CHICAGO!

So this is a picture of the famous Chicago Bean in Millennium Park. Unfortunately, I got this picture from Google images, but only because my crappy little camera didn't like taking pictures of it at night! It is actually a really cool statue and we were even able to walk under it!!!

However, that was Saturday night, so I will start from the beginning!!!

Thursday morning was slightly stressful, because of course I fell asleep Wednesday night without packing! I quickly packed my book bag and rushed out the door to work (D drove me, thank goodness!!!) While at work, I made sure to send D a few emails, reminding him of certain things to pack so that he wouldn't forget! Moving to a new place is very stressful!

Around 3:30p, I was picked up from work by one of our friends and his little sister. They drove us to the airport, where we checked in right where we were dropped off! While you do have to tip the people (apparently to ensure that your bags make it...) it seemed SUPER convenient for the 3 huge bags we were checking. One bag was over 50lbs, but with a little rearranging (and two hardback books going into my purse) we were successfully checked in! The helpful guy also printed out our boarding passes for us, although D didn't realize and we checked in again anyway. I suppose you can never be too careful???

We successfully got through security, although D forgot that his projector was in his book bag, and that caused a minor hold-up. Thankfully, no one was behind us, so it didn't really matter!!! Once we were putting our shoes back on, there was a little kid, around 3 or 4 who would NOT stop crying, most likely because someone had taken his little book bag away, as well as his shoes! At that age, there is no way he can understand airport security, just the fact that someone was taking away his things! After security, we quickly grabbed a bite to eat and then headed to the gate. The plane ride wasn't anything too exciting, but I loved looking out the window and seeing Chicago as we approached! Due to the three large bags, we took a taxi to D's new place! Like most places in Chicago, it has one of those circular doors that are super cool for someone from North Carolina. I always thought they were just super fancy, but also found out that they prevent the wind and cold air from coming into the building in the winter. Imagine that!

The rest of Thursday night wasn't that exciting, just filled with a little unpacking and walking around to find food, which was a little harder than we expected! Where D lives seems to shut down at the end of the work day, so not as many places were open! We finally settled on Qdoba, which was good, as usual! Since both CVS and Walgreens were closed by the time we left dinner, we ran into the 7/11 to get some basic things (toothbrush/toothpaste etc.) for the night and then settled in to watch a little Modern Family!

Friday morning started off with a Starbucks run (of course) and a call that the movers were an hour and a half early! Moving in wasn't that bad, with the exception of the broken bookcases and TV stand. I was in charge of checking off what numbers came in, and I messed up twice, but I still don't think the movers said the right number!! They said it wasn't that big of a deal, which is nice.

While the movers were bringing in all the boxes, the groceries arrived! It was nice to already have them in the apartment! After the movers, we grabbed lunch at Potbelly's, which was an awesome sandwich place! We also walked around the Merchandise Mart for a while, which was nice! I tried deep dish pizza for dinner, and could only finish a half of a piece! After pizza, D and I traveled to Wicker Park to visit K and C. It was nice to see her place and visit with old friends, but I may not be making that trip again...

Saturday was filled with more walking around Chicago (in the northern direction this time) and we found a cute little used bookstore! There were also new titles, but lots of used books! I was in heaven! I bought two books (one for D) and they were still cheaper than the cost of one book normally! Following the bookstore we caught a late breakfast at EATT. The service was amazing, probably because they were about to stop serving breakfast and we were able to order super fast. My banana pancakes were amazing! Of course, I had leftovers for Sunday's breakfast!

The rest of Saturday included unpacking 5 boxes of books and organizing them (me) while D unpacked the kitchen and started washing all the dishes. He was also able to go through a lot of his clothes and wash them too! After a little unpacking we walked over to Millennium Park and checked out the bean and saw a LOT of people. It was a bit overwhelming, but apparently there was a free country concert going on that night. For dinner we found Ronny's steakhouse, which was in itself an adventure. We shared a meal and tried their famous pink lemonade, but the place was slightly sketchy. The food was pretty good, but hurt my tummy just a little bit.

On Sunday we woke up to the CHICAGO MARATHON! Even with the windows closed, we could still hear all the music and cheering for the runners. We quickly ate our leftovers from EATT and I packed up my stuff to head to the airport. Due to the potential marathon street closings, we left with plenty of time to make it to the airport. We grabbed Starbucks on the way, which also included a Chicago mug for me! I promised D I would buy him the North Carolina mug, so that we could have the respective mugs at our places. We took the orange line to Midway and found out that my plane was delayed an hour! It was nice because we had a little more time to spend together. We sat at near the check-in counter and some guy even trusted us enough to leave ALL his bags next to us while he went outside for about ten minutes. He didn't even ask us, but I guess we looked responsible enough to not take his stuff...

Around 2pm we said our final goodbyes and I headed through security. The two people in front of me kept forgetting things in their pockets, included coins and a beer bottle cap, but overall it wasn't that bad. The worst part was getting to my gate almost an hour early and there wasn't anywhere to sit! I sat up against the moving sidewalk, but I kept sliding down!

Finally I boarded my first plane ride by myself! It wasn't really anything that exciting, especially since I didn't have anyone to talk to! The flight went smoothly and Roman picked me up at the gate pretty soon after I arrived. While it was nice to make it back to my place, I was exhausted! I am glad that I don't have to travel that much each week.

Overall, my first trip to Chicago was a blast! I go back in a few weeks and I can't wait to see other sights while I am up there! I miss D, but we are trying to email a few times a day and talk on the phone when we can. Also, I am super excited to see my family this weekend and perhaps hang out with a few friends back home.

Maybe I will get around to uploading my Chicago pictures at some point, but I wouldn't hold my breath...