Chicago - Day 11

tulips on Michigan Avenue

 

The first time I visited Chicago I was 17 years old, traveling cross-country by train to attend a Girl Scout encampment in Maryland. One of the girls I was traveling with had an aunt and uncle who lived there and hosted us for several days and took us out to see the sights of Chicago. It was my first big city experience and I loved it. I bought a pair of sling-back, square-toed, red flats in a shoe store on Michigan Avenue. Boy, did I love my "Chicago shoes". I knew there was not another pair like them in Pocatello—probably not in the state of Idaho, and when I wore them I thought about walking down Michigan Avenue, thinking I had probably walked past more people on the sidewalk that day than lived in Pocatello. Over the years I have been back four or five times, once in the dead of winter with an icy wind blowing off the lake. I loved it even then. So I was looking forward to being in Chicago again.

We've spent the past two days in Chicago and I have taken so many photos that my system has fallen behind. It will take me a couple days to catch up, but I am finally ready to start. Yesterday morning we took the Chicago Architecture Tour given by the Chicago Architecture Foundation, and it was grand! The tour takes place on an excursion boat on the Chicago River and our docent for the tour was superb. She knew the history, the architects, the inside stories of all the incredible buildings that make Chicago the city of incredible architecture.

I took way too many photos to post. Here's my iPad screen after I winnowed them down to my best shots...

 

And a few of my favorites...

 

 

 

The tour was terrific and worth every penny it cost. If you go to Chicago, take the tour. Just do it.

So—more to come. I'm not finished with Chicago, though we say goodbye in the morning and are off to Ohio, with tired, walked-out Chicago feet. A day in the car might be just the ticket.

 

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