy walk home, and we ended the night playing the most hilarious night of Cranium in the hostel seeing as we aren't 21 and were fucking shattered. The last day saw us splitting in the morning, four of us went to the Shedd Aquarium away from the downtown on the waterfront. We paid just $5 for General Admission just to see the basic attractions.. yet realised security is not tight whatsoever and we literally got to see the entire aquarium, only with the exception of the dolphin show! Sea Life Centre seems like a puddle compared to it, we saw penguins, otters, every single fish you could imagine, giant turtles, frogs, stingrays, dolphins, and the most amazing Beluga whales, a mother and its two pups. Jenny almost cried. It was hilarious. Being overexcited and underestimating the length of roads as is usual in North America, we met up with the others at Navy Pier a little late.. Blackpool pier eat your heart out, it was so huge we couldn't even be bothered to walk right to the end! Poor form from us.
We were all feeling gutted that hometime was calling soon and went exploring all the rest of the Mile that we'd already missed, making sure we made the use of every last minute. Our coach was at midnight and checking out was at 9, so with some creeping around the hostel and sneaking off for a final deep dish pizza, we timed everything perfectly and were fortunately not homeless tramps in downtown Chicago. Not ideal.
The weekend was absolutely perfect and we were the luckiest people ever in every possible way, I am desperate to go back when I'm 21 and explore the bars and clubs! At 6am changing in Detroit we got chatting to a girl who goes to McGill in Montreal, yet her job involves hosting parties and looking after celebrities.. she'd just had an all expenses paid weekend in Chicago staying at a $700 a night hotel and attending parties with Richie Hawtin and Loco Dice.. I almost died! Turns out she's bezzies with Richie and was determined to show us the best of Montreal, as it's exactly one month today until I get there, and swapped e-mails promising to tell us the best of the tourist attractions and to get us into the best of the clubs and DJ nights. Excitement would be an understatement! LOVE YOU CHICAGO.
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| Empty Buckingham Fountain |
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| Greggles at Lake Michigan |
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| TJ?!?! |
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| Immature as always |
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| Beluga whales! |
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