pigeon

Markel Family Combo Breaker 2023 Getaway–Day Two

Our second day of our trip to Chicagoland was the one that is always the most exciting to me, because it was the day we took the train from Palatine into the city!

When we arrived downtown, we started walking east toward Millennium Park. Of course Bunny had to feed the pigeons along the way!

We visited the Bean:

There may have been less people in our selfie than in previous years, but they’ve all gotten so big, you still couldn’t see much behind us!

We walked down to the lakefront:

And Buckingham Fountain:

I never tire of visiting Chicago and noticing new things and seeing old favorites!

We dropped Bunny off at the Art Institute so she could see the new Van Gogh exhibit…here’s a look at a few of the pictures she took there:

Then we walked along the Chicago Riverwalk for the first time, where I got a great look at my “corn on the cob” buildings:

After we had taken in the sights there, we headed back up Michigan Avenue toward the Wrigley Building and the Plaza of the Americas, where I was surprised to find that the “Wings of Mexico” art installation we saw last year was still on display:

We stopped at Ghirardelli and shared a frozen hot chocolate:

After we collected Bunny, we headed to Marshall Field’s (sorry…Macy’s), where I was happy to see some references to the old store:

Saying goodbye to the city is never easy!

After we got, we moved some of our stuff into the third hotel room we had for the weekend, and then checked out some of the action at Combo Breaker, but we reserved Saturday for really participating…say tuned!

Markel Family Virtual Getaway–Day Two

The second day of our trip north for Combo Breaker was going to be A Big Day…it was the day we were going to to hop on the Metra and go into Chicago for a day of fun!

I had a lot of things planned…first we were going to take a water taxi to Navy Pier and ride the Centennial Wheel. After riding The Wheel at St. Louis Union Station last October, we were very excited about the idea of seeing the Chicago skyline from a similar vantage point.

We also planned on visiting The Bean, something we’ve done every time we’ve attended Combo Breaker (even the one year that we missed having our downtown day), and I’m sure we would have fed some pigeons, too, because that’s something we always seem to do.

I had hoped to stop by the Starbucks Reserve Roastery, and maybe the American Girl flagship store (although I’m still not sure how I would have convinced the boys to go along with that!). And of course we would have stopped at the former Marshall Field’s to pick up a box of Frango Mints (thankfully, I was able to order some!), before heading back to the Ogilvie Transportation Center to catch a train back to Schaumburg!

We were planning on going to Kuma’s Corner for burgers one night, and I think after a day of walking around downtown Chicago, we would have really appreciated that meal and a chance to relax. The “Lair of the Minotaur” burger, with caramelized onion, pancetta, bourbon poached pear, and brie looked especially good to me, but I was also looking forward to seeing the special.

After dinner, it would have been time to check out all that Combo Breaker 2020 had to offer. We love walking around the event the first day, and just taking everything in, from the vendors’ area to the main stage to casuals, and everything else! You never know what you’re going to see!

We always stop by the Gaming Generations booth to buy whatever catches our eye. The children were really disappointed about missing out on that opportunity this year, so they were really excited when Gaming Gen opened an online store, and they were able to order the plushes they were hoping to find at the event!

After that, we probably would have just headed back to our hotel room to relax and watch the Food Network, because our Chicago day is always exhausting. Sometimes, if we have the energy, we do go for a swim to relax, though, so that was always a possibility!

Up next…a visit to Brookfield Zoo!

Markel Family Combo Breaker Getaway–Day Two

Last Thursday was one of my favorite days of any trip up north…the day we took the Metra into the city of Chicago!

Those first moments in downtown Chicago are always a thrill for me!

Our big activity this year was going to the Sears Tower Skydeck. (Yes, I hear some people are calling it the Willis Tower these days, but it will always be “Sears” to me!) Not only were we thrilled with the views from all four sides of the Skydeck, we also walked out onto the “Ledge” for an even more amazing, and slightly terrifying, view!

After we had our fill of Chicago views, we made our way to Buckingham Fountain, where we had lunch, and a nice lady offered to take a picture of the six of us:

We then started walking toward Millennium Park, and found this cool dog along the way. I think he’s a companion to the dog we saw on the Wendella dock last year!

Bunny was thrilled to have an opportunity to feed some pigeons:

And we took some pictures at The Bean, as has become our tradition:

We then walked across Michigan Avenue to the Chicago Cultural Center, which used to be the central library in the city, and is home to beautiful mosaics and Tiffany glass domes:

Outside of the Cultural Center, we stopped to see the Bronze Cow statue, a gift to Chicago to commemorate the 1999 Cows on Parade display:

We of course had to stop at Marshall Field’s of Blessed Memory for a box of Frango mints:

And then back to Ogilvie Transportation Center to catch a train back to Geneva. We even found seats on the second floor!

After dinner in the hotel room, we indulged in the chocolate torte cake that I mentioned yesterday. It was as good as I remembered, and the children loved it!

After we spent a little more time relaxing, we headed to the outdoor pool, and stayed in the water as the stars came out. It was a lovely evening for a swim!

Back in the room, we watched a little more Food Network, but not a lot, because we were all exhausted from our busy day, and knew there was more fun to come!

Victoria Crowned Pigeons at the St. Louis Zoo

Most people who have visited a large city are familiar with any metropolis’s most ubiquitous residents…the pigeon. But did you know that pigeons can also be quite fancy?!?

The St. Louis Zoo has two Victoria Crowned Pigeons in their bird house…Ernie and Dora. They’re hoping this beautiful and exotic breed of pigeon will multiply when (if?) they become parents, and we’re excited to see how this bird family grows!