sweet home Chicago

holla atcha, bloggerinos.

so I've been a lame-o lately and not so hot with the posting, and kind of frustrated with the whole idea in general. I've been taking it easy with the blogging and doing things I know I'm good at... like watching netflix and eating Mexican food. 

then I remembered, my good friends Kyle & Kenny asked me to help them plan their trip to Europe (and by "asked me to help" I mean that I wouldn't shut up about it and they probably just gave in) and that made me excited! I can't travel myself right now, but I love planning future trips for just about anyone. 

that also got me thinking about my last vacation, which I have yet to finish sharing with you all. after our wonderful stop in Louisville, Caitlin and I continued on to the windy city! 

our first item of business was to head to the ol' ball game at Wrigley field. it was my first professional sports outing! (unless you count QMJHL hockey, which I don't really...). it was so fun and classic archetypal Americana. and we saw the Cubs play the Angels, which really struck a chord with my Disney-loving, Angels in the Outfield-watching self. 

Chicago is such a beautiful city. it's the home of the skyscraper, don't ya know. and man, are they good at 'em! 

the next morning we headed to Grant Park for the Taste of Chicago, which, according to wikipedia haha, is the world's largest food festival. yeah, that had Sarah and Caitlin written all over it. it was the hottest day everrrr. we got free ice cream and listened to jazz music and ate Chicago-style hot dogs; which is, in my opinion, the best of all the dogs! we were so lucky to be in the city while the festival was on. 

we only had one full day in Chicago, and we wanted to see as much of it as we could, so after the park we decided on a boat tour of the Chicago river and waterfront. it was the perfect afternoon activity because it was soooo hot and we were tired, and this way we got to relax while still checking out all the sites. the riverfront has all the best skyscrapers, and the view of the city from Lake Michigan is incredible. 

we continued our water world experience of Chicago over dinner... we were walking around Navy Pier (by the way, beautiful, but not that interesting for adults!) and found a great offer on a dinner cruise, and we couldn't resist! there was a buffet. who among us can resist all-you-can-eat food?

let he cast the first bread roll.

I can't remember the name of the boat, but there are a bunch of them on Navy Pier that seem to be pretty much the same. it was fun! the buffet was great, and there was a neon, light-up dance floor. it was deliciously cheesy in the most delightful way! but the best part was the amazing view of the fireworks over the water, which happens every wednesday. 

it was a magical ending to a great day. 

one day in the windy city, chock full of fun! I would definitely recommend a visit, and definitely take more than one day. if you can. just cause, well. Chicago's pretty sweet. 

wanderlust temporarily subsides. 

♥