Chicago

We arrived in Chicago on Wednesday September 8th. We got in and started preparing to have the mast stepped in the morning. We also found out the lay of the land so we could get to the airport to pick up Sue. Thursday morning we our appointment to take the mast down – let’s just say it was an experience that we care not to repeat. The young man that worked the hoist was very polite, but unfortunately didn’t have much experience. We finally got it down and into the cradles. Clay lost a pair of glasses in the process – somewhere 16 feet down in the water and fortunately just a minor abrasion on his head where the roller furling grazed him. Then we were off to the airport to get Sue. Her flight was delayed because of bad weather in Orlando, but when she finally arrived, we got her on the “orange line” and headed back to the marina. I can’t speak for Clay and Sue but I felt like a kid in a candy store, there is just so much to see and do in Chicago, it was hard to decide what to do. Our first stop was the Field Museum of Natural History with the King Tut Exhibit – WOW! It’s hard to imagine how everything was so well preserved for over 3000 years. We consider anything over 100 years old as antique. After the museum we were all tired, so we went back to the boat and rested for a while, then headed off for an evening at the Navy Pier. Saturday morning we got up early and headed out to the Architecture Center hoping to get tickets for the Architecture River Cruise. That was another highlight of the weekend – it also gave Clay and I a chance to see what to expect when we would be heading into the river on Monday. After the cruise we walked through Millennium Park, listened to the musicians and watched the people. I just found the whole place really exhilarating. We found the public transportation fantastic. We purchased three day passes that gave us unlimited use of the buses and trains. Saturday afternoon we took the “L” and rode out to Oak Park where Sue lived as a child – we walked by Hemingway’s birthplace and then went to see Unity Temple that was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. The entire time we explored, we all chatted about what’s been happening in Naples since we left and filled Sue in on what we’ve experienced along the way. It was a wonderful visit and went by too quickly.