Look at that beautiful Chicago skyline, and Lake Michigan, all from 1300 feet up. That is us, as viewed from the 103rd floor of the Willis Tower, on what's called the Sky Deck. Yes, this was once the Sears' Tower, and for longitude and latitude purposes, still is, however I guess they thought they'd change it since Gary Coleman died. Anyhow, we stood in line in the frigid cold outside, moved slowly through a snaking line on the ground floor, only to be crammed into an elevator and deposited up ONE floor. THAT'S where the tickets are purchased and lines are longer. For future reference, get there before 10, (that's when it opens), stand in line, and you'll have less of a line inside. Get there midday, and rottsa ruck!
The whole trip to Chicago was very nice. Everyone treated us nicely, the relatives, the kids, our vehicle; all went well. Chicago traffic is still Chicago traffic, and avoidance of certain highways at certain times of the day is always adviseable, but live and learn. Personally, I enjoyed getting off of the congested highways Wednesday night, on our way to Aunt Mary's house, and driving through the city streets, just south of the big city itself, however, I wasn't getting car sick. No one lost anything during that ride, but Katie did say later that she wasn't feeling the best. I still think if I ignored the GPS, and drove the surface route I plotted, we would have been there in less than the 65mins it took us, but we got there unscathed, and early enough for Mom Brody to visit with her sister in law for a good spell before everyone else popped in.
The kids were great the whole trip. The hotel was good, and free breakfasts were more than welcomed to the budget. They even had a free drink manager's reception at night...sorry Terry, one drink free max. All things said and done, if car and money permit, next Christmas break, we may do it again, but we'll just drive by the Willis Tower next time. Oh yeah, and we did see the Sally the dinosaur's skeleton at the Field Museum as well. Very nice trip and we're home safe and sound. GPS worked out rather well.
