Chicago!

For our anniversary celebration this year Jake took me with him to Chicago!

  While there Jake attended a conference with ACOOG (American College of Osteopathic Obstetrics and Gynecology), but was able to take an afternoon off to explore the city with me.

This mirrored sculpture, called the cloud or the "bean", is actually super cool! It reflects the skyline  and sky on all sides beautifully.

 Can you see us? I'll give you a hint. We're standing right next to each other wearing dark colors.

 This is a reflection of Jake taking a picture and me walking across the plaza.

 This is the view from under the bean, looking up. That circle in the middle shows a miniature, upside down reflection of everyone underneath. It's a lot cooler in person, but this gives you an idea.

 A little piece of the Chicago skyline.

 That funny looking building behind us is actually a huge outdoor stage for concerts in the park.

 Chicago in the fall.

 Jake convinced me to go on a Ferris Wheel with him. It was my first time going on one and I was terrified.

 But the view was worth it.

 The Ferris Wheel is on Navy Pier, which sticks out into Lake Michigan and gives a fantastic view of the city.

 Just so you know how tall it is (in other words, how brave I was).

 This city is huge! The skyline along the lakefront goes on forever in both directions.

 Across from the Ferris Wheel they had a building with a greenhouse room. 40 degrees and palm trees!

 This is a city of layers. Walking down the street you see entrances going down to the subway, but the subway doesn't stay underground. The "El" (short for elevated train) is literally elevated above the street. So a lot of times when you're walking you have a train whizzing by above you, and an unseen train beneath. We got to take the El from our hotel back to the airport and it was pretty neat. We started out underground, then quickly rose to roof level, then went back underground, then came back up to roof level. It was especially going through the suburbs, where you would look out the window and see all the rooftops. I can see why it hasn't spread to other cities, though, those trains are loud! There are also layers for street traffic. Sometimes there are traffic bridges, like you would see going over a freeway, in the middle of downtown. But that's not all. There are also bridges between buildings. Our hotel had a bridge to the mall across the street. It's pretty common for two buildings to have a bridge connecting them 20 stories up, like this one.

 This was the river right out side our hotel.

 This is the view we got every time we walked outside. I wish I got a daytime shot. Those buildings are beautiful. Chicago is a fascinating mix of old and new. Some of those buildings in this picture are new, with glass panels covering every side, and some are old stone buildings with beautiful carving and artistic detail. Oh, and that bridge across the way is not for cars. It's for the train.

 So, there you have it. A fun and adventurous three days in the beautiful city of Chicago! A huge thanks to Jake's parents (and siblings) for taking care of our boys and giving us a chance to take a trip together!