From Chicago to LA by car and train - Day 2 - Chicago

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I woke up at 4am and couldn't get back to sleep. Finally DS started stirring at around 6am so we covertly got dressed and crept out of the room so we wouldn't wake DH. I'd forgotten what time breakfast was so we went to ask the front desk what the hours were. Coffee was available in the lounge before breakfast started and fruit infused water was available too. DS and I went for a short walk a couple of blocks around the hotel. He was amazed at the number of USA flags there were flying from buildings.

We were ready for breakfast by this point so we went back to the hotel and woke DH up. The breakfast had a good range of food. DS tried froot loops and wasn't impressed! They had scrambled eggs, potatoes, sausage patties, tortillas and cheese for breakfast burritos, cereal, pastries, yoghurts, waffles, fruit and coffee and juice. The breakfast is free as part of your stay and we were all really impressed with the hotel.

Despite planning this trip for 3 years I'd only worked out what we were going to do in Chicago the day before! The architecture boat tour had been recommended to us which DH and I would have enjoyed but they recommend children are 12+ and it was a lot of money if DS was going to be bored. So instead I decided on a trip on the water taxi. DS was really looking forward to visiting Dylan's Candy Bar so that was the second stop alongside a look at the Chicago Tribune building. Finally a visit to Navy Pier.

Our closest stop to the Water Taxi route was La Salle but we walked to the previous stop (Ogilvie/Union) to have a longer trip. The fare was $6 each one way and we were heading to Michigan Avenue. The trip was around 15 minutes long and we saw loads of amazing buildings as well as watching kayaking groups trying to navigate the rest of the river traffic! Here are a few photos:

This is Marina City which was one of my favourite buildings:

The reflections of the opposite buildings created some great distortions:

We arrived at Michigan Avenue and walked a few blocks to the Chicago Tribune building. I wanted to see this after watching Billy Connolly's Route 66 and the building itself was fascinating with all the parts of different buildings around the world embedded in it. I knew that Dylan's Candy Bar was close by but hadn't realised it was actually in the Chicago Tribune building so DS almost didn't realise he was there! The shop is amazing and DS was in his element. We'd seen a youtube video about it but seeing was believing! So much colour in one place. The bulk of the sweets were downstairs but upstairs gave you a great vantage point of the whole store.

After much deliberation DS finally paid for his much anticipated pick and mix box.

We finally dragged DS away from the sugar and walked to Navy Pier. This was a mistake as it was very hot and seemed a lot closer than it was. DS cooled off in the fountain outside when we arrived. We really liked Navy Pier. There was a good mix of shops, restaurants and entertainment. We were all in need of some food so went to the food court and chose pizza slices. DS barely ate anything but managed some fries. He normally has a very healthy appetite so it was quite frustrating that he wasn't eating. The tonsillitis had really affected his appetite unfortunately.

Next we went for a ride on the ferris wheel. The family we shared a cabin with told us all about the history of the pier. Lake Michigan was vast - hard to believe it was a lake and not the sea!

DS spotted this which I went on with him after the ferris wheel.

We then walked to the end of the pier and had a few beers on the way as part of their summer 'Walk the pier with a beer' event. DS had a portion of little ice-cream balls which we'd never seen before. I gave DS the money so he could order his own. He's normally very well mannered when asking for things in shops but he totally confused the man on the stall by saying to him "I'll 'ave a small mint choc chip" as if he was ordering a pint at the bar! They didn't understand Yorkshire in Chicago! There was a live band playing as well which we listened to for a bit. We headed back to the entrance to buy some souvenirs. If you are ever on Navy Pier do not make the mistake of walking back to the beginning on the right hand side facing the city. This was almost like a service entrance with pedestrians only being allowed to walk single file on the sidewalk. It was a long, hot walk with nothing much to look at and no overtaking possibilities! Finally we could cross the road to the ferris wheel area and get back into the air conditioning. DS and DH looked at t-shirts and baseball caps. DS took almost as long choosing a Chicago baseball cap as he did in Dylan's Candy Bar...and then chose a Boston Red Sox one!

We took the free Navy Pier trolley back towards our hotel and chilled out for a bit as we were all tired by this point. We were going to go out for dinner but as DS wasn't hungry we ordered takeout from a local restaurant called Italian Village which was only a couple of blocks from where we were staying. The portions were huge but very tasty and it meant no more walking!

Looking back I can't believe how much we did in one day!

Tomorrow our last morning in Chicago before boarding the Southwest Chief.

[FloRidaLvr]

Enjoyed reading this thanks, subscribed!

[WileyCoyote]

Wow, what a fab day. Never seen Chicago before so really loved your pics and reading about your day. It looked brilliant.

[TinkerBabe]

Thank you for sharing, Chicago is on my bucket list.

A friend went to visit her son who lives with his family near Lake Michigan, when she showed me the pictures I couldn't believe they were sitting on the shore of the lake, as it was lovely white sand and a sparkling blue sea. Amazing!

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I wish we could have stayed longer - so much to see and do!

[Guest]

Love Chicago. Will be back there again next year. Shame you didn't do the Seadogs which take you out on the lake (at speed). Great to look back at the city from out on the water.

[hross42877]

Busy day, Dylan's sounds fab!

[liz-paul]

Really enjoyed this! Have decided I want to do the California Zephyr train from Chicago to San Francisco (with a week or so in Utah in the middle) and I hadn't ever thought of visiting Chicago before, but your photos look great 😁