C is for Chicago

Early in 1992,  my good friend, Susan, and I decided that we wanted to attend an American Nurses Association Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada. We could pick up all of our CEU's, our husbands could come along with us and enjoy the casinos, and we could  make it into a long vacation , see the Grand Canyon, and take a trip to Chicago on the way back home. So we put my husband in charge of planning. This is something that he loved to do. He would plot the trip, plan the side visits and book the rooms. The trip started in Las Vegas where we really enjoyed a four-day convention. But today I am going to talk about Chicago, the end of the trip.

C is For Chicago

We drove into Chicago and found our accommodations  in the heart of the city, at The Best Western Plus River North Hotel. This was a towering hotel where we could park the car and either walk or take pubic transportation for the duration of our stay. We explored the city from one end to the other. I don't  remember anything special about the hotel so it must not have been all that.  But I do remember many things about Chicago. 

One of our favorite parts of this trip was  sightseeing we did by traveling on the green and red Hop On Hop off trollies. The only way to see the city, in my opinion. We traveled the signature Magnificent Mile and the Loop and hopped on and off all day long. And enjoyed listening to the tour guides tell us about The Windy City. 

We visited Navy Pier, a long pier on the Chicago shoreline of Lake Michigan. Navy pier started out life as a cargo facility for freighters. It now houses many shops, kiosks, restaurants and other types of entertainment. No trip to Chicago would be complete without a visit to Navy Pier. While at Navy Pier we stopped in a restaurant by the name of Dick's Last Resort. The reason for stopping was none other than my husband's name is Richard and he wanted to take home a vulgar glass that had printed on it " I had a drink at Big Dick's". I know, disgusting, huh? But we were provided with a couple of hours of intense fun and entertainment as we experienced some of the rudest, most foul-mouthed wait staff ever encountered in a restaurant  And they WERE supposed to act that way. I understand that this restaurant is no longer open at Navy Pier. Probably offended too many straight laced people. 

English: Picture of Navy Pier taken from Lake Point Tower, 23rd floor. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

We strolled the streets of Chicago the first night that we were there. When we left the hotel the doorman told us which directions to take and what directions to avoid. I had my first glance at BIG CITY street people. This was not something we had in our little hometown. A man approached us to sell us some watches, rings, or necklaces. A nice smile from me  and he followed for us for another block! My husband told me to quit smiling at people! More than a few homeless people sleeping on benches and next to buildings. People who played musical instruments or sang for a buck  A truly sad, but interesting site. 

My most memorable part of Chicago was riding the "L". This is part of Chicago's Transit Authority.  (CTA-L) The L runs above ground, in tunnels, in tubes and you can get all around Chicago by riding the L. We rode the L to many areas of Chicago, just for the fun of riding the subway. 

Also on our " Chicago Bucket List" was to experience Chicago Pizza. We ate pizza in a little bar close to our hotel and  I cannot remember the name of it. After running around the city all day we dined in this pub ordering beer and pizza. I am  sorry to say that I didn't find it to be all that different that a good deep-dish Pizza Hut Pizza. For shame, for shame!

 There are just the highlights of our very short stay in The Windy City