Kayla's Trip

Every day that Kayla was here, we went nonstop to see the sights, eat the food and live the life of Chicago. There was no stopping us, and no stopping the tens of buses, trains, and taxis we took to get from destination to destination. The best part of her trip was that it actually got me going. Without her here (and even with the same number of days off), I would have probably stayed home quite a bit, played video games, read, worked out, and went out at night to the same places I've been going since I got here. Now, don't get me wrong, those are all great things to do on my days off, and I can't wait to get back to them, but sometimes it takes the adventurousness (yes, that's a word) of a visitor to get people out of their everyday routine. As you'll see, that's exactly what this trip did.

December 17 (Saturday)

Kayla's flight got in early so I had to be up at 8 to meet her at the airport. Luckily for me, it was snowing outside, and I got to walk through the snow while listening to Christmas music on my iPod. For those of you who have never done such a thing, please do. It seriously gives songs like "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!" and "White Christmas" a new meaning.

Anyway, back to the main plot point. I took the bus, then the train to the airport where I met Kayla, and realized how nice it was to see a familiar face. As we were waiting to buy bus passes, a man sold her his 7 day pass (that now had 3 days left) for $5, for a total overall savings of $9. So after we finished our black market deal with him, I bought my pass and we headed out. Let me just stop right here to say that I am so glad I got a 3 day pass instead of using just a regular $20 or $30 card because I have never used the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) buses and trains as much as I did over the following days. I probably would have spent $30 on all the rides we took, and I only had to spend $14. I also learned a valuable lesson about the availability and usefulness of the city buses, instead of just depending on the trains.

One of my favorite views in Chicago

Before we took her suitcase to my apartment, we went downtown and saw the Christkindlmarket, which is a little German "village" set up in the middle of downtown with little shops that sell ornaments, fudge, German foods and many other little knick-knacks (http://www.christkindlmarket.com/en/). Even though it was the middle of the day, we decided to drink some gluhwein, which is a hot spiced wine that came in a little Christkindlmarket ceramic boot. Delicious stuff, gluhwein, especially on a cold day. After that, we did a little bit of major sightseeing (Willis Tower, the JW Marriott I work at, and the Chicago River).

Christkindlmarket, in the middle of dowtown

Once we were over the downtown scene, we headed back to my apartment, set Kayla's stuff in my room, and were off again without missing a beat. We ate lunch at a little restaurant called Vines next to Wrigley Field to get ready for our grand adventure for the day (and my favorite part of the entire trip): the Home Alone house.

Wrigley Field

Every part of this little adventure to Winnetka, Illinois was enjoyable. It was my first time riding the Metra (the trains that run to suburbs and cities outside of Chicago, and actually runs all the way to Wisconsin) and it was much different than the city trains, and more like the Amtrak I rode from Fort Worth to Austin. Once we arrived in Winnetka, we saw the train station we believe to be part of the movie (but we weren't positive). We then walked past the little downtown area and onto Lincoln Ave., where the house is located.



Me and Kayla at the Home Alone house


Seeing the house was like meeting a celebrity. We had both seen it over and over in the movies since we were little and now here it was in front of us. Let's just say it was amazing. It was a little smaller than I had imagined, but it was just as awesome. A couple other groups were taking pictures so we got some good pictures together in front of it, which was the most important part (the proof, you might say).

We ended the night at a couple of my favorite bars that I thought I would show Kayla, just so she would know where the coolest spots to hang out are. Bed was a welcome relief, however, after a long day of exploring.

December 18 (Sunday)

Sunday began with brunch (a Chicago tradition) at a little diner I like to go to called Stella's. We ate a delicious meal of french toast and eggs and headed out for a day full of fun and sightseeing.

Our first major stop was Navy Pier, which was packed full of people, despite the chill in the air and the wind coming off of the lake. It was just as fun as I remembered it though, and we quickly got on (and regretted) the Ferris Wheel that the Navy Pier is known for. It offered some amazing views of the city, but the wind was crazy and our little Ferris-Wheel-cart-thing was rocking ridiculously, however many feet above the pier and the lake surrounding it.

Ferris Wheel at Navy Pier

At the top

After our near-death experience and some candy shopping, we hopped on a bus to Millennium Park. It was my first time visiting, and we saw all the toursity things I hadn't seen before. The ice rink lit up at night, the amazing sculpture that encompasses the main stage of the auditorium, the famous Bean and these weird video faces projected onto large rock-like sculptures. I can't believe it took me that long to see some of the most famous Chicago sights, but I'm glad it's finally happened.

The Bean at Millennium Park

Next (and last) on our stop was the Lincoln Park Zoo. It was much more crowded on this trip, mostly because of the Zoo Lights, which is amazing display of Christmas lights that they have every year that is still completely free to the public. We didn't see much in the way of animals, but the light displays covering every surface of the zoo made up for it. It really got me in the Christmas spirit, something that I had been needing for a while. This was probably my favorite thing of the day, because it was so nice to be outside in the cold, looking at lights and being surrounded by kids (and even parents) in awe of the show around them. Something about it just felt so much like Christmas.

Zoo Lights

Lincoln Park Zoo

December 19 (Monday)

Our Monday started off slow, as we ate breakfast around the house and had a little trouble getting up and going (or maybe it was just me). As soon as we were out, though, we headed way south and hit up one of the stops Kayla really wanted to see: U.S. Cellular Field, home of the White Sox.

U.S. Cellular Field, home of the White Sox

After arriving, we headed to the gift shop and found out from an employee that they weren't giving tours of the field, but there was a number we could call if we wanted to take a quick peek inside and snap some photos. And so it was! Kayla called the number, we found the office, and soon enough we were standing right behind home plate (but don't step on the grass, please). We got an amazing photo opportunity and left, feeling accomplished for taking the extra step to get the pictures Kayla wanted.

Kayla inside U.S. Cellular

We then went further south, to the University of Chicago, because that's where I had stayed last summer on my trip to Chicago. Not only was I eager to see the campus again and relive my first memories of the city, I thought the castle-like buildings would have a cool impact on Kayla, considering our college campus nearly resembled that of a high school.

The University of Chicago

It was just as cool as I remembered. I saw all the places we visited last summer, and it brought back memories of Sarah, Preston and Emily, some of my best friends that I helped form my opinion of Chicago as a city and as a place to live. It was kind of sad, in a way, just because I realized how far away I am from everyone, and how far we've all come in our lives. I can't say, however, that Kayla had such mixed emotions about the campus, but I think she thought the buildings were cool, which was kinda what I was hoping for.

Our night ended in a mix between the last two, a little bit of bar, but mostly a tired couple of sightseers. After a couple drinks we headed home for the night, wondering what the next day had in store.

December 20 (Tuesday)

Not that much, it turns out. We got up earlier than usual because Kayla had to leave by 4 to get to the airport, but after breakfast and lunch, there wasn't much time left in the day. We tried to redo our White Sox experience at Wrigley Field (home of the Chicago Cubs), but to no avail. Due to construction inside the field, they weren't allowing any visitors.

And that's essentially where this story, and Kayla's visit, ends. I had a great time with her and it was so nice to finally see a familiar face, and some of Chicago's treasures that I hadn't seen yet. After such an amazing trip, there was only one thing left to do... get ready to do it all over again with my mom and brothers in a week.

Holy Name, a cathedral we stopped in at downtown.