architecture and art induced overload, we headed
off in search of the famed Chicago Deep Dish Pizza.
We heard that Pizano’s, a nearby restaurant, served
one of the best. It did not disappoint. It was really
good and, believe it or not, it is really different. Not
sure exactly what makes it special but it truly is! We
had a lot of fun with our waiter and he generously
rewarded us with a complimentary ice cream,
cookie desert for six. We felt that we might have
approached culinary heaven that day—pizza and ice
cream! We capped off the afternoon with a drink at
the famous Signature Room on the 96th floor of the
Hancock Center. The Hancock Center, at 1,127 feet,
is the 4th tallest building in Chicago and 8th tall-
est in the US. And the best photo of the city could
be obtained in the ladies' restroom. Needless to say,
J. Chris had to take that photo for me.
Later that evening we “ubered” over to the old
town comedy club, Zanies. Michael Palascak was
the headliner. He was really good and together with
the local host and the warm-up comedian, they
made for a very entertaining evening.
Mark and Laurie from Minnesota headed back
north the next morning. Tim and Cathy from Ohio
planned to drive back later that day so we did the
ultimate tourist thing. We bought tickets for the
Hop On, Hop Off Big Bus. If you are not familiar
with a big city, this is actually a great way to get
oriented in the city. The down side for us was that
we experienced windy Chicago that day. The wind
might have been okay by itself but it was a really
GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN
cold wind that day. Nonetheless it was a great
tour. At one point we hopped off to get an “Open
House Tour” of the McCormick Bridgehouse
& Chicago River Museum. The bridgehouse is
right on the corner of Michigan Avenue and is a
five-story structure that houses the massive gears
of Chicago’s most famous movable bridge. The
interior was cramped but fascinating and housed a
very unique museum. Due the the heavy rains the
day before, the Riverwalk was closed.
Later that evening, after all our friends had
gone home, J.Chris and I decided to return to
the Signature Room, this time to the 95th floor
restaurant, for a sunset dinner. Spectacular! We
basked in the wonderful cuisine, an exquisite glass
of wine, and the amazing views of the Navy Yard
and skyline that evening. It was a great conclusion
to a great get-a-way weekend.
Monday found us homeward bound— back
into Bay Area traffic. Our impression of Chicago
was very positive. We saw little graffiti, generally
very clean streets and sidewalks, the police
presence seemed minimal; stores, restaurants
and shops were tourist friendly. The architecture
of Chicago is exceptional and the River Walk
something we would like to do again, when
we return. They seem to have found a balance
between historical preservation and contemporary
building codes and design. There is a respect for
the historical without the dogmatic absolutism that
sometimes accompanies it.
FEBRUARY/MARCH 2018
gmhtoday.com
Here we are at the
Millennium Park with
our travel partners:
Mark and Laurie
McShane and
Kathy and Tim
Grannan. We liked
Chicago and look
forward to a return
visit someday.
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