Saturday, September 26

This morning, most of us hiked down to Navy Pier to take an Architectural River Tour with Shoreline Sightseeing. It was a fabulous day for this tour, as it was warm and sunny. Our docent was well informed and interesting. He talked about the various eras of style and pointed out examples of each, from beaux arts to art deco to modern and post modern. Sure wish I could remember all of what I heard!

There’s a park, the Nicholas J. Melas Centennial Plaza, near the end of our ride on the Chicago River with a fountain that shoots out across the river for about 5 minutes every hour. Thankfully, we didn’t cruise under it since it sprays river water. Pretty to look at, not to wear.

Next, we walked to Eataly, a large deli/Italian grocery with 9 restaurants on site. This is a must for serious foodies. It does seem like we are doing a lot of eating on this trip. I hope the walking makes up for it. Several of us had pizzas – authentic Italian style pizzas like what we’ve eaten in Italy – accompanied by wine, of course.

We went different directions after lunch. I headed to Willis Tower to experience the view from the 103rd floor, from The Ledge, a glass skydeck. No one else was interested in this. I love them all dearly, but they are wimps to be sure. I waited in line for almost 90 minutes, along with several hundred other hot and sweaty people. I should have gotten the fast pass. Oh well, it was worth it,  just to test my fortitude. I only spent a few minutes on the ledge, long enough to take a couple of photos.

After all, it was almost time to go to dinner!

On the way back to the hotel, I walked past the Tribune Building. Built in 1922-1925, it  incorporated 120 stones from structures around the world, including the Parthenon, the pyramids, and the Alamo, among others.

Dinner was at Francesca’s on Chestnut, just a couple of blocks from our hotel. Delicious!

Another beautiful day, full of exploration and adventure with my dearest friends.