Most trips are about exploring the unknown in some way; whether it is a new city, a new experience, or a new food. While I had been to Chicago a few times before, this trip showed me parts of the city I hadn't seen before and it was truly beautiful. I think the key to seeing the beauty is to explore the unexpected, to allow yourself time to find things on the way to your actual destination. To be honest, this is a new thing to me. I am driven by a schedule and being on time. This trip, by some misreading of directions when planning, ended up with extra time between activities. This extra time led to some of the most peaceful moments, the most beautiful pictures, and the memories that come to mind first when I think about the trip.
The Walk to Navy Pier
In previous trips to Chicago, I have visited Navy Pier but have always taken a less-than-picturesque street to get there. This time I took a designated "Pedestrian Access Tunnel" to go to Navy Pier. While walking through the tunnel there were 2 city workers painting a mural on one side. On my way back to the hotel I was able to get some pictures of it. The panels of color lit up the otherwise drab tunnel and the close-in-color designs through the panels were fun to see appear as you walk by.
Taking this path took me right to a beach, a beautiful park, and then to Navy Pier itself. Now obviously Lake Michigan would have a beach or two because people do swim in it, but I had never seen any of the beaches in any of my previous trips. This led to me taking far too much time taking pictures of the beach, the waves/tides coming to shore, and of the horizon.
Seeing these sites were the first of several this trip and reminded me that even though I had things to do, that it is important to take time to see the things around you, to be okay with things not going perfectly to plan and make the best of what there is and enjoy the beauty.
I planned Friday of my trip in a way that I would be able to walk the entire day, it ended up being a gorgeous day to do so and I took several unplanned stops throughout the day. The first was on my walk to the Lincoln Park Zoo. From a good distance away, I started seeing a large stone structure. I took a quick look at Google Maps and didn't see anything that would be there, which only piqued my curiosity. It was only as I got closer, and Maps zoomed in on my location a little more, that a historical marker popped up.
When I got up to the monument, I explored the entire thing and was sad to see that there was no monument marker there, nothing to describe what the monument was. I spent a few minutes looking up what the monument was and its origin. Grant was a Civil war hero and a two-term President (elected with no previous political experience) from Illinois. Within days of his death, the people of Illinois started donating money for a monument in his honor. More than a dozen artists competed for the project and it was decided that Louis T. Rebisso would produce the bronze equestrian statue to place atop a Romanesque structure built by William Le Baron Jenney. The monument was officially dedicated in 1891 and fully restored in the mid-1990's.
Lincoln Park Neighborhood
I'm no Chicago expert, but the Lincoln Park Neighborhood is one of the most beautiful parts of Chicago, especially in the Fall. Being away from the hustle and bustle of downtown, the streets were peaceful, and the trees were in full autumn mode. I had gorgeous colors to look at while hearing the crunch of leaves beneath my feet. As I walked from the Lincoln Park Zoo to the meeting point of my first tour, I explored the neighborhood as I went.
On the way to the tour starting point, I found Oz Park. Oz Park is named after Lyman Frank Baum's Wizard of Oz and incorporates several aspects of his story into the park, including statues of the main characters (installed between 1995 and 2007), the Emerald Green green space, and Dorothy's Playlot playground. This park was a peaceful escape from the typical business of Chicago and had great scenery. My leisurely walk through the park to find all the statues and enjoying the fall weather was a true highlight of the day.
Street Performers
In any big city, and some smaller ones, if you spend time walking around downtown you will find street performers. I had about a mile-long walk, just after dark, down Michigan Ave to get to the starting point of the second tour. On my walk, I passed several wonderful performers: a painter, a violinist, dancers, street drummers, and others. Normally these are just in the background of whatever I am doing or going to do, but this trip I had time to stop to watch, listen, and admire the talent. My favorites that I saw were a violinist and 2 dancers - they had a decent crowd around them, and it was truly mesmerizing.
Miscellaneous
Chicago is a very picturesque city, from architecture and art to sites and scenery. I was in Chicago for about 36 hours and took almost 300 pictures. There were several pictures I took on my trip that are share-worthy, but they don't fit anywhere else in the blog, so I will make them fit here.
Photos by row from top left: exterior of The Congress Hotel from Haunted History tour; Metropolitan Correctional Center from Haunted History tour; downtown Chicago at night from The Congress Hotel; Chicago River looking west taken near State St; "The Flamingo" sculpture at Federal Plaza; looking west at sunset from 360 Chicago; Blues bar from Gangsters and Blues tour; Benjamin Franklin statue in Lincoln Park outside of Lincoln Park Zoo; Education Pavilion in Lincoln Park; looking toward downtown Chicago from inside the arches of Ulysses S. Grant monument; sculpture seen walking back to the hotel from Navy Pier; Home Alone house decorated for Halloween.
Thanks for joining me on this adventure. Be sure to come back next week for the final post from my Chicago trip.
See you next time!
Sami
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