Seeing Chicago by all modes of transportation--Day 9 Part 1

After gulping down the same breakfast as yesterday (continental breakfasts are great, but lack in variety:) we set off for a true adventure. Today we are going to use public transportation to get around Chicago.

#1 Park-n-Ride. It took us most of our visit to master traveling on the L-train. Purchasing tickets was our bane. Unless you find someone at your first stop to purchase a reduced (child's) fare you pay adult fees. The kids had fun sticking in the pass, pulling it out and rushing through the gate. Using the L is just like an subway system I've used, its the different means of paying and transfers that makes each unique.

Our first planned stop was the Willis (Sears) Tower. Unfortunately, Chicago has weathering a storm and there was no visibility up top. So as true spontaneous people, we shifted our plans and set off for Navy Pier.

#2 Water Taxi. You can pay for a narrated trip down Chicago River, but we opted for the cheaper and quicker route. Course, we got lucky and one of the workers gave us a tour. He pointed out the area that were destroyed by the Great Fire and bragged about his city. Here are some of our sites.

House of Blues	My favorite building	The lower part is parking... I'd pay a valet to do that!
Twice a week, bridges remain up for sailboats to run the river 	The L-train crossing the bridge

Despite not seeing a clear view of the skyline, the weather was perfect--the humidity was down and it felt like Chicago should...chilly. Once we got off set off for Navy Pier via a....

#3 Trolley It was a bit of a wait, so we pulled out our sandwiches and watched traffic and one full trolley go by. Stuffed into the back we set off for Navy Pier--carnival, museums, lake rides and shops. Part of our GoChicago pass paid for a 30 minute excursion on the lake. Funny story...for each attraction you book, you discount gets cheaper. When I added the boat ride, our cost went down $10 with four events versus three.

 

#4 Boat Ride. We bundled up, snapped some foggy shots while we listened to a pre-recorded tour of the region...."Off to you right is the skyline" and "In the distance you can see..." Trouble was we couldn't see anything. Oh, well....

Our pass to Navy Pier included five rides--Carousal, Wave Swinger (hanging chairs in a circle), Lighthouse, Ferris Wheel and Miniature Golf. We had a blast skipping around to each and seeing more from the ferris wheel down than Chicago proper in the distance.

Shedd Museum--Where every possible fish lives--Day 8

After a nice simple morning--no trudging off to bathrooms, packing up and cooking outdoors--we set off to see Chicago. Today's schedule...The Shedd Museum. I had purchased a GoChicago card to get discounts (the prices were great, but typical in the limit to your activities).

Chicago is huge and sprawling, not as much like New York with crowded skyscrapers. We learned that it was a trend setter for metal structures after the Chicago fire destroyed most of downtown. Its fairly easy to navigate...if you don't have a parade to avoid (and we hit two). The weekend prior, the Chicago Blackhawks had won the Stanley cup (hockey). Crowds were bearing downtown so police were out restricting left hand turns. We, of course, missed a couple of turn offs, and with our options limited it took us double the time to get to the museum.

Ironically, I met a gal from Utah at Nauvoo while getting ready in the morning who had just come from Chicago (doing the reverse of our trip). She gave me pointers on parking--street parking (timed) is less, just restrained.

TIP#8 RESEARCH PARKING OPTIONS VERSUS PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION. GATHER MAPS AND TIMES AND CARRY WITH YOU.

Okay, warning! Tons of pictures to follow (and they are only 10% of what we took). We choose Shedds over other museums because we wanted to see dolphins perform (which wasn't included in our package). Other museums are industry, children's, observatories. That said, we had tons of fun observing fish from all over the world and we saw a better dolphin show below!

AMPHIBIANS

 OUTRAGEOUS FISH

The kids dubbed this guy "Buck Teeth"
Ok, this guy isn't real, but we saw a few that were nearly his length. You had to view them from different places to get the whole. HUGE!	Check out this guys size compared to the girls!	 This is Rachel's shot. Mine of the seahorse were fuzzy



NEAT FROM ALL ANGLES

This guy had his jaw stuck open Creepy!!	Here is another...normal style.
The beluga whales were fun to watch.	Once you washed your hands you could touch starfishes.

The kids had a blast. "Film this Mom", "Check out this one". Like all good museums, they had a kids area, and for Dave, plenty to read:)

 

You probably thought that took us the whole day, but hunger and a ticking parking meter had us on our way. We stopped at Kim & Carlo's Chicago Style Hotdog Stand (written up as the best in Chicago, right outside of the Field Museum next door to the Shedd). I officially love this assortment of hotdogs--pickles, hot peppers, mustard, onions, celery salt and a prime hotdog...no ketchup!

Our eating companion... 

 

 

Next door was Soldier Field (where the Chicago Bears play) and after a long jaunt around it we stopped for statue posing and then headed home. A beautiful day and a great introduction to CHICAGO.



Yep, that's the L above us.

 



Carthage to Chicago- Day 7

When it dawned on me that we were visiting Carthage on June 27 (Thursday), I was overpowered by emotions. To stand where they did and imagine what their feelings were--frustration and fear... Here we were 169 years later, where two of the greatest men were martyred. The church does an amazing job with their introductory films and we had a sweet older sister missionary lead us through the jail. My testimony of the truthfulness of the restoration grew by leaps during the past two days. I am in awe at the dedication and devotion of Joseph and the early saints.

A few tidbits of info--this jail is in its original form. Only the yellow structure was added during the time it served as a actual residence. In that state the feeling is mellow, not somber like the concentration camps I have visited--a true testament that those killed died for their work, creating a stronger religious base. The men were in the jailors personal bedroom when shots were fired, not the actual jail.

After Carthage, we set off for Chicago via some cities in Dave's mission...at least that was the plan. After winding through Galesburg and spotting little to remember, we opted to take a quicker route to Chicago.

We entered the metropolis of Chicago with little problem, except for knowing when to pay for tolls. Our hotel was impossible to find (at this point it didn't surprise me at our lack of success, yet it was comforting to know that most find even GPS unsuccessful at finding the location).

With Subway in our tummies, we settled into our hotel and set about doing laundry. I had mentally figured a larger room--nope, an old fashioned coin driven washer and dryer. At least I came prepared with a book. The kids enjoyed fiddling around on the exercise equipment. I was, however, looking forward to a bathroom next to our beds!