St. Patty’s Day in Chicago: Caroline’s Intro

In the spirit of St. Patty’s day, I’m sharing how my Dad and I celebrated it last year when we drove to Chicago for a long weekend.  The main reason I wanted to go to Chicago, other than my love of big cities, was the green Chicago River I heard so much about.  Chicago celebrates St. Patty’s Day in style with a leprechaun pouring green dye in the river to turn it bright clover green.  Check out the picture I took. Hundreds of people stood on all sides of the river to watch as the boat glided back and forth slowly releasing the dye.  The crowd cheered as the leprechaun slowly worked his magic turning the entire river green.  It was such a cool thing to see — the Irish spirit filled the city immediately!

Dad’s response:

Chicago is one of my favorite places to visit because there is so much to do and see.  However, watching the river turn green is not one of them.  We got up pretty early, so we wouldn’t “miss anything” and walked out in the freezing cold to stare at a boat.  It was at least forty five minutes before the “leprechaun, started his magic.” Once the river turned completely green I will admit it was pretty cool to see, unlike anything I’ve seen before, but I wouldn’t make it the reason I visit a city that already has plenty to do.

Everything else we did and see in Chicago was really cool though. After staring at the green river for a bit longer, we walked to Millennium Park and saw this giant reflection beam.

Then we headed to Navy Pier where we rode on the Ferris wheel and the boat tour, both of which allowed us to see great views of the city.  There were also some St. Patrick’s Day festivals going on that was fun to watch for a little bit.

We also took a Segway tour where we drove around the city on our Segways seeing cool things like where President Obama spoke before the election and where the Great Chicago Fire started in 1871.  The Shedd Aquarium was also interesting. It’s the largest aquarium in the world — I didn’t know that so many fishes even existed.  One of our evenings was spent on top of the John Hancock building where we had a lovely dinner and breathtaking view.  The city offers so much to do other than watching a river turn green in the freezing cold!

Caroline’s response:

Oh, we did do plenty of other fun things other than watch the St. Patty’s celebration kick off.  However, I’m getting exhausted just reading over what we did while we were there.

We ran from site to site in the city without much relaxing in between.  I think cramming everything we did in over a long weekend was too much.  Plus there was way more shopping at Navy Pier that we could have done and more St. Patty’s Day festivities I would have liked to enjoy.  And we could have limited ourselves to one tour. Did we really have to see the buildings on a Segway, a boat AND from a Ferris wheel? I’m not going on vacation to learn that the John Hancock building was at one time the largest building outside of New York City!  And I’m definitely not looking to eat a fancy dinner on top of the building. Famous Chicago style pizza was a much more authentic meal; maybe there wasn’t a view but at least I didn’t have to dress up to enjoy it.

I did like the Shedd Aquarium; that was fun because we took our time and really enjoyed seeing all the crazy different type of fish. That place was so big we probably could have spent all weekend there alone.

I still think the green river was the coolest thing we saw because it’s so different and only happens once a  year! Yes, the wait in the morning chill wasn’t the best, but it was the reason I wanted to adventure to Chicago that time of year and I’m so glad we went then. If we ever go back, I suggest we: plan on staying a week or cutting down on what we do; enjoy  more of the St. Patty’s Day festivities around town; and have more time to spend in the fun shops.

Dad’s response:

You can shop anywhere, that shouldn’t be the reason you go on vacation! Not that standing outside to watch a river should be, but I think when you’re visiting a city it is important to see and do as much as possible.  St. Patrick’s Day festivities are fun but a bit childish at times.  And I still don’t understand how you can enjoy standing outside for almost an hour to watch a river but you can’t enjoy seeing the city view from multiple aspects?  I think if we do go back for St. Patrick’s Day I should spend the extra money for us to stay in a high rise hotel so we can watch the river being dyed from our room and not have to stand outside in forty degree weather.  That way we won’t be as tired to still enjoy all of the sites.

Caroline’s response:

That would be cool to see the river from a high view. However, I still think I’ll need to plan a relaxing weekend right after any busy city trips we take together again!

Read other bloggers share their “Travel Tensions” below:

Callie and her Mom in France

Erik and his Mom in Vermont

Tyler and his dad in Quebec

After taking the train into Union Station, our first stop was one of Chicago’s main attractions: the Sears Tower (now renamed the Willis Tower). I don’t know about any of you, but I’m pretty terrified of heights. Nevertheless, I was grudgingly forced to go, and boy am I glad I did. The view from 108 stories up in the air is absolutely amazing (for those of you New Yorkers, think the Empire State Building plus six extra floors.) But the neatest and newest part of the Skydeck (viewing area) is the glass boxes extending four feet over the side of the building. Extending 1,353 feet over the street, it’s a very exciting but terrifying experience. For more information go to http://www.willistower.com/.

Our next stop was the Water Taxi which took us to famous Michigan Avenue. I highly recommend the water taxi for transportation in the spring and summer months. It’s a nice way to see the city without having to hear complaints about tired feet.
When we got to our destination — Michigan Avenue (also called the Magnificent Mile) — I realized the big difference between Chicago and New York City: Chicago is clean! Seriously though, I hardly saw any garbage on the streets. Also, the drivers were a little more sane than the New York crazy taxi drivers. It must be a Midwest thing…

After a little window shopping and a visit to the Apple Store (where we took loads of pictures in the Photobooth, see below), we were pretty hungry. Right off Michigan Avenue is the Grand Lux Café. I believe that is owned by the Cheesecake Factory and is the same type of restaurant. The inside is very gaudy—sort of reminded me of a cruise ship actually. The menu is vast and consists of anything from Spring Rolls to Fried Fish. I give the restaurant the “Alex Endorsement” and recommend it to anyone going to Chi-town in the near future. And hey, it’s not that expensive either! Hungry? Check out the website: http://www.grandluxcafe.com/.
While my brother, dad, and younger cousin paid a visit to the Lincoln Park Zoo, my aunt, older cousin and I did what all the cool kids in Chicago would do: go to Urban Outfitters. If you’re rolling in dough, Chicago has a lot of cute boutiques as well as many designer stores.

Overall, my day trip to the Windy City was very enjoyable. Next time I venture out there I’d love to check out the music scene, explore the waterfront and parks, as well as try some of Chicago’s famous Deep Dish Pizza. For more touristy information you can check out http://www.choosechicago.com/Pages/default.aspx.