Chicago (Part Two)

Woke up a bit late and raced from Wood Dale to downtown Chicago to catch the "Untouchables" tour at 12 o'clock. The cab driver (who believed all Britons lived on stipends, by the way) said "we would need wings" to make it to Rock 'n' Roll McDonalds (where the tour bus left) from Union Station in the 7 minutes we had. Apparently, we turned angelic and made it in time with only seconds to spare!

We learned many things about the prohibition and mobsters such as Al Capone and John Dillinger. The Biograph Theater was the location where Dillinger was shot, after being turned in by his "moll", Anna Sage. Ladies exited the theater and dipped their petticoats and handkerchiefs into the pool of blood as souvenirs, and the paperboy from the corner ripped up his papers and sold scraps for a quarter (how gruesome!). As a whole paper could be bought for 3 cents, he made a mint.

Lunch was at the famous Giordano's, with a stuffed special pizza pie that even I could not finish. Believe me, I tried! I let the pizza get the better of me, and left one slice for posterity.

We walked off our calories along the waterfront, and made our way to Millenium Park. This picture is of the impressive Jay Pritzker Pavilion (designed by Frank Gerhy), peeking over the top of the serpentine BP pedestrian bridge (also designed by Frank Gerhy). In the background is the Smurfit-Stone Building. The pizza (and the 38° heat!) was working its magic by this time - I could hardly see the photos I was taking. The park is amazing, it unfolds in the most wonderful way. The bridge (Frank Gehry's first) over Columbus drive is a harmony of form and function, and unites the walk from the waterfront via avenues of trees towards the great lawn - and the city beyond.

The main reason for visiting Millenium Park was to see Anish Kapoor's Cloud Gate (which the locals call "The Peanut"). Watching people interact with the sculpture in various ways demonstrates the way that great art can touch young and old. Trying to wrap your brain around the multiple levels of reflections underneath started to stretch our understanding of the universe - very meta.

We grabbed some wine and cold brews, and sat on the steps of the bandstand to experience the cool sounds of Corey Wilkes' Kindred Spirits of the Horn (a celebration of the jazz music of Miles Davis and Roy Eldridge) until late into the evening. The combination of monster architecture, starry skies, syncopated beats (including an electronic turntablist from NYC) and the convivial atmosphere of a few thousand similar-minded humans made for a very memorable evening.

It was still early though, and so we walked back to catch "The Bean" lit by the city - even more impressive. In the background, a band played genre-busting live authentic Chicago house music. Passing by the momentous Crown Fountain, we walked 7 or 8 blocks to the John Hancock Building - but thought better of it (if you've been up one tower, you've been up them all - and the Empire State beats them all, in our opinion).

So we walked 7 or 8 blocks back along Dearborn St to the House of Blues - the infamous Chicago nitespot that just reeks of character. We saw a band called "The Special 20s", watched a Magna cum Laude geophysics grad student dance like her hips were on fire, and where a guy called Hank apologised for insulting us (he wished the Queen Mother well - a minor infraction, to be sure) by picking up our tab!

After persuading Morag to have "just one more drink", we raced across town again (it's becoming a bit of a habit - I call it "using time efficiently") to catch the last train back to Wood Dale, and the sanctuary of our cool air-conditioned hotel room. Not for the first time (nor the last I'm sure), I tempted fate by stopping for a couple of photos of the legendary Chicago Theatre (called the Wonder Theatre of the World when it first opened in 1921). Back in the day, it set the gold standard for lavish movie palaces, and served for us as a mighty fine cherry on the top of such a magnificent three days in the windy city.