Chicago

Well, we spent 36 hours in the Windy City and did more than I have ever done in a day off before. Today, we:

1. were woken up early by my niece (we'll call her K.)
2. went swimming in the hotel pool
3. got room service pancakes and waffles
4. drove into the city and paid $25 for parking
5. went to Navy Pier (what? We had a kid with us!)
6. rode the carousel, gawked at the Ferris Wheel, ambled through the Crystal Gardens, and bought some souvenirs
7. hopped on the wrong trolley, got lost
8. rode the subway (K.'s 7, she gets a kick out of this)
9. got lunch at Foodlife and had crepes for dessert
10. went to the Hancock building
11. learned that tickets to the observation deck were $15 per person
12. scammed our way into the bar on the 95th floor, which is actually two stories higher than the observation deck. This was my niece's first bar.
13. got cocktails - two with vodka, one without, all for less than the cost of tickets to the observation deck. Also, my niece's first cocktail. If you stop by, check out the women's restroom which has an amazing view. People were actually taking pictures! Joe reports that the men's room was a disappointment.
14. designed K.'s Tower, our own Tallest Building in Chicago on the cocktail napkin (yes, I know the Hancock is the second tallest building in Chicago)
15. more souvenir shopping
16. visited the wonderful Millenium Park, got spat upon and completely soaked by the public art (you must see this if you haven't already, it's the best art ever), played under and photographed the Bean (which is actually called Cloud Gate), and were treated to a free outdoor concert at the gorgeous Jay Pritzker Pavilion, which was designed by Frank Gehry.
17. rode in a cab (now if only we could've ridden a bus, my niece's day would've been made)
18. changed into swimsuits in the car
19. went to the beach, where we swam and played in the sand
20. got dinner back at Navy Pier

We also filled up our compact flash card and will have pictures to share soon.