The Gang Gets COVID - Part 1

As you've likely seen in previous blog posts, Chris and I have been enjoying our time here in the Bluegrass area of Kentucky.  We've explored many different areas of nearby Lexington (often courtesy of some lovely friends we've made there), and we've hit up several surrounding distilleries, arts and crafts fairs, and local restaurants.  For the long Labor Day weekend, we decided to take a few days off from work and head even farther afield - to the Windy City - Chicago, IL!

Sears Tower selfie!

We found a Travelzoo deal and booked a room at Claridge House, a smaller hotel in the Gold Coast area of the city; we'd be within walking distance of many things (within a mile of Lincoln Park and the Lake), a short train ride/bus away from several others, plus, since it was only a six hour drive, we'd have the car for longer excursions as well.  The kids had reservations at their boarding spot, and we packed and prepared as our Thursday departure date drew closer. 

Unfortunately, on Wednesday, trouble reared its head in the form of Chris starting to feel out of sorts.  While he wasn't running a fever, he was fatigued and feeling kind of achy, and he was starting to develop the signs of a head cold.  After checking the dogs into boarding on Thursday, we stopped at the pharmacy to grab him some Advil Cold and Sinus (the good stuff from behind the counter), and packed an extra box of tissues, hand sanitizer, and Kn95 masks into the car for the trip north.  The first leg of our trip took us through Louisville and on to Indianapolis, where we stopped for lunch at the Smoking Goose Meatery.  

It's Indy!

That's my muffaletta up front - sooooo good

While the Goose is mainly a retail establishment, full of amazing smoked and pickled options, it also has a deli counter with a small selection of sandwiches and salads.  Our picks - I ordered the muffaletta while Chris got the sandwich of the day - were both seriously outstanding; we swapped halfway through, and we were equally pleased with the lunch the other one of us selected.  We grabbed some dessert options to go and got back on the road - trust me when I say we'll be thinking about those sammies for quite some time, and if you're ever in Indy, you absolutely must give the Goose a spot on your itinerary.

Our next stop was just outside of Chicago, in Munster, Indiana, at 3 Floyds Brewing.  3 Floyds is well known in craft brewing circles, and they're one of those amazing east coast options that we couldn't consistently find on shelves until we relocated to this part of the country.  Although their taproom was closed for remodeling, their retail shop was open, and we stocked up on beer and swag.

The retail kiosk is inside the new distillery building, which is incredible

Some in progress shots of the distillery - look at that amazing ceiling and those cool light fixtures

There's also a huge plant wall on one side of the eating area -

the folks there told me the plants were real, but they were coated in resin, so no longer alive

After indulging our beer related retail fantasies, it was back into the car and onto the final push into the big city.  Although our 9am departure time from home should have put us here around 2pm CDT, road construction, accidents, and stopping for lunch and beer took its toll, and we rolled into town around 4pm; as you might image on a Thursday afternoon, the traffic wasn't great.  Eventually, we made it to the hotel, parked the car, and got all of our stuff into the room.

Chris was driving this leg, so I got to play travel photog and take some shots from the car

The DNC was there the weekend before we arrived

The Chicago Picasso in Daley Plaza

The towers at Marina City, known as the Corn Cobs.

Our friends told us about a cool architecture tour you can take on a boat on the Chicago River, 

but we couldn't make it happen this time (the Towers are riverside)

Due to our later than planned arrival and Chris not feeling well (he was being a trooper - there was only a small amount of whining), we changed and headed to dinner before too long, at the Girl and the Goat.  Most of you probably know that we love Top Chef, and Stephanie Izard, owner of the Girl and the Goat, is an alumnus of the program.  When we started planning this trip, we knew we absolutely had to eat at her spot, and it completely lived up to our expectations.  The menu is made up of shared plates of different sizes, so after ordering some outstanding cocktails, we dined on (in no particular order):  the beer brioche, the sichuan spiced tomato-peanut salad (my favorite dish), the ora king salmon poke, the crispy short ribs (Chris' choice for yummiest), and the goat empanadas.  Everything was absolutely incredible, as was the strawberries & cream semifreddo for dessert.

That's my cat's pajamas on the left and Chris' green street manhattan on the right

Our poke dish

Extremely stuffed and very pleased about it, we meandered out to catch the train back to our hotel, stopping for a nightcap at Division on the Rocks, a full bar located on the second floor of a nearby grocery store.  Chris' whiskey was great, but my dark and stormy needed some work (I ordered it as I figured it was near impossible to mess up - apparently, "near" impossible still leaves room for improvement).  Even though the quality was a mixed bag, it was still kind of fun to be enjoying adult beverages surrounded by people shopping for veggies.

Yup, we're in Chicago all right

Although we both crashed out pretty hard on Thursday night, neither of us slept well.  My first night in a new spot is always a struggle for me, even when I take a melatonin, and Chris tossed and turned, coughing and sneezing.  We were both pretty beat the next morning, and since we were up earlier than planned, we figured we'd go ahead and head to our breakfast spot a little before originally anticipated.  Thankfully, the Plein Air Cafe was open when we arrived, and before too long, we were sipping caffeinated drinks and noshing on morning foods.  The Cafe is on the grounds of the University of Chicago, and it's literally right next door to our morning's entertainment, the Frederick C. Robie house, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.

Posing with the lovely row homes across the street from our hotel

The 10 mile drive to the Robie House took 25 minutes, and part of it went along Lakeshore Blvd.

That's Lake Michigan!

An absolutely outstanding shot of Navy Pier

The Field Museum - we planned to visit there the next day and see Sue, but it didn't work out (spoiler alert)

After we finished up breakfast, we wandered the University of Chicago's campus for a bit; the morning was still cool, and the scenery was gorgeous.

The tower at the Saieh Hall for Economics, which used to belong to the Chicago Theological Seminary.

A shot of the front of the Economics Hall

The Rockefeller Memorial Chapel, currently being restored

When I bought the tickets for the interior tour of the Robie House, I noticed there was a very small upcharge to also take the self-guided exterior tour, and I signed us up for both; since we were early, we picked up our audio guides when the Robie House gift shop opened at 9:30, and we spent the last 30 minutes before our interior tour started wandering the nearby streets and learning about the area.

Starting our tour outside of the Robie House

The Robie House is on a corner directly across from...

...the Booth Harper Center, the University's School of Business.

A much newer building, the architect modeled it on the Robie House,

including the use of open space at the top and cantilevered awnings.

Before too long, it was time to start our interior tour of the famous house; you know us - we have 8,000 pictures, so that'll have to be on the next blog!  Stay tuned!

Later!

Amy