days 1 and 2: driving, chicago.

We hit the road at 8:30 am on Wednesday, July 7th, and drove most of the way to Chicago that first day.

My head was spinning for the first couple of hours, convinced I’d forgotten something important, but once we passed Asheville, I started to relax. We truly made it out of town! And the van ride felt so peaceful after all the hustle and bustle of getting ready to go.

We packed our lunch for a rest area and grabbed dinner at Chick-Fil-A in Indiana. It was, incidentally, the first Chick-Fil-A we’ve stepped inside in 16 months due to COVID. The playground was still closed, much to Noah’s disappointment, but it was so nice to dine in again.

Thus far on big road trips, we book the main places we plan to stay in advance, then wait to decide on the hotels for our driving days. This is risky of course, as we found out today (more on that later), but on the whole it works well since we’re not always certain how much driving we’ll feel like doing.

So we found a hotel an hour-and-a-half outside of Chicago for our first night.

 

 

 

Chicago: Lincoln Park Zoo

On Thursday morning, we hit the road first thing and drove straight to the Lincoln Park Zoo.

We all marveled at the Chicago skyline as we drove toward the city, and then again as we saw Lake Michigan — which looked more like an ocean to us.

A word on why we spent two days in Chicago: it’s a city that’s always been on my bucket list, and a good way to break up that loong drive to South Dakota. I did some research on our stay, then David’s aunts in Seattle have a close friend, Ronda, who lives with her husband in Chicago, and she helped exponentially as we planned our stay.

I would’ve by-passed the Lincoln Park Zoo because we have a great zoo in Columbia, but Ronda told me that it was worth a visit. It’s free to the public, so she said we wouldn’t be compelled to stay for hours on end; we could stroll through it as long as we were interested.

 

 

It was the perfect recommendation. We were all eager to get out of the van and stretch our legs, and could not believe the overcast, 66-degree weather. We dug our rain jackets/sweatshirts out of the “Yellowstone” suitcase before setting out.

The zoo exhibits were great and the setting is utterly charming. Old brick, ivy-covered buildings, lush greenery, immaculate walking paths, interesting sculptures, and always that majestic skyline in view in the distance.

 

 

 

Chicago: The Loop, Stan’s Donuts

Since we’d snagged a free parking spot on the street outside the zoo, we decided to walk about 2 miles to the Loop, which is the heart of the city, to find the famous Stan’s Donuts.

We loved strolling through the posh, tree-lined neighborhoods, with their row houses and apartment buildings, before we emerged in the center of the city.

 

 

 

 

 

We all fell in love with Chicago that first day. The architecture. The blue-green Chicago River. The bridges. The outdoor cafes. The flowers!

Stan’s Donuts was everything we wanted it to be. We ordered a dozen, but truly only needed six, they were so rich. If you ever get a chance to go, my recommendation is the carrot cake donut. They were all delicious though … best donuts we’ve tasted, hands-down.

 

 

 

Chicago: Millenium Park, Maggie Daley Park

After fortifying ourselves with donuts, we walked along the Magnificent Mile to the Cloud Gate Sculpture in Millenium Park. It’s one of the things every tourist apparently must do, and the Gentinos were no exception. David said, “I love watching dozens of adults turn into grinning kids when they see their reflections in The Bean.”

How can you not??

 

 

 

 

Next, we walked through a sliver of Millenium Park to Maggie Daley Park. We could’ve spent hours walking in Millenium Park alone, but a lady who saw us on the street with our four kids recommended the playground at Maggie Daley, so we headed there next.

 

 

 

 

The three younger kids played happily for an hour, while David and Judah and I found a grassy knoll and people-watched. This is one of my favorite things about big cities, the melting pot of cultures and languages.

When it was time to head back in search of the van and dinner, it suddenly occurred to us just how far we’d walked. Four and a half miles at least. We were tired. We were hungry. And we were still hoping to meet up with David’s aunt, Cathy, who’d flown in from Seattle that day to stay with the aforementioned friends, Ronda and Bob.

So we started the trek back to the zoo. Two members of the family felt that they simply could not go on. They were very thankful for a big brother and sister.

 

 

 

 

David found a local hot dog spot for us to eat in the Lincoln Park neighborhood, and his aunt decided to meet us there. On the long three miles to dinner, we saw the D.L. Moody Memorial Church, founded by D.L. Moody. I read his biography this past year and loved it.

 

 

While I was having a moment of thanksgiving for one of my heroes of the faith, my eight-year-old was doing this:

 

 

The look on Amie’s face reflected how we all felt at this point: tired!

We met Cathy for authentic Chicago-style hot dogs (tomato, onions, relish, and a pickle — but no ketchup, under any circumstances!) in a little hole-in-the-wall restaurant, and had a happy reunion with her for the first time in two years. We made our plans to meet up the next morning, then she got on the El train to head back to Ronda and Bob’s, and we walked the mile to our van.

We checked into a terrific hotel, right in the Loop, but were almost too tired to notice, then fell into our beds, exhausted. We walked at least nine miles that day!

It was worth it though, to experience this amazing city.