Now that I'm back in the comparatively balmy weather of South Carolina, I've had time to reflect on my recent trip to the frigid sprawl of Chicago. Being from the Dirty South, I was surprised at my tolerance of the cold. That's not to say that I didn't freeze my ass off. I did. But it was worth braving the cold to spend time with my friends, even if one of them soiled some of my clothes (sorry Ben).We left Athens around midnight on Thursday and headed to Atlanta to pick up Roger and Sam, two of Gus's friends from Decatur. After picking them up at the BP at Windy Hill Road we began our northerly trek.
When we got to Chattanooga I decided to drive. I was lucky enough to drive through the mountainous part of I-24. Lucky for me it was raining the entire time on this stretch of road. Once we got to Kentucky I gladly switched with Laura and napped until we reached Louisville.
I continued napping through Indiana until we reached Indianapolis. I wanted to be awake to see its skyline. North of Indianapolis was more of the same, snow-covered barren corn fields. When we filled up for gas again I chose to drive into Chicago. We were surprised at the cost of the toll road into Chicago. For almost six dollars for twenty miles, you'd figure the toll road would be pristine, but it was some of the worst road conditions I've ever driven on.
Regardless, seeing the skyline of Chicago was breathtaking. I knew it was a big city, but I was amazed at just how big it really was. I marveled at how awesome the human race really is. For being such an inhospitable environment during the winter, we chose to build a massive city and make it a global landmark. It's a testament to the human spirit.
Back to the boring narrative.
Coming into the city was cool. We hopped on the Dan Ryan Expressway and came into Chicago from the south. We saw U.S. Cellular Field, home of the Chicago White Sox. I love seeing any type of sports stadiums. I relish the pageantry of sport. We exited at Ohio St. and sat in lunch-hour traffic and finally made it to the Red Roof Inn on E. Ontario St. We unloaded the van, checked into the hotel, relaxed in the room for a few minutes, and then headed off to find some famous Chicago deep dish pizza.
Well, we didn't have to travel far, and thank God. I think the temperature at the time was a warm 25 degrees. We decided to eat at Pizzeria Uno. The atmosphere inside the restaurant was quaint. The proprietors of that establishment were able to fit a lot of people in such a small space. Anyway, we ordered two pizzas and had our fill. By the time we finished Gus and Melissa showed up along with some of their family. We chatted for a few minutes and then headed back to the hotel. On the way back we stopped at Trader Joes for some cheap bottles of wine. Once back at the hotel we were all pretty tired so we napped for a couple of hours.
Once we awoke from our slumbers, Ben, Laura, Alan, and myself decided to explore some of the city. We headed up Michigan Ave, AKA, the Magnificent Mile. The street side trees were illuminated with Christmas lights which provided for a nice walk to the Hancock Building. Rather than pay the steep price to go to the observation deck, we elected to have some drinks at The Signature Room on the 96th floor. We were fortunate enough to get a window table overlooking the south and west sides of the city. What a sight! I felt quite erudite, sipping my Long Island Iced Tea with three of my friends and commiserating with the Chicago elite.
After we finished our drinks, we descending to street level and headed toward the Navy Pier. It was an icy walk along Lakeshore Drive towards the pier. The Navy Pier is certainly geared for tourists, with its shops, carnival rides, and gimmicky attractions. However, it did provide for an excellent skyline vista. Jason met up with us here but we were done so we headed back to the hotel.
After sitting around for a while Gus met up with us and we went out for some drinks. I can’t remember the name of the first bar but it had an Irish flare. Tequila seems to be a popular drink in Chicago. This particular bar had every brand of tequila available. While sitting around we noticed this well-dressed man getting belligerent with his special lady friend. Finally they left after some persuasion by some of the bar staff. We left soon after that and headed to another Irish bar on Rush St. We satiated our appetites, downed a few more drinks, and headed back to the hotel. It was a cold walk back and we passed out from travel exhaustion once we arrived in our rooms.
The next day started off later than expected since we all slept in. For lunch we headed to Su Casa, a Mexican restaurant owned by the same proprietors of Pizzeria Uno. Just like the pizza it didn’t disappoint. To top it off we had some excellent flan. Afterwards more wine was purchased at Trader Joes and then we headed to the Talbott Hotel so the groomsmen could make sure their tuxedos fit. Alan had a little trouble with his vest since it was three or four sizes too small. Jason, Laura and I didn’t stay long since we wanted to go to the Field Museum. We hopped in a cab and were on our way. The cab ride went down Lakeshore Drive and through Grant Park. I was amazed the whole time. I love driving through new cities and viewing the skyline. I also pondered what it must have been like to stand in Grant Park on Election Day, listening to Barack Obama speak of the monumental change coming to America. I wish I could’ve witnessed it firsthand.
We didn’t have long in the Field Museum so we decided to walk through the dinosaur exhibit. It brought back memories of my childhood when I used to know all the names of the dinosaurs and had all kinds of dinosaur toys. I loved them then and I still find them fascinating. It’s hard to fathom how much our planet has changed in its geologically short history. After our foray into the past we left the museum and hailed a cab on Michigan Ave.
What happened in the cab ride back went something like this.
Cab stops at a traffic light, but ends up stopping in the pedestrian crosswalk.
Crossing guard: “Get out of the crosswalk! Get out of the crosswalk you goddamn moron!”
Cab driver” What do you want me to do, park in the intersection?”
Crossing guard: “Get out of the fucking crosswalk!”
Cabbie: “Fuck you asshole!”
Crossing guard: “Fuck you! I’m writing you a ticket!”
Cabbie: “Fuck you asshole! I don’t care!”
Crossing guard: “Well, the city of Chicago doesn’t care either!”
Cabbie: “Fuck you asshole!”
The crossing guard proceeds to the back of the cab to write down the license plate number. When the light turns green the cab driver pulls away as a final f you to the crossing guard. The entire time he talked on his cell phone in some foreign language, peppering in a “fucking asshole” every once in a while. What an awesome taxi experience!
When we arrived at the hotel we told everyone about the cab ride. After those in the wedding party left for the rehearsal Jason and I hung around the hotel until the rehearsal dinner began. Once we received word that the rehearsal was over Jason, Sam, and I headed to Buca de Beppo, an awesome Sicilian restaurant. We ended up being the first ones there so we got drinks and anxiously awaited the arrival of everyone else.
The dinner was incredible. The salad and garlic bread were great. The pasta with mussels, spicy sausage pasta, and chicken alfredo were delicious. The wine was good. All in all, a great dining experience. The groomsmen and ushers received personalized flasks while the bridesmaids received gloves. Ben had lots of fun at the dinner; so much so that he excessively dry-humped Melissa. I’m sure her dad appreciated the gesture.
Afterwards Ben and others headed back to the hotel to drop of some things while the rest of us headed to Howl at the Moon, a dueling piano barn. There was a great vibe in the bar and the music was great. We drank many buckets of Long Island Iced Teas. When we got back to the hotel I went to open the door when I discovered that it was blocked. After some coaxing I found Ben passed out in front of the hallway door and the bathroom door. Come to find out Ben had pissed himself. It was all over his pants and shirt. Actually, it was all over MY PANTS AND SHIRT! He forgot to pack rehearsal clothes but lucky for him I packed extra dress clothes. Lucky for me he urinated all over them! I’m not mad about it. I thought it was quite funny. At the time he didn’t think it was. He became quite angry and started lashing out. He finally calmed down and we all went to sleep.
Laura had to get up early to get her hair, makeup, etc. done. Around 11 Jason, Sam, and myself took a taxi to Wrigleyville to see historical Wrigley Field. A slight snow was falling as we arrived. I was in awe at how awesome Wrigley Field is. It is one of the hallowed temples of baseballdom. I would love to attend a game there one day. We walked down Waveland Ave. and around the entire stadium. I got pictures of the Harry Caray statue, the Ernie Banks statue, and the famous Wrigley Field marquee. Afterwards we went to this small bar for lunch. The sandwiches there were quite delicious. Instead of putting the french fries on the side they put them inside the sandwich. Different, but good.
We headed back to the hotel and changed. We then walked to Holy Name Cathedral on State St. This cathedral was the site of some violent gang activity involving the notorious Al Capone during the 1920s. It is a beautiful cathedral. My parents would have loved it. The ceremony was nice as well. After the wedding Sam and I hopped on the charter bus headed to the reception hall.
The reception hall was about 45 minutes outside of Chicago. There wasn't anything very intriguing about the reception. Just the usual post-wedding festivities. They had a live band which was cool. Manny got good and drunk before dinner was served. Some guy at my table wanted to blame the Georgia contingent for not delivering Georgia for Barack Obama. He apparently has never been to the South. Otherwise he would understand why it is so conservative. I had a great time with all of my friends and got plenty of good pictures to boot. The Party Boy made an appearance as usual. After the reception I was fortunate enough to ride back to the city on the "Party Bus", the bus the wedding party traveled in. I had a grand time drinking spiked egg nog and bobbing my head to rap standards. We unloaded at the Talbott and made the trek back to the Red Roof, ready to get some sleep.
We left Chicago before lunch time. I was designated as the driver out of the city. I like driving in cities so I didn't mind. We had to pack a huge suitcase full of gifts and Melissa's wedding dress in the van. The dress made getting in and out of the van an issue since it took up half of one seat. We stopped at a Bob Evans in Merrillville, IN to eat. I drove almost the entire length of Indiana until I could barely keep my eyes open. Once I switched I couldn't sleep. That's usually how it works with me. Oh well. I enjoy looking out the window at the passing scenery.
We made it back to Athens well after midnight. The next morning I headed back to Gainesville to get Mona and then I departed for Florence. I had a wonderful time!
Lessons learned from the Chicago road trip:
1. Conversion vans are uncomfortable, but economical.
2. I enjoy driving through big cities at night.
3. Chicago is really big!
4. Don't let Ben borrow clothes!
5. Chicago is really cold!
6. Make the most of the time you have in a new place.
7. Walk the streets to get a better feel of your surroundings.
8. Cherish time spent with your friends. It is time well spent.
