Travel: Chicago, Part 3

After surviving the sky ledge, we hit up Chick-fil-A for lunch & then did some site-seeing until our architectural river cruise on the Chicago's First Lady.

We did not pre-purchase tickets for our cruise, but for those considering this cruise, it might be a good idea to do so.  Our hotel concierge was able to get us tickets to what we were told was a “sold out” tour, so that made us feel special, anyways :)

The cruise itself is highly recommended & well worth the $40. The 90 minute cruise was filled with history, not only about the sky scrapers that line the river, but also about Chicago & we learned how to differentiate between architectural styles.  Also, the river cruise is great way to see the city!

We knew we couldn't leave Chicago without authentic deep dish pizza, so after a recommendation given to us by our waiter at RPM the night before, we headed to Gino’s East.  We did not have reservations, so we were a bit concerned about the wait times, but again, our lovely hotel concierge got us priority seating!  Upon arrival at Gino’s, we walked by the line outside & got seated right away!

Gino's has such a cool atmosphere - a must visit if you're in Chicago!

After we chowed down until our hearts were content, we caught a cab & high-tailed it down to Navy Pier to ride the Ferris Wheel. 

It wasn't running when we were there the day before, due to the weather, so we were desperate to get a ride before we left (and we heard a rumor that it’s going to be taken down soon – if that’s actually true or not, I have no idea).  Just as we were starting our upswing, a beautiful fireworks display started.  You guys – it was magical!!

Picture this – it’s night time – you have the Chicago skyline on your right, and on your left, a lovely fireworks show over Lake Michigan.  It was the perfect finale to close our weekend in Chicago.

We ended the evening at Buckingham Fountain.  We went for the light & music show but since they had an event going on at Grant Park, there was no show.  Oh well, you can’t win them all!































We had such a lovely girl's weekend in Chicago; I hope I've inspired you to spend some time in windy city.  You won't regret it!


Read about Day 1, here.
Read about Day 2 {part 1} here. 

Travel: Chicago, Part 2

{Day 2 we did ALOT -- so I'm breaking this up into two posts}

We woke early, to rain, to start our second day in Chicago.

We dined again at the hotel for (free) breakfast, and then took our time to walk the city to our first reservation – The Sky Deck @ the Willis Tower.

And then the rain cleared for a bit -- yay!

So, the Willis Tower is North America’s tallest building; its interior office spaces are home to popular companies, and it’s an iconic landmark in Chicago.  

The experience from the Sky Ledge is both terrifying & exhilarating to say the least...

The Sky Deck is at the 103rd floor & offers views for miles on a clear day.  Within the Sky Deck sits a few Sky Ledges – which are solid glass boxes which protrude out from the building about 4 feet & individuals are able to literally walk on what seems like air – crazy!!

About 2 weeks prior to our trip we pre-purchased the Fast Track pass – we learned from our experience in NYC & the Empire State Building that is it SO WORTH the extra money not to have to wait in any lines... (when you only have a couple days in a city, it’s painful to have to wait in a 2-3 hour line).

More to come, stay tuned!

If you missed my recap of Day 1,  click here

Travel: Chicago, Day 1

As I shared in this post, my mom, sister & I have started a tradition of annual girl’s trips.  Last year we visited New York City & this year we wandered through the streets of Chicago for a long weekend.

Three days was the perfect amount of time in the windy city & we easily checked everything off our to do list.

Friday morning we woke up at the butt-crack of dawn.  No really, we did – 2:15 AM, to hop on the Amtrak out of Milwaukee headed to Chicago.  Upon arrival, we were able to check into our hotel & we were early enough to still catch the hotel breakfast.  Score!

FYI -- If you’re looking for a hotel in downtown Chicago, I highly recommend the Embassy Suites on North Columbus.  It's centrally located, just a couple blocks from all the major attractions (Navy Pier, Michigan Ave, Millennium Park, etc.).  Their continental breakfast includes made-to-order omelets, hash browns, pancakes, sausage, bacon, eggs & the whole nine yards.  Additionally, they have a complimentary cocktail hour in the evening.  Moreover, the Concierge was wonderful in getting us tickets to our architectural cruise & priority seating at a local restaurant – more on that later!

So after we grabbed a bite to eat, we navigated the streets to Millennium Park – home of the coveted Cloud Gate, better known as “The Bean”.

It was a bit of a rainy day, but we lucked out... the fact that it was rainy meant that there weren't so many people at The Bean!

The sun came out for a bit, so we took our obligatory pictures, and then headed over to Navy Pier.

We might not have taken the friendliest walking route, but had we not, we would not have walked through this wonderful residential garden area...

Nor would we have been able to snap these pics…

Two steps into the shops at Navy Pier and it started to DOWN POUR.  Again, counting our blessing that we could shop indoors while it rained outside.  It rained for awhile, so we had a little snack & rested our feet.



























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After Navy Pier, we did some shopping on Michigan Ave, and got to enjoy all the shops that little Northeast Wisconsin does not have to offer ... Charming Charlie's, Anthropologie, Zara, Crate & Barrel, etc.

I was basically in heaven, even if I couldn't afford anything in the shops that lined Michigan Ave.  It's still fun to look!

After our arms were full with packages, we walked back to our hotel & freshened up for dinner at RPM Italian (thanks to Erin for this post).

image from my Instagram

We had made reservations about 2 weeks prior & although we were not fortunate enough to spot Giuliana or Bill, we did enjoy some of the best moscato I’ve ever tasted & we had a lovely dinner.  You best bet I will be trying to recreate the zucchini fritti appetizer we had, too.  YUM!!!

After dinner, we walked back to the hotel & called it an early night.

Stay tuned for a recap of Day 2!