Chicago

We left Milwaukee this morning for the relatively short journey South, down to Chicago. Even though it was only 2 hours away, it did take us 6 hours to get there. See, there happened to be an Outlets Centre (like a DFO at home) about half way to the Windy City - and these days only spending 4 hours there was pretty good for us. Mind you, the poor old credit card needed resuscitation by the time we had left. The other thing that happened was an almighty downpour just before we were leaving. It meant we had a fairly hairy, half an hour or so trip before the skies finally cleared into what turned out to be really nice weather in Chicago.

We checked into our accommodation in Lincoln Park and jumped into the car for a drive into the heart of the city where we decided on going to Navy Pier. Originally called Municipal Pier, in 1927 it was renamed Navy Pier as a tribute to Navy personnel in the 1st World War. Navy Pier was used for pilot training in preparation for World War II, and some 15,000 pilots where qualified here. Mind you, there is supposed to be around 200 World War II planes at the bottom of Lake Michigan as a result of training accidents from this period. The home of many trade shows and fairs over the last century, it is used almost exclusively for festivals and entertainment these days - incorporating the Shakespear Theatre, an Imax cinema, restaurants, convention centres and a Museum among many other purposes.

On the way home, we went past Wrigley Field (home of the Chicago Cubs), possibly the most famous and traditional Baseball stadium in the world. Whilst we are not going to be able to see a game there (as the Cubs are on the road this week), we will definitely fit in a tour of this much loved ball park. Can't wait to tell you all about that - and Bluey might even remember the camera this time.

More updates soon.