Posts Tagged ‘chicago’

Final Days in Chicago

Thursday, November 12th, 2015

My final full day in Chicago was a blur of car horns, books, helicopter noise, cracks in the pavement, and good food. I dedicated my day to simply walking everywhere in the city. The only way to know the heart of a city is to walk the streets that pulse with people like the lifeblood pumping through the veins of this vast entity. Before putting my feet to the pavement and letting the sole of my shoes meld with the soul of this city I visited a place that brings my heart great joy, a library. The day was long and the journey longer to get to the center of the city.

I woke up early in the morning to grab the train only to learn that they were not running at the moment. Helicopters swooped over the train line towards the cityscape of towering skyscrapers. Apparently a man tried to end his life by throwing himself in front of the train. It was horrible to hear and I felt the sadness drift upon me as I realized that when I did not know the reason for the delay, found myself angry about the traffic and the non-functioning train. For a moment I had felt that this man’s death, his misery, his trapped and hurting heart and mind where simply an obstacle to my forward movement. That is a horrible thing to think but I hadn’t even realized I had felt it; when I realized my own unconscious thinking it felt like a punch to the gut. A man’s death, his suffering, to a stranger trying to get to work or a tourist trying to tour the city only felt the delay of his actions, not the truth or pain behind them. It was a hard morning and I hope his family has some peace in this. I had lost sight, in my mania of exploration, of the people around me as real people. I felt like I had woken up when I heard over the cab radio what had happened. This road trip in many ways is a very selfish endeavor, it is for me and me alone, maybe to be enjoyed by others in the stories to come, but as a result I had forgotten to actually look into the eyes of the people around me as real humans with personal agendas and personal pains. It was a contemplative morning for me to say the least and I walked away hoping to never forget to value each person on the street as someone who deeply mattered in their own special way.

I took a cab to the Newberry (the rare books and archive library I planned on visiting) instead of the train but was further waylaid when my cab got hit by another cab. The accident wasn’t bad, the two cars simply slid alongside each other and took off the side view mirror with a loud bang. I sat with wide eyes in the back of the cab as my driver got out and started to yell at the other driver. It was a very strange incident, I was just happy to get out of the car and rely on my own two feet for the rest of the day.

The Newberry was impressive and I felt pretty special getting my visiting scholar badge and my own little personal desk where they spread out the books I had requested in little pillow displays. I spent the majority of the morning pouring over old Milton books and William Blake paintings. It was enough to make my little english major heart implode.

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I emerged from the library with a mind full of poetry and paintings onto the urban streets of Chicago, ready to get lost in between the towering buildings.

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After getting some coffee at Bowtruss, I wandered all over the place but the riverwalk was definitely my favorite. The different bridges and the sun reflecting off of the glass buildings like the scales of some enormous fish onto the grey streets below. The noise of this city is somewhat overwhelming, yet beautiful. The clinking of change in a cup, the thudding of tires on the slates of the bridges, the horns of passing tour boats, and the chittering of people all around me. Chicago truly is a beautiful city, there is so much for the eyes to feast upon everywhere you look. Everything vibrates with energetic life.

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I took a break at Do-Rite Donuts where I got a delicious maple bacon donut. It blew my mind. I had never had a donut like this before and I sat down by the river to enjoy the view and the food.

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I also had to see the iconic sights like Cloud Gate or as it is commonly called The Bean.

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My obligatory Bean selfie.

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After my touristy stops, I wandered back down the Magnificent Mile or Michigan Ave shopping streets where I stumbled upon a food truck. Right in from of the NBC building was this bright yellow truck with a long line. Long lines usually equal good food so I decided it must be worth while. It was Pierogi Streets, a pierogi food truck serving up tasty dumplings with some amazing toppings. The food was unbelievable; I had braised beef and spinach/feta pierogis topped with spicy grilled onions, sauerkraut, and bacon. It was heavenly.

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It was a great day of wandering, but by the end my feet were tired and the sun had set on the city. The shadows cast by the tall buildings created a canopy of darkness only broken apart of slivers of light high above. In this artificial shade I left the city behind to go pack my belongings for the road ahead.

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I left Chicago that next afternoon after a morning at the Ferrara Bakery, a visit to my aunt’s studio, and a fantastic final lunch at the Art Institute.

I am so grateful for my family that has helped me along the way, none of this would be possible without them. My lovely aunt and uncle and my beautiful cousin were so kind to me. Their welcoming love, even after so long since my last visit with them, made me feel like I was home despite being far from it. I love that I get to see so much of my family, but it is so hard constantly leaving everyone behind after just finally getting to see them after so long. I have never said goodbye so many times before in such a short period of time. Every person I see along the way makes it harder to say goodbye the next time; I am more reluctant to leave yet also more excited for what comes next. This trip is one of the most challenging things I have ever done but also one of the most rewarding. I will carry these memories and these special moments with me forever, even when I have returned home to California. But after Chicago I headed even farther East. I drove that day from Chicago to Pittsburgh across Indiana and Ohio. It felt inconceivable to be moving farther away from the world I knew and loved, but the East Coast was on my mind and I meant to reach it as soon as possible. The other end of the country was within reach and with it the goal of my solo road trip was within sight.

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Northwestern

Tuesday, November 3rd, 2015

On the hunt for a new home, seeking graduate school with great coffee, better books, astounding architecture and a cohort of inspiring academics. I am touring graduate schools across the nation while I drive, and had to stop at Northwestern in Evanston, IL. So I took a whole day off by myself to drive up there and tour around the campus. But first, I grabbed coffee at Caffe Streets on Division to prepare myself for the adventure to come. Honestly, it has been really hard on me visiting graduate schools when my heart still belongs in Berkeley. I miss my academic home dearly and all of my friends who are still there. Nothing makes the sting of nostalgia more painful than the constant reminder of what you left behind by where you are going next. Trying to find a new home when I don’t want to give up the last is a brutal conditioning towards the constant change of my future. Despite my deep desire for everything to remain exactly the same, the world is shifting underneath my feet and I can either get off the crumbling rock or let my fear paralyze me.

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The cup of coffee and an hour spent in contemplation of strangers walking down the street brought me back to reality: I had things to accomplish and places to see. I did make one more pit stop at an amazing bakery with zombie head cakes in the window before I left though. These mind-blowingly realistic cakes were courtesy of Alliance Bakery. I grabbed some breakfast and hit the road; this coastal drive was far different from the ones I was used to in California. Normally the ocean is my coastal companion, but this time Lake Michigan lined the road I drove on towards Evanston.

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I toured the entire campus for several hours making some especially long stops at the English Department in University Hall and the main libraries, Deering and University Libraries.

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The views all around campus where beautiful and very nicely accented by the fall leaves and the emerald hues of Lake Michigan. The gardens and greenery all around the campus were stunningly beautiful and the entire trip was exceedingly pleasant all around. I thoroughly enjoyed the school and everything the campus had to offer.

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After walking the entire campus I finally (and begrudgingly) left Northwestern. However, when I got back to Chicago I visited another fantastic coffee shop in Pilsen called Cafe Jumping Bean, which served as the perfect end to a long day.

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Travel Update: Home

Monday, August 9th, 2010

Today was our last day on the road and we got home around dinner. It was a really long vacation starting on June 28, driving for a week to Upper Michigan, four weeks in Michigan one of which was in Chicago, then a week drive back. So it was a long trip and we are glad to be home. The experiences we have had are unforgettable and will stay with us forever. Glad to be home, but missing the adventures. I can’t wait to see what sort of adventures we go on next.

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Chicago River Blue

Friday, July 23rd, 2010

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Creeper Photo: Cow Man

Wednesday, July 21st, 2010

At first I wasn’t sure what you were doing but then I saw the little wooden cow sculpture in your hands. You were making a wooden carving of the cow sculpture. I wonder what made you choose this sculpture as your inspiration. It seems a little bit strange to have a sculpture as the model for a sculpture, but who am I to judge. You were interesting to watch as you marked the places on your little cow that needed work and more carving. You were so serious and intent on your work, it is nice to see an artist so committed to their work. Keep it up cow man.

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Catching Up: Chicago

Sunday, July 18th, 2010

For the last couple of days I have been in Chicago to celebrate my grandmothers 70th birthday with my dad’s side of the family. My mom, brother, and I drove down to Chicago and we met the rest of our family there. We stayed right downtown and it was really nice but ridiculously hot and humid out. So here is the recap of our days happenings.

The first day after we arrived we walked around downtown Chicago after a few interesting incidents…. like Gabe humping the entering Wisconsin sign. Yes my little brother is strange.

The first thing we did in Chicago was an architectural design river tour on the Chicago River. It was very interesting to travel through Chicago by river and then go out into Lake Michigan to see the Chicago skyline. We also went along the navy pier.

It was nice hanging out with our Philadelphia cousins and seeing all of our family in such a cool setting. The heat was not very enjoyable though, especially walking blocks after blocks in the boiling heat and humidity. We met my grandmother’s brother and sister-in-law at a nice restaurant right on the river. They gave us about four free desserts because they thought they took a long time to get our food out but I thought it was really normal. The desserts were amazing, like one which was a mint ice cream cake coated in a marshmallow cream that had chocolate drizzled on it. So good!

After that we walked around some more and headed over to Millennium Park. By that time we are running from one shady spot to another trying desperately to escape the sun. So we were hiding in the shade while I was trying to get pictures. Meanwhile Aunt Eileen was having fun with a cow sculpture…

We had a brief visit to the Art Institute of Chicago after a long day but we were so tired that we bailed out quickly to go back to the hotel room for resting time.

The next day my family went to Gino’s East a famous pizza place in downtown Chicago. It was featured on Man v.s. Food, my family are big fans of that show and try to go to the places on the show any time we can. Like when we visited the Crab Pot in Seattle. We got to Gino’s and the decorations were amazing. The entire building was graffiti up and covered in writing and pictures. Not to mention the food. I never had deep dish pizza before so Chicago’s Gino’s was the best place to start I figured. I was totally right. I was worried I wouldn’t like it but it was so good. It had an amazing cornmeal crust that just blew us away.

We also went to Al’s Italian Beef restaurant which was also featured on Man v.s Food. We had it catered to my uncle’s home for my grandma’s birthday dinner. We got to make it ourselves which was quite the experience. It was so good and you got to dip your sandwich in the sauce and it was one of the best sandwiches I have ever had.

Over all we had a lot of fun and it was really nice to hang out with my whole family. There were a lot of laughs and very strange things but it was so great to see all of my family that I normally don’t see.

Grandma’s birthday party was a lot of fun and I can’t wait for another little re-union like this one to get to see everyone together again. Happy Birthday Grandma!!

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Travel Update: Chicago

Thursday, July 15th, 2010

Basically I am way to tired to post anything decent so…. sorry. Here is the re-cap. Yesterday my mom, little brother and I drove down to Chicago for my grandmother’s 70th birthday. It is kind of a big family reunion with all of the family from my dad’s side. We have been walking, taking tours, visiting museums, and of course eating lots of food. I am tired now, and don’t feel good so I will give you a random photo from my road trip to mask the lack of attention to the actual writing within this post.

I will give a more detailed update when I am feeling better. But one quick little tid- bit of info, they are filming transformers three right now, right here and blowing up a dock we were on today. Yea…. goodnight.

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