What a weekend! I went down to Chicago for a few days which was planned last fall. The reason I went down to Chicago was for the Tattoo Exhibit at The Field Museum. Being a tattoo enthusiast, this was a must see for me. I flew down to the windy city via American Airlines and took the train home (I was going to fly home but it was with United Airlines, the only airline that could make Spirit Airlines look classy). Here is one of the first things I had to do when I got to downtown Chicago:
I couldn't help myself. LOL!
For a few hours, I spent the morning/afternoon at The Art Institute of Chicago. I got to see Whistler's Mother in person. That was so cool.
I absolutely adore The Art Institute of Chicago. It is so huge. Their collection of artworks is amazing. I especially love going to see the Asian/Southeast Asian exhibition halls as well as the Greek/Byzantine/Etruscan exhibition hall. Don't get me wrong I love MIA but The Art Institute of Chicago is my personal favorite art museum of all time.
While in Chicago, I got to hang with one of my favorite humans for about less than 24 hours. I let her crash overnight in my hotel which was planned a week prior to the trip on a short notice due to some unpleasant circumstances.
After breakfast, my friend went back to my hotel room and I went along my way to The Field Museum. The Tattoo exhibit and the entire museum was so worth the money and journey to Chicago. The tattoo exhibit could have gone further more into details about tattoos but overall I enjoyed it immensely.
I spent four hours walking around the entire museum. By 4:30 in the afternoon, I was exhausted. I went back to my hotel to lay down before heading out for the night for dinner and trip to the Skydeck.
The following day, I went over to the Shedd Aquarium. Much to my displeasure I was surrounded by overly excited school children. I did not last long. I wasn't even there for two hours. They reminded me why I chose not to have children. I do not have the temperament to deal with children on a constant basis. Kudos to the parents who chose to have children and have the patience to deal with them. That said, I did have a good time seeing the fishes and other animals in the aquarium.
I absolutely loved seeing the sea lampreys. They are pretty hideously looking creatures but so fascinating. I also learned that the Native American community Pacific Northwest relies on lampreys as a food source (thanks to River Monsters tv show).
I definitely ate well on this trip. I finally got to try the famous Al's Italian Beef sandwich (I had mine dipped) and it was delicious.
Had a wonderful ham and cheese omlette with hashbrowns at the Billy Goat Tavern. I don't have a photo of it posted on IG yet but my favorite was the fish and chips at Elephant and Castle English Pub. Oh gawd! It was delicious! It also helped that it was fresh out of the fryer. While in Chicago, I couldn't help myself to a Dunkin Donut here and there. Chicago sure loves their Dunkin Donuts. LOL!
The trip home almost gave me a heart attack. My train was delayed for about 25 minutes. When Amtrak announced that it was running late. I was silently freaking out that it would be a few hours late but in the end it was only 25 minutes late. Train ride went smooth. I didn't get home until around 11:30 at night. Fortunately I was smart and took Tuesday off to sleep. What a great adventure. I am now thinking ahead for my next trip to Chicago. I am thinking between February and March (either during the damn Super Bowl here in Minneapolis or for the next Villain Arts Tattoo Convention in Chicago so I can get some work from Tine Defiore or Cloey Nathaniels from Black Oak tattoo).
Oh I will be posting more photos on my Instagram page in the coming days/weeks from this trip. I took lots and lots of photos. So you can check in from time to time to see what I have posted.
I couldn't help myself. LOL!
For a few hours, I spent the morning/afternoon at The Art Institute of Chicago. I got to see Whistler's Mother in person. That was so cool.
I absolutely adore The Art Institute of Chicago. It is so huge. Their collection of artworks is amazing. I especially love going to see the Asian/Southeast Asian exhibition halls as well as the Greek/Byzantine/Etruscan exhibition hall. Don't get me wrong I love MIA but The Art Institute of Chicago is my personal favorite art museum of all time.
While in Chicago, I got to hang with one of my favorite humans for about less than 24 hours. I let her crash overnight in my hotel which was planned a week prior to the trip on a short notice due to some unpleasant circumstances.
After breakfast, my friend went back to my hotel room and I went along my way to The Field Museum. The Tattoo exhibit and the entire museum was so worth the money and journey to Chicago. The tattoo exhibit could have gone further more into details about tattoos but overall I enjoyed it immensely.
I spent four hours walking around the entire museum. By 4:30 in the afternoon, I was exhausted. I went back to my hotel to lay down before heading out for the night for dinner and trip to the Skydeck.
The following day, I went over to the Shedd Aquarium. Much to my displeasure I was surrounded by overly excited school children. I did not last long. I wasn't even there for two hours. They reminded me why I chose not to have children. I do not have the temperament to deal with children on a constant basis. Kudos to the parents who chose to have children and have the patience to deal with them. That said, I did have a good time seeing the fishes and other animals in the aquarium.
I absolutely loved seeing the sea lampreys. They are pretty hideously looking creatures but so fascinating. I also learned that the Native American community Pacific Northwest relies on lampreys as a food source (thanks to River Monsters tv show).
I definitely ate well on this trip. I finally got to try the famous Al's Italian Beef sandwich (I had mine dipped) and it was delicious.
Had a wonderful ham and cheese omlette with hashbrowns at the Billy Goat Tavern. I don't have a photo of it posted on IG yet but my favorite was the fish and chips at Elephant and Castle English Pub. Oh gawd! It was delicious! It also helped that it was fresh out of the fryer. While in Chicago, I couldn't help myself to a Dunkin Donut here and there. Chicago sure loves their Dunkin Donuts. LOL!
The trip home almost gave me a heart attack. My train was delayed for about 25 minutes. When Amtrak announced that it was running late. I was silently freaking out that it would be a few hours late but in the end it was only 25 minutes late. Train ride went smooth. I didn't get home until around 11:30 at night. Fortunately I was smart and took Tuesday off to sleep. What a great adventure. I am now thinking ahead for my next trip to Chicago. I am thinking between February and March (either during the damn Super Bowl here in Minneapolis or for the next Villain Arts Tattoo Convention in Chicago so I can get some work from Tine Defiore or Cloey Nathaniels from Black Oak tattoo).
Oh I will be posting more photos on my Instagram page in the coming days/weeks from this trip. I took lots and lots of photos. So you can check in from time to time to see what I have posted.