Chicago! Chicago!

Hey Everyone,
WE had a fun two days in Chicago - I think a really great city! Our drive into the City was easy as HWY 55 deposits you right on Lakeshore Drive right where the action begins. Oh - so many choices - which one to do first. So we enjoyed the Navy Pier (it was used for Navy training for both WWI andWWII because Lake Michigan is so big and so deep). Today it houses an amusement park and shopping center mostly for kids, restaurants, pubs, convention center, and Shakespere theatre. The weather has been spectacular (it feels like summer!). So people were out everywhere - running, biking, roller blading, and sailing. For those of you who don't know - Lakeshore Drive is beautiful - like a park - with beaches and a lonnnng pathway along the lake.
From the Pier we walked up through the streets and by accident reached the famous Michigan Street - home of the Magnificent Mile shopping. Shopping? Did someone say shopping? Lots of people, lots of fun. WE did make a stop in Nordstoms to buy me so
some good walking shoes. I am not sure I could have gotten back to the car without them! The Chicago River divides downtown -
so there is downtown and North Chicago. There are actually two levels of streets so we rode an escaltor up to Michigan Avenue!

Mimi drives the mini - Jon drives the Maxi - so I drove home - 45min back to our Lakeside Resort RV park. WE approached the city with the idea that we might stay in the city but there is nothing like your own bed and getting aroung was easy.
Next Day: First stop - The Museum of Science and Industry. GREAT. The picture of the planes was the first room we visited. I learned a ton about jet engines. COOL
The 727 you see hanging from the ceiling has quite a story - especially how they got it there. Under the planes is a massive railroad display that takes you from Chicago to
Seattle - everything in between! Of course it is all HO scale - one could stay all day
and watch the trains go around and through the mountains, cities, rivers etc.. Every kind of train possible - (probably 40-50) hauling freight, people etc. I wished my grandsons could have been with us - so VERY cool!

We drove from there back to the Pier and took the Architectural boat tour. Way fun and again such a beautiful day! The skyscrapers are amazing - boggles the mind - just to keep them upright. The dark one of course is the Sears Tower - now the Willis Tower (some Brits bought it.) - tallest building in the world for a long time. There seems to be a competition among architects about whose building is the tallest. (I hear that the tallest is in Taiwan at the moment)

After the tour - back to walking the Magnificent Mile - people watching - visited the Hancock Tower - up to the 95th floor in 20 seconds or less (Hardly know you are moving.) Everything back on Earth looks like mini toys. We came back down to Earth walked some more - saw some more great sights. We are happy to be moving on - yet we know there is so much more to see.
I had planned on seeing both Oprah and Michael Jordon but they failed to show. With some planning I suppose I could have gotten tickets to Oprah but it must not have been a priority at the time - it might have been a real kick. (Anyone in my vast network of readers that wants to attend one of her tapings - she is only taping shows until December. She tapes two a day about four days a week.)
Well that's all I know - we are on our way to explore Michigan's coastline and hopefully reach Mackanac Island. Ta Ta for Now!