Weekend In Chicago: Day 1-Part 1

The plan for this first day in the Windy City was to visit several of the major tourist attractions. While that was the plan; a big part of this day was spent discovering the reality of what it was like to be in Chicago. It gave us some vital first hand information we would find valuable during the rest of our time there. 

Because we had arrived so late the night before (or would 1:30 AM be considered early?) we slept in and got a late start to our first day in the city. But our plans were to be out until after midnight so getting started after noon was probably to our advantage. 

The first lesson we learned was because of the density and height of the very tall buildings in the downtown area our GPS coverage was, at times, not very reliable. It guided us into downtown but could not get a signal to show us the way to the address of the parking structure we had programmed into it. 

After getting a bit frustrated trying to find our intended destination ourselves, we learned was that there was a strategy to parking in the downtown Chicago area. The key to this was finding one of these signs:

I had been warned by some of my resources about the high cost of parking in the downtown area. I just didn't realize how expensive it would really be. I'm talking $5 to $10 an hour or up to $25 for the day. The alternative to using your car for getting around is public transportation.  

Our original plan was to leave the car in the lot all day, get around downtown using the transit system, and then retrieving the car once we wanted to head Navy Pier, a couple of miles away. Those plans would change. 

Having parked in a place other than where we had originally planned we needed new directions. Fortunately we had a back up plan. Paula had downloaded a travel app from AAA onto her I-phone. This would prove to be an invaluable tool throughout the whole trip. 

But initially it gave us access to map guidance to get from where we parked on Franklin Street, down Wacker Drive and on to our first tourist attraction. 

The Willis Tower Sky Deck

After only taking pictures of it from a distance on my previous 2 trips to Chicago,  I finally got the chance to visit this tallest building in the city with my wife. 

The Willis Tower is mainly leased by businesses for office space. The very large building has it's own post office, several restaurants, and stores and boutiques for shopping. However Paula and I were there to visit their observation area known as the "Sky Deck." 

Our purchase of the city pass paid immediate dividends. It saved us from the 45 minute wait in line; getting us directly onto the elevator within 10 minutes of entering the building. 

The ride to the 103rd floor was fast, taking only about 45 seconds. Once we stepped out onto the Sky Deck we knew this was going to be a cool experience. 

There were windows allowing us to see out over the city in all four directions. Here are pictures I took of the views from each side of Sky Deck. 

North

South

East

West

On the eastern side of the building was a large 8ft X 8ft X 4ft clear glass box known as "The Ledge." It extended out of the side of the building and over the street below. You were able to step out on The Ledge and look out over the eastern portion of the city. 

On a clear day you're supposed to be able to see 5 states. If you look down more than 1300 feet below you is Wacker Drive filled with tourists and traffic. It is very safe but a bit unnerving.

Paula was very reluctant but she managed to get out on the clear glass floor for just a minute or so. Only long enough for her to take a picture with her I-Phone that proved she did it. 

I was fine with standing on the ledge as long as I was looking up, left, right, or forward. When I looked down I lost my nerve. It was very scary. 

Here's the picture of our sneakers that proves our feat of bravery above the city.  Yes, those are tops of other sky scrapers below us.

Standing on "The Ledge"

Once we were finished at the Willis Tower we started making our way to a public transit station with the intention riding a bus to our next attraction. 

Although it was a nice day with the temperature in the 70's we found ourselves tired and thirsty after our time at the top of Willis Tower. 

As we walked down West Jackson Boulevard we unexpectedly found ourselves across the street from Giordano's pizza restaurant. 

I pointed out to Paula that this was on our list of the places we wanted to eat. Their deep dish pizza was recommended as the best in the city. We decided to take a break, sit down to rest and have some lunch. 

We ordered a 10 inch three topping deep dish stuffed crust pizza. The waitress told us it would take 40 minutes to prepare. It seemed a bit long of a wait but we were in Chicago we had to have deep dish pizza. We ordered an appetizer and waited.

We watched as the customers around us, who had already ordered, got their pizza. It looked delicious and we were glad that we ordered the smallest one on the menu. 

While waiting for our lunch we decided to change our plan of attack in regard to how we navigated the city. Both of us agreed that, despite the potential cost for parking, we felt more comfortable having our car just blocks and not miles away from us during the day. We would drive ourselves to each of our destinations and just deal with the cost of parking.   

Finally, after about 50 minutes our pizza arrived. We knew that we would only be able to eat 1slice each. The rest was going to have to be taken with us back to the car. 

Here's a picture of us, taken by our waitress, just before our first taste of deep dish Chicago style pizza. (Paula has her eyes closed but that's typical for her because of her sensitivity to the flash)

Eating Deep Dish Pizza At Giordano's

This deep dish pizza was good but not as "amazing" as I had expected. There was a lot of cheese and meatballs but it was the sauce that made it tasty. The thickest part of the crust on the outside of the pizza was a bit dry. I was a somewhat disappointed because I was expecting it to be more like the Sicilian style pizza I used to get in Pennsylvania. Over all though, it was good. Did I mention we especially liked the sauce?

With 4 of the 6 slices of pizza in a "to go" box we headed back to the Franklin Avenue parking garage to pick up our car. Later those leftovers would be an element in one of the most intimate and memorable moments of the entire day. 

Our next destination was the John Hancock Observatory at the north end of Michigan Avenue. To get there we would have to drive through the heart of the downtown Chicago shopping district known as "The Magnificent Mile." 

Getting there and parking would prove to be a rather confusing and somewhat frustrating experience. But would force us to see more of the city than we had originally planned. This was both interesting and geographically educational.  

At this point of my trip report I realize that I've already written a lot and it's still just the middle of our first day. I'm going to stop here for now with a "to be continued" promise for the next post. 

I hope you are finding this interesting and will come back for each and every one of the subsequent posts in this series. I have a feeling it's going to be a bit longer than I had originally anticipated. 

The next post will include a "Ferris Bueller" experience, our discovery of a couple of really cool retail stores, a visit to one of the "happiest stores" on Michigan Avenue, pictures from the John Hancock Observatory. All that and more in my "Day 1 Part 2" post about our Weekend in Chicago.