Chicago, Illinois (2014)
In 2014, I celebrated my 15th year with my company and my awesome boss decided to send my wife and I on a trip anywhere in the Unites States.
My birthday was coming up in January and it was the middle of hockey season, so we decided to head to Chicago for a few days and catch a Blackhawks game at the United Center. In hindsight, we maybe should have planned the timing a little better. Not only is January the middle of hockey season, but it is also the dead of winter in Chicago and almost too much for these Texans to handle. We bundled up and made it through and had the time of our lives. |
The Subway
Mancie and had been to Chicago once before and was pretty familiar with the subway system and public transportation in general. However, I was not, and was not looking forward to it all. At this point in my life, the only subway I had seen was the one where you get the sandwiches or the ones on TV were you get mugged and then murdered and them mugged again. So need less to say, I was scared to death. It didn't get any better when not 2 minutes after boarding my first subway train, some crazy stood up and started spouting off a laundry list of all the things he had done wrong in his life and how he had planned to make his peace. Of course all I could really hear is, "I am about to kill this fat white man!" And like most of our adventures I made it through unscathed as Mancie sat in the background laughing her butt off the entire time. I have since used public transportation in several other big cities and have learned to love their efficiency (most of the time) and their value. In hindsight, Chicago has stood head and shoulders above the rest. |
The Food
One of our favorite things to do when we visit new places is to try regional food. It is difficult at times to find anything specific to the region, but in Chicago, there are several. The first would be Chicago Deep Dish Pizza. Other than the hockey game, probably the highlight of the trip. We were able to try Pizzeria Uno and Lou Malnati's. I preferred Lou's and Mancie preferred Uno. |
The Sites
There are tons of things to see in Chicago. Our plan for each day was to walk out of our hotel room and pick a direction and walk as far as we could. We visited the Willis Tower, the Big Bean, Millennium Park, Navy Pier, Soldier Field as well as countless other places. We spent a lot of time on the hop on hop off bus ride which circled the city. We have found that the hop on hop off bus tours are the best and least expensive way to see big cities. |
The Hockey
The highlight of the trip was of course the hockey. Not only did we get to see our team, The Blackhawks, in their home stadium. We got to see them again 2 nights later. Getting to and from the stadium was a bit of a chore. We had to ride the subway and the bus to get to where we needed to go. The first game was confusing and we ended up getting to the arena 2 hours before the gates opened. Not the best neighborhood around the United Center, but as always, we survived. By the 2nd game, we had it down and had no problems getting there, or back to the hotel. |