................Taking Flight...............: Chicago

We went to visit Phil and Kristin in Chicago for the day and spend one night with them. We had to take Toby to Stay and Obey for overnight care, which made me a little sad. Anyway, we headed out and arrived at Phil's with no problem. He got a guest parking pass for us at his building and we went to his place on the 33rd floor! Their place is really nice and has a great view down LaSalle Street to see Willis Tower. They also have a balcony and you can see the lake and Navy Pier.

For lunch we went to Mercarditos for Mexican-I thought it would be nice to try something Chicago rather than a chain. We ordered 4 different kinds of tacos, since they served 4 small ones and they were meant to be shared. They were all really good. While we were finishing eating, we noticed that people were coming in with umbrellas and looked drenched all the same. We paid and went to the door to see the rain coming down in sheets. We stood in the entry for a few minutes waiting for it to let up. Finally there was an opening and we grabbed a taxi and went to the Art Museum since our original plan of the Architecture Boat Tour would be a no go with the rain.

The art museum was nice. We wandered around for a few hours before noticing that it was sunny again outside. We walked through Millennium Park before getting a taxi to Lincoln Park Zoo. We walked through a few of the buildings, moving towards the southern part of the zoo. The zoo continues into a park and the southern most part of the park is about a block from Phil's place. Kristin made popcorn for us when we returned and we took a slight rest before going out to get some groceries for dinner.

Phil grilled a pork loin and Kristin did brussle sprouts, red potatoes, and garlic bread in the oven. While she was in the kitchen we talked about SE Asia and I got some information about Cambodia and Vietnam. Everything for dinner was delicious! We cleaned up and then they put brownies in the oven. While they baked, we looked at some of the pictures from their trip. Brownies and ice cream was a nice way to finish the night and Phil put "campfire" from a youtube video on their giant tv.