The Rest of Chicago

Well this post is happening a bit later than I planned, but this is the first steady internet connection I've gotten since my last post, so I have to go with it. Monday was a fairly relaxed day by my standards, as we had crossed off most of the stuff on our attractions list the first two days, so that all we had left (excluding the things we planned on seeing with my parents when they arrived in Chicago that evening) were a smattering of historic churches and buildings in the North Side, and the mystifying Batha'i house in Evanston, far north of town.

After failing to gain entry into nearly all of the churches, legitimately sneaking into one, and walking down the tree-lined Astor Street, home to some old rich people I'm guessing, we hopped on the CTA and took a twenty-minute ride to the Batha'i House of Worship. This structure reminded me a bit of the Pennsylvania Memorial in Gettysburg, because you never realize how massive it is until you are right next to it. This particular temple is one of only seven on earth, and by far the most impressive, so I was insistent on seeing it. No matter how much of a hassle it was, I do believe that it was worth it. And to give a little background, if your wondering, the Batha'i faith encourages unity among the religions of the world, and the temple itself is a place of prayer and silent meditation for anyone. Visually, (and here I am very frustrated that I can't post a picture) it looks a lot like the Taj Mahal. It is nine sided, domed, and intricately carved in all-white marble. It is one of the more impressive structures I have seen, and if you are ever in the Chicago area I would encourage paying a visit for its aesthetic pleasantry alone. We caught it right as the sun was beginning to set, and the effect was glorious to say the least.

The next day, after my parents had arrived and checked into their hotel, and also after we toured Loyola University Chicago, we saw the famed Water Tower and Pumping Station. As famous as it is, I hate to report that it is basically unremarkable, although the edifice of stone is fairly ornate. No, the more exciting sight of the day was the top of the John Hancock Center, which was surprisingly a much more pleasant experience than the Sears had been. The line wasn't nearly as long, the view was pretty much the same, and there was a small cafe with places to sit and enjoy the view. We also went to the Navy Pier that night and rode the ferris wheel there, which was pleasant as it was decently warm by that time, and then called it a night. In the morning, we toured the University of Chicago, which sucked I'm not going to lie, and then left for Dayton, Ohio, which is where I am now. Tomorrow we will tour the largest air-force base in the country (or the museum at any rate), and I will post on that later, as well as on the exciting "adventure" that we had today attempting to get a nice shot of the Dayton skyline. 

As always, cheers until then. I apologize for this post not exactly being my best writing, but I'm in a bit of a hurry and I'm on an unfamiliar and uncomfortable keyboard, so its not all my fault. 

Windy City One and Two

*Excuse spelling and grammar for now, until I proofread. Very tired right now, too much so to do this.

I didn't have time to post anything last night because I was busy and fatigued, but after day two I'm reasonably well rested and ready to type. The Greyhound ride from Pittsburgh to Chicago was about what you would expect, with your average assortment of shady characters and confused-looking foreigners. With the exception of a 3 AM layover in Cleveland, my friend and I were able to sleep for most of the ten hour trip, and we got to Chicago at about 10 AM yesterday. 

With a packed itinerary, we headed out into the city right away and made for the Sears Tower (It is actually now called the Willis Tower, as you may or may not have heard, but I mean come on, its still the Sears Tower). I will actually be posting a link to the custom google map that we have made to organize our attractions, but I won't be doing this until after we leave Chicago to avoid meeting up with any stalkers. Anyway, thankfully it was a clear day, and we were able to see the promised four states from the top. I have to say that this may have been the most breathtaking view I have ever witnessed, and certainly the highest, at 103 stories up. The wait to get to the top was ridiculously long for this being so far from peak touring season, but I must grudgingly admit that is was worth it. 

From there, we hit most of the remaining downtown attractions (things that you have never heard of), such as the Rookery, the Marquette Building, the Reliance Building, the Oriental Theatre, the Chicago Theatre, the R.R. Donnelley Building, the James R. Thompson Center, and 333 West Wacker Drive. These places may seem obscure, but if you have an appreciation for history, and the Eyewitness travel guide to Chicago is your bible, like it is mine right now, you get pretty excited as you look at the little pictures in the book and then look up at the real thing. By that time, we had a pretty good feel for the city, and had figured out the CTA train network enough to get around, so we headed home before nightfall to get some sleep and strike out again the next day. 

The next day, today, it was supposed to rain, so we planned on visiting some museums. When we got out however, although very windy, it wasn't raining, so we took a walk along Wacker Drive, seeing the stunning Marina City in the process, as well as the Wrigley Building and the Chicago Tribune Tower. From the River Walk, we cut through Millennium Park on our way to the Art Institute of Chicago. Now, you may not know this, but in the park there is a giant jelly-bean like sculpture with a mirror finish. I have seen many picture of it, but in person it is just enormous, and to shun my usual writing voice for a second, this thing was freaking sick. Anyway, the art museum was a good stop, especially considering that we were able to pass for college students and thus get a nice discount on the tickets. After seeing such famous masterpieces as American Gothic, A Sunday on La Grande Jatte, and Van Gogh's Self Portrait, we proceeded to the Adler Planetarium, braving fifteen minutes of brutal wind only to arrive five minutes before closing. It was worth the walk however, as the planetarium, jutting out into Lake Michigan as it does, provided the perfect spot to look upon the entire chicago skyline and get so priceless pictures. 

The sun was beginning to set, so we finally decided to call it a day after seeing the largest public library building in the world, and the oldest surviving passenger railroad station in the city. Now I'm getting really tired, and need to get some sleep, so I will wrap this post up. I haven't put up any pictures because they are all still on my camera, and I have nothing to transfer them with, but I will when I get home or maybe sooner. As for tomorrow's itinerary, I think we are going to check out some historic districts and churches, so I'll probably give some background info on the city in my next post. I'm not sure, but until then, cheers.