Trip to Chicago

Late as usual...

Nathan and I have been wanting to go to Chicago for a while and we happened to have an open weekend over my birthday. 

I've always wanted to stay at a fancy hotel.  I've usually stayed at  cheap, but not creepy, hotels.  So, I thought it would be fun to stay somewhere nice- big pool, awesome room, beautiful lobby, etc. 

I looked online and found the Kinzie hotel in downtown Chicago. It looked like it would fit my criteria.

We left Friday the 13th after work.

Our first indicator was that while the website implied that there was free parking: "park all day at the Kinzie while you explore Chicago", there was no free parking.  For one night in a parking garage down the street, it was $56.





our room

Our room was nice. It was big, modern, and had a decent view. Until I realized that the wall of windows looked out on the hotel next door, which also had walls of windows, and I could see a couple in their bedroom having a bit too much fun...



Another thing about window walls: The walls and ceilings between you and the rooms beside and below you are thinner for a foot indent around the windows.  (That's how the building looks completely glass from the outside and you don't see big gaps where walls would go.) But, that also means that you can hear everything from everyone else's rooms.  Including, the 2:00am phone call my neighbor made to the front desk about the drunks in the street below who were obviously keeping him up as well.  And, then there was the constant honking, traffic, and trains all night long.

I didn't sleep well.

Breakfast was skimpy and they didn't really have a lobby, only a private room on the 6th floor that is only open for 3 hours a day. 

Needless to say, for a 'fancy' hotel, it was not worth it. And, I would not recommend it. 

Our hotel on the right

In the morning, we walked around Chicago a bit. It was grey and cold.



Chicago river

Millennium park  fountain

selfie at the bean

the lake front

beautiful gardens

The highlight of our walk.

Buckingham Fountain

It was huge!

Happy cold, tired birthday to me...

:)

We killed some time in a Starbucks to warm up before we went to Giordano's for some awesome Chicago style deep dish pizza.



Barbeque chicken bacon and a three meat Italian 

Now this was worth it :)

After lunch, we walked back to our car and headed to IKEA.  The real reason we wanted to go to Chicago. :) 

We bought way too much, but most of it was completely necessary.  :)

We had planned to go to Woodfield mall after IKEA, but my legs were killing me from all that walking and we were both exhausted, so we headed straight home.

It was a great birthday weekend. Even despite the hotel frustrations.  Nathan was a great sport letting me drag him around downtown Chicago and IKEA.

I'm officially a quarter of a century old...

And, it's already June.  And, time just needs to stop! :)

In Christ

~Michelle