The Explore All 50 States Project
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The Chicago Architecture Boat Tour is wonderful way to relax and learn about some of Chicago's most iconic buildings and must for anyone visiting the city. We took an hour-long cruise on the waterways learning about the history of the settlement of the city by the Potawatomi Indians who named the area Chicago which means "stinky onion"-how about that for an interesting little factoid. We cruised by many … [Read more...]
Wow, everything you ever wanted to know about the Windy City is under one roof at the Chicago History Museum. We found this museum to be a fantastic place to learn about the history of the city, it's diversity, and it's role in the American economy. We started off in the kids area which has some really fun interactive exhibits. The kids loved "becoming" a chicago hot dog and riding an old fashioned bicycle. … [Read more...]
Did you know that the Chicago Post Office is the busiest in the nation? The Chicago Post office offers tours and after making arrangements a few days in advance we headed over right after our visit at Millennium Park. We met our tour guide, a wonderful gentleman who informed us he'd been working there for 43 years. He proceeded to tell us what happens to a piece of mail after we put in in the mailbox showing us … [Read more...]
Millennium Park is a great place to start (and start early, there’s a lot to do in the Windy City) your adventure in Chicago just like we did because you can do it before 10am before most other things open. We got really lucky as we were able to walk from our hotel which wasn't that far. Millennium Park is an incredible public space filled with artwork and areas for concerts. We walked through the Lurie Garden … [Read more...]
So I have to be honest, we didn't do the Navy Pier on this trip, because we'd been to Chicago a number of times before visiting cousins and my kids had been there umpteen times, but it's definitely a place to check out if you are visiting the windy city. There are rides and attractions as well as restaurants and fun shops to peruse. My kids especially liked the giant ferris wheel and the jet boat ride. This is … [Read more...]
There are a couple of different ways to see Chicago. Besides cruising down the city's waterways, you can also get a bird's eye view (a pretty high flying bird that is) by heading to the Sear's Tower Skydeck. After we took the super fast elevator 103 floors up to the top, we headed to the windows to check out the view. It's really interesting to see the city up so high because it also makes you realize how big Lake … [Read more...]
You just can't go to Chicago without sampling some of the iconic foods, the most famous of which is Chicago style deep dish pizza and so after asking folks on the street and double checking with our guidebooks, everyone pointed us in the direction of Uno Chicago Grill. This place was super busy, which is always a good sign, but the wait was 45-minutes to an hour which I hear isn't unusual. We decided to give it a … [Read more...]
"Ain't no mountain high enough, ain't no valley low enough ain't no river wide enough, to keep me from getting to you babe"-that line from that famous song by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell is the first thing that comes to my mind when I think of this amazing family and all they've accomplished to get to their goal of hiking a trail in all 50 states which they are set to complete very shortly. The Kain family has … [Read more...]
Visiting sports stadiums is a popular bucket list item. I am proudly part of that club. My family has a goal to see a hockey home game at every stadium-so far I'm only up to 5 so we've got a long way to go. The number one sport by far for sport stadium bucket lists though is Baseball and completing that goal in 2006 led reader and school teacher Thomas DeAngelo to reach for an even greater goal-seeing all 50. As … [Read more...]
Spring is here and with that summer road trip plans are quickly taking shape. I am feverishly planning, and like any good road trip traveler I am looking for a deal. But as with all things in life, when shopping around there are two rules that apply-A) if something is too good to be true it usually is and B) always read the fine print...two rules that this veteran road warrior forgot in her eagerness to score … [Read more...]
