usa: illinois: chicago pt 8465

Since my summer plan was basically two weeks in Mundelein, two weeks in Bloomington, and two weeks in Mundelein, I knew I'd be going into downtown Chicago at least once during the second two weeks in Mundelein.

It turned out I went into the city more than once, which wasn't a surprise. The first time was to visit my friend Laura, with whom I worked when I lived in Seoul. She had a beautiful baby girl, and it had been a year since I'd seen here, so I took the train into the city and she picked me up at the metro station.

We started with breakfast at a diner, something I'll always enjoy, whether I'm with someone or by myself. Baby was quite chatty the entire time :)

Most of the rest of the day we hung out at her place, just catching up. Laura was still on maternity leave (being lucky enough to work for an organization that offers such a 'luxury,') so she had plenty to do around the house.

When I was younger I admit I didn't think too much of women who stayed home with babies, wondering what they did all day long. That impression was so wrong, as there is ALWAYS something to do when you have a newborn.

After a few hours Laura's boyfriend came home, so she left the baby with him and we went for a walk. We ended up at a bakery, which seems to be the norm for me, whoops. From there she went back to her flat, and I walked to the nearest metra station.

Then I made a mistake, I boarded the wrong metra train. I realized it almost immediately, but that mistake cost me more than two hours, and I didn't end up getting back to Mundelein until 1900 or so. Whoops. Oh well.

Another day I took the train into the city to meet up for lunch with a friend at the food court in Macy's. There is definitely better food to be had in the city, but when you're limited to a lunch hour you choose a place not too far from work. It was a nice catchup, we hadn't seen each other year in a year.

I was disappointed by the weather that day, as it was pretty rainy. It's not fun to walk around downtown Chicago when it is so gloomy and wet. 

I ended up shopping for clothes I don't need.

After shopping I headed toward Millenium Park. I know locals don't love the place because it's full of tourists trying to take the perfect photo at the Bean, but I still love it. The only advantage to the rain is that there were fewer tourists at the Bean.

From there I checked out a couple coffee shops, but didn't find anything that sounded good. It was an easy walk back to Union Station to catch the metra back to Mundelein, I caught the right train this time :)

The last time into the city was a half day 'trip' with Kelley and Jon. They drove, and were able to find parking that didn't cost a fortune. 

They'd learned about an 'oddities market' to see, which was fun to wander around for a little while. I'm not into skeletons and goth, so I wasn't interested in most of what was available, but I love people watching at all times.

After the market I convinced Kelley and Jon to walk to Bang Bang Pie and Biscuits, a pie place I'd heard about and Kelley recommended. I'm a sucker for pie. I couldn't decide what I wanted, so I got two slices. The place is popular, there was a line out the door for customers.

After getting our pie to go, we walked to an Asian restaurant called Fat Rice Kelley had heard about. I didn't love my soup, but her fried rice was really good. I wouldn't mind returning, as other customers were eating stuff that looked really good.

Chicago always has more to see and eat, I know I'll be back.

usa: illinois: ft sheridan and waukegan

This post covers a couple small cities I visited in Illinois.

One day I went with Kelley to work, then drove a bit south, toward the community of Ft. Sheridan. Wikipedia tells me it is a residential neighbourhood within the three cities of Lake Forest, Highland Park, and Highwood. (Why a single residential area is part of three different cities is beyond me, but that's not the point of this.)

Ft. Sheridan originally came into existence as Fort Sheridan, an army post named for General Sheridan, a Civil War cavalry general. The army officially closed the main fort in 1993, then sold most of the land to commercial land developers. 

The housing buildings were sold as well, companies renovated them then created residential communities. Some buildings were designated as historic, which I think means they can be privately owned, but not drastically changed. Something along those lines.

One thing that didn't change is the veterans cemetery in one part of the property, it's still an active military cemetery.

A forest preserve was created out of 250 acres of the former fort. This was the area I'd learned about online, I wanted to explore a bit. Fortunately, there was a parkplatz so I didn't have to walk too far after leaving the car.

The preserve partly borders on the lake, so that seemed like a good place to start. You walk through some prarie grass to get there, then down a hill to get to the lakeshore. When I got there I saw how small the accessible part of the lake shore is, so I didn't stay long.

There is a cannon on display along this path, presumably memorializing the time when this area was of military significance.

As I climbed back up I saw a path heading off into the grasslands. I didn't know where it went, but hey, why not find out. 

A couple hours later I finally came all the way around the circle, having gone all the way around the property. Or at least as much of it as there was a path to be seen.

I walked through trees and grasses, all of it very quiet and peaceful.

At the furthest edge I discovered the cemetery I mentioned earlier. As I got closer and closer I realized there was a burial taking place, so I stayed as quiet as I could, and stayed outside the cemetery until it was over. The ceremony concluded with a seven gun salute and a presenting of the flag to the family of the fallen.

After walking through and around all of that, I headed toward the former parade grounds, which have been kept empty. There is a long building along one side of the area, with a tall clock tower. I imagine this was one of the former gates of the area? Not much to see other than the tower, but it was pretty.

After all that I went back to the car and drove a little bit north, to the city of Waukegan. It's an industrial suburb of Chicago, not on anyone's tourist list. I wanted to go there to see the beach and the lighthouse.

It was easy to get to the beach, and easy to find parking. Judging by the number of other people out there at the time, and their ages, school hadn't yet started in this area either. I went out to the beach and loved it. Not nearly as pretty as the beach I saw in Kenosha, but it seemed like a much better place to hang out.

Off to one side of the beach was a series of dunes. Some grasses were growing through the dunes, which was good, as the grass is what holds the dunes in place. As expected, walking through the dunes wasn't easy. There is a reason runners go to sandy places for good workouts.

The lighthouse I got to see was tiny, and I have no idea if it actually functions. Either way, I was happy with the photos I got to take.

After the beach area I went to a diner I'd found online. It might've been only a couple hours before dinner, but there is never a wrong time to eat at a diner :)

I'm pretty sure I won't be back to either Ft. Sheridan or Waukegan, but you never know. After writing this I realize how little I visited in each area, so it seems I really should go back and explore more. Hmmm.

usa: illinois: state parks, zion, and an arboretum

Now that I know how to find information about things to do and places to see, it seems like a whole new world when I go back to the States each summer. My friends live in a (boring) suburb of Chicago, but there is still heaps going on not too far away.

One of my first adventures after coming back to Chicagoland was on a regular work day. I went with Kelley to her job in Zion, then borrowed her car while she worked. I first drove to Illinois Beach State Park, which wasn't a long drive.

Once you go down the rabbit hole of clicking on different spots on Google Maps, you only come out hours later with a long list of places to go.

I parked near a small pond, and immediately fell in love with the quiet. Well, almost every part of the quiet. I could hear the mozzies straightaway, and they immediately found me as well. Sigh. There was a shelter with toilets, as well as a couple picnic tables and benches near the pond, it was all really peaceful. Standing close to the water were at least five fishermen, I wonder how much they were catching.

I walked around the other side of the pond, just enjoying being near the water. From there the trail took me through prarie grass, which truly felt undeveloped and almost secret. Walking through the grass was really nice, I was surprised no one else was out there.

The parkplatz was not far from my main destination of the day: the beach. It was the middle of July, but the water of Lake Michigan was still really chilly, there was no one else on the beach, let alone in the water. I was in heaven, as it was a slice of light sand with waves rolling in regularly.

As expected, walking along the beach was almost a workout. Just another example of why runners go to beaches and dunes to get a good workout. It's soft, but moving forward is hard work.

Further down the beach I found a trail leading to a completely new area, so I followed that for a while. I almost felt like an explorer, silly as that sounds. I can see why leaving everything you know behind holds such appeal to some people.

Eventually I turned around and came back to the beach, then followed the trails to another small beach area. 

This one wasn't as pretty, a couple large rocks even had graffiti. I'm quite sure I'd never expected to see graffiti in the States saying that the USSR is best.

When I returned to the car there were fewer people around, the mozzies seemed to be hiding, and there was no shade anywhere. Thank goodness for air conditioning in cars.

I drove back into Zion, my main stop was Shiloh House. This was the home of Dr John Alexander Dowie, the founder of Zion. Zion was founded as a planned conservative Christian community in 1901 by Dowie, a Scots-Australian evangelical Christian minister. 

He owned most of the land in the area, and the businesses as well.

In general when you hear the name of a community or world leader you tend to assume they are tall, as most of them are. Dowie was not, he was only 5'6" (168cm) and the way his house was built reflects his shortness. The steps are slightly shallower than is normal, and a few shelves had built in steps in some of the rooms.

The Shiloh House is a 3 story, 25 room mansion. Dowie shared the space with his family, as well as a couple friends and some family servants.

There is an entry fee to visit the house, but I was able to wander all over on my own, taking as many photos as I wanted. My favourite part was the winding, wooden staircase, which was beautifully carved. The balconies were also pretty fantastic, they were on all three level s of the house. Another unique part of the house were the bird head spouts on the bathtubs.

Each room had information about the furniture on display, as well as the person who slept there. The whole house is really well presented for visitors, I highly recommend visiting.

When Zion was founded, everyone who lived there was white. That's not anywhere close to reality now. There are currently about 25,000 residents of Zion, with a mix of African American, Latino, and white residents.

After walking through the house I found a random local cafe for lunch, then kept going. Another random sight spotted on a map was up next.

A pyramid!! The great pyramids of Egypt are famous for good reason, but I'd never expected to find one in the States. This one is an event center, so I wasn't able to go in because no events were taking place. 

There is also a giant statue of a pharoah nearby. Just. Wow. (I don't know if that is a good wow or not.)

A few days later Kelley had to work, but Jon and I didn't. We spent a couple hours cleaning up the house, then drove to Matthieson State Park, a bit over an hour away. Matthieson State Park is the relatively unknown neighbor of Starved Rock State Park, one of the most visited state parks in the state of Illinois.

Matthiessen State Park is named for Frederick William Matthiessen, who owned the 176 acres that are still the core of today's park. 

After his death in 1918 the family donated the land (which was then called Deer Park,) to the state. I don't know why it took so long, but the park was renamed in his honour in 1943, in the middle of WW2.

Matthiessen State Park is now 1938 acres, and none of the buildings from the original estate still exist.

Jon knew where he was going, so we pulled into a busy parkplatz and immediately started walking to get away from all the people. Even though this park is far less known than its neighbor, there were still plenty of people there. (Not a surprise in the middle of summer.)

There are a number of trails available in this park, so we randomly followed a couple of them. Since Jon has been to this park several times previously I wasn't worried about getting lost at any point, no matter where we went.

Even though the parkplatz was busy, and the trailheads were often busy, it didn't take us long to get away from everyone else. It was easy to find places with no one else around. It was easy to get to waterfalls. It was easy to find small canyons carved out by the eternal motion of water.

A few hours of getting out in nature was awesome.

The next day all three of us were free, so we piled in the car and drove to a place that had been on my list: Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Illinois. The arboretum is a public garden, outdoor museum, and tree research center covering more than 1700 acres.

Morton Arboretum was established in 1922 by Joy Morton, who owned Morton Salt Company. The goal then and now, is to encourage planting and conservation of trees and other plants for a greener, healthier, and more beautiful world.

The arboretum probably wouldn't have made it onto my list of places to visit except for a recent addition to the plants and trees: a series of GIANT wooden trolls placed around the grounds. These six trolls were created by Danish artist Thomas Dambo, made from reclaimed wood.

The trolls are all made from untreated wood, so there will be no chemicals leeching into the ground as they are slowly taken over by nature.

When you enter the arboretum (paying an entrance fee of $15 per adult,) they give you a map of the grounds, showing the general location of each troll. 

There are small parkplatzes near most of them, so you don't have to walk all over if you don't want to. We visited on a hot day, walking would've been very unpleasant.

Near each troll is a small sign with a 'clue.' You're supposed to write down or remember the clues, and put them together with your map to figure out where the troll 'house' is in the arboretum. It's a neat way of getting people involved in what they're seeing, rather than just taking a photo and moving on.

I would love to see the trolls in fall or winter, I bet they're amazing.

usa: illinois: chicago

Despite spending the first two weeks of my summer break with Kelley in Chicagoland, I went into the city just once in all those days.

Social media lets me know about a lot of things, including the various travels of friends and former colleagues. This happened in mid-July, I was able to arrange meeting up with someone who is normally in Florida.

I got up early, and took the Metra train into the city. My meetup was mid morning, so I took my early arrival time as a chance to walk all the way to the old water tower.

When I got there I had to admit I never would've thought it used to be a water tower. It's made of stone, and was one of the only structures to survive a fire that destroyed most of the city in 1871. Very photogenic, but not worth more than a minute to see the tower.

From the tower I walked to a branch of a coffee shop chain called Intelligentsia Coffee. It was great to see Laura again, we figured out it had been more than 10 years since we met and worked together in Seoul. It was also nice to meet her boyfriend Ryan.

From there it was another long walk to Manny's deli. I felt like I'd earned the calories of a giant corned beef sandwich and potato pancakes.

After eating I didn't have any specific sights planned to see, so I walked back toward the city center, which is generally full of people and things to see.

At one point I realized I was walking by a library with great decoration outside. The inside was pretty impressive as well.

Not far from the library was a dog park with a great skyline view of downtown. Since it was mid afternoon on a hot sunny day, I was the only person out there. If there had been benches and shade, I'm sure more people would've been there.

More walking brought me to Buckingham Fountain. It's big, but you can't get too close because of a low chain that blocks off the whole thing. Though I wanted to get close enough to feel the cold water, I was happy to take a photo without anyone in the frame, since no one else could get close either :)

One place in Chicago that I'd wanted to see was the Art Institute. I'd wanted to see it until I got through the front doors and discovered the entry fee was $25. That felt a bit steep, so I opted to save the museum for another visit. Sigh.

Looking at my phone, I discovered the Chicago Cultural Center wasn't far away. It's a beautiful building, and best of all, it's free to visit! The stained glass window at the top is amazing, as are all the mosaics throughout the building.

Chicago is amazing, I know I'll be back.

usa: illinois: chicago, mundelein, and a festival

My flight back to Chicago went as scheduled, then I took an uber taxi to Kelley's house. I didn't do much of anything the rest of the day, because I didn't have to.
The next day I went with Kelley to work in Arlington Heights, then caught a Metra train from there to Deer Park. I'd made arrangements to meet up for lunch with my friend Laura.
Laura and I met when we worked for the same school in Korea, we've stayed in touch ever since. We're both from the midwest originally, so we have more in common than just teaching in Korea. It was great to catch up with her.
After lunch I got on the next train into the city center of Chicago. I walked all the way to Navy Pier, I don't think I'd been there before. If I have, I don't remember it. From what I could tell, there isn't much to see or do. Have lunch, ride a ferris wheel, or look at the skyline of Chicago.

On the way to Navy Pier I walked by a beach, which was super crowded. I love beaches, but there is no way that would be a good time, even for me.
After Navy Pier I walked to Millennium Park, to see the Bean. It wasn't the first time for me to see the Bean, and it is super touristy, but I still find it fascinating. Everyone is trying to take the perfect photo for their social media profiles. I know that such a photo is impossible, but i did it too. I also took a photo of a guy in a Ronald McDonald costume.
In addition to the Bean I took a few minutes to check out a fountain area of the park. In this area were two digital photos, which regularly changed to show different faces. Nifty.
My train back to Mundelein got back just a few minutes after the post office closed. I probably should've paid better attention to the working hours, and planned accordingly. Sigh.

The next two days I stayed in Mundelein. Kelley and Jon were planning to host a seafood boil party, so we needed to get the house ready. I did some deep cleaning, shopping, and decorating.
The morning of the party I picked up some food and did last minute decorations. Who doesn't love lobster balloons and blow up lobsters? We also put giant googley eyes on the tree out front, just because we could.
Everyone who came to the party brought a side dish, so there was more than enough food. I ate too much, but I didn't regret it.
After the party everyone helped clean up.
A couple hours later we packed up several cars, and drove to the grounds for Ravinia Music Festival. I'd never heard of it, but Kelley and Jon had heard of a performer known for New Orleans style jazz music. 

The concert that night ended up being over three hours, not counting the opening act!
Apparently this festival is a thing, because everyone who goes brings a picnic and chairs and blankets, etc... Fun, and the music was good. Thank goodness traffic wasn't too bad on the way home, and I'm grateful Jon drove home.
It was a great last night with Kelley and Jon. The next day they went to work, and after packing up, I ordered an uber taxi to get to the airport. My driver didn't know how to get to the airport and didn't seem to want to keep his phone on to use GPS, so it was an adventure to get there. The ride was a LOT longer than it should've been.
This won't be the last time I spend time with Kelley and Jon, as they are my chosen family.
Getting back to Moscow was as planned. 

the States: illinois: chicago and the burbs

The start to this time in Chicago was a bit more stressful than usual, what with Kelley's phone needing to be dealt with immediately. After she and I came back from Indiana, we talked with Jon and figured out what we do that evening and how to do it.

Fortunately, there was an Apple store not too far away, so that was the first stop of the evening. It being an Apple store it was also a bit of a playland for lots of adults. (Side note: these stores turn into total chaos when a new iPhone version comes out, do NOT go shopping for anything Apple during that time.)

Kelley was told she would be called soon, and she needed to show up within 15 minutes of the call. We also needed to do some grocery shopping, and that was too far away to guarantee getting back within 15 minutes. So Jon and I went off to do the shopping at Walmart while Kelley waited in the Apple store.

Grocery shopping with a list of items needed by Kelley at work is an adventure. Normally I'm not a fan of places like Walmart, but her list was so varied that this is one of the few places that has everything on the list. Plain Greek yogurt, coloured aquarium rocks, vegetable oil, bird seed, etc... It was fun, and we cleaned out the plain Greek yogurt section.

We got back to pick up Kelley with perfect timing, only having to wait about 10 minutes. From there the two of them picked up dinner (I was still full from my Fair Oaks stop earlier in the day,) and we drove home.

The next day I did a whole lot of nothing. When Jon and Kelley left for work (at different times,) I was either still asleep or on the couch watching a marathon of Law & Order: SVU. When they came home, I was on the couch, still watching episodes. Cable TV is great.

Somehow, I managed to do the same thing two days in a row. I'm sure whateva show I was watching was different, but I was still sitting on the couch much of the day. Now I'm fully aware of how it is sooooo easy to gain weight in the States. It's a lot harder to be active, to move around. It's a lot easier to sit around and not do much of anything.

On the 8^th of July I decided I should actually do something, or see something. At some point I'd searched on a travel app and found that there is a cafe named after me in Chicago, so that seemed like something I should do.

I went with Kelley to work, then hopped on a metra train from there. When I use the name Chicago, I'm referring to the city, and usually to the suburbs as well. It's a HUGE area. Only people from this area, when talking to other people from this area, make the distinction as to which suburb or neighborhood they're talking about.

I could've taken a train from their suburb, but the timing was far less convenient. About an hour later I got off the train at Clybourn station, and started walking. (Google maps told me I could catch buses from the metra station, but I wanted to walk.) It took me a while, but I got to Eva's Cafe easily enough.

I wasn't as impressed as I'd hoped to be. Other than the name on the sign out front, there wasn't anything with 'my' name on it. No cups as far as I could see. After asking how it was made, my chai latte came in a paper cup with a generic logo, not an Eva's Cafe logo. Darnit. While I was waiting I asked how the name is pronounced, and found out that the owner says it the same way I do, but most people in the shop say it with a long E sound, because that's what Americans do. Argh.

After my drink I kept walking, and made my way to downtown Chicago. I aimed toward Lakeshore Drive, one of the most identifiable parts of the city.

There are tiny beaches there, but I'm glad I hadn't brought my bikini because the place was super packed. How is that fun for anyone? I've been on crowded beaches before, but at least the beach itself is big, or has something else going for it. This was just small, and crowded. I wouldn't even have been able to lay down and soak up sun!

There is a road along the lake, (Lakeshore Drive,) and there is a path along the road. The path is for walking, running, cycling, etc... That's where I walked. My original plan had been to follow the path to Navy Pier, but I didn't leave myself enough time.

While I was walking I noticed at least one group of people I'm assuming were a bachelorette party group.

Instead of walking out to Navy Pier, I walked under an underpass. There was a sign under there, something about creating or building a new Chicago. I like this Chicago well enough thanks, no need to change it.

At this point I realized I would be cutting it really close on time to make the train I wanted. In other words, uh oh. I walked quickly, but it ended up not being quite fast enough. I shouldn't have taken so long in 'my' cafe.

Downtown Chicago is a land of skyscrapers, the skyline is on many a postcard or photo. There is a river running through this part of the city, which is turned green every year on the 17^th of March, and was turned blue after the Cubs won the World Series of baseball. There are shops and cafes and offices and construction.

I ended up missing the train I wanted by just minutes, so I found another that would get me close to home. (I'd originally planned to go back to Kelley's work.) Thankfully, that train ran on time and there were no delays in route. Kelley picked me up at the station, it didn't take long to get home.

That evening we went out with friends of Kelley and Jon to the neighboring town of Libertyville. The food was pretty good, but I still have a hard time finding a small taco to be worth $5. Oh well, I'm glad I went out with them. After eating they dropped me off at home and went to a microbrewery with fun sounding beers. I was exhausted, (doing very little somehow managed to exhaust me,) and since I couldn't have any of the beers, I opted out.

The next day we all took our time getting moving, just because we could. Eventually we got ourselves together, and started the day with Portillo's for lunch. I know I've said previously that I don't like to support national chains, but this one I do support because it started in Chicago. Kelley spent some of her younger years near the very first Portillo's. There are franchises in other states now, but it is still seen as a Chicago place. Despite being crowded most of the time, everything is always efficient, and you never have to wait long to get your food. Obviously I didn't need the lemon cake shake, but it was soooo good.

After lunch we drove to another suburb called Bartlett. Not too long ago I'd seen a picture online of a Hindu temple near Chicago, and the photo was beautiful. I wanted to see this temple for myself, Kelley and Jon were curious as well. It's always good to be a tourist and get to know your own area a little better.

Go figure, we visited the temple over a weekend that was a holiday for this temple. Kelley had looked online and seen that there would be services all day, so we hadn't expected to be able to go inside. We didn't realize that would be police managing traffic on the streets nearby, and the need for parking far enough away to require a series of shuttle buses!

After going through the temple we chatted with someone who told us as many as 15,000 people were expected each day of the weekend. Wow.

The temple is gorgeous. There is a gate near the front, with heaps of carvings, with a couple elephants carved out and standing in front of the gate. This isn't the kind of gate you drive through, it is the kind of gate you walk through to enter temple grounds. Not too far behind the gate was a long fountain with blue water.

Behind the fountain was the actual temple itself. More beauty, heaps of it. The man we talked to afterward said the whole thing had actually been made in India, then shipped here in 44,000 pieces.

I'm amazed it was all put together this well after being shipped so far. The entire building was carved with really intricate designs.

The visitors center is next door, this is where we found out we could go in the temple. I had to borrow a wraparound skirt, as my dress wasn't long enough. We took off our shoes (there were several places for all the shoes that had to be taken off,) and went downstairs into a tunnel that came up into the inside of the temple.

The inside of the temple was just as amazing as the outside. It wasn't big, but the carving everywhere was stunning.

The ceiling itself was a series of mini cupolas, each carved with a different design, with the center one being the biggest and most intricate. Along the edges were places for different Gods. There were columns every so often, holding up the roof I assume. In front was a GIANT display of some of the offerings brought by pilgrims over the weekend. A buffet for the Gods I suppose.

Obviously, I'm not Hindu, or Indian or Pakistani so I wasn't wearing a sari, but it felt as though nearly everyone there was. Such beauty and colour in that clothing.

Getting out of the visitors center was easy enough, but figuring out how to get to the area for the shuttle bus involved going back through the visitors center, all the way to the other end of the building on a different level. While making this walk we passed the cafeteria, where we could've had a lassi or other yummy food.

The exit at the back of the building brought us to the sidewalk where a couple volunteers were directing traffic (before parking in the lots where shuttle buses picked up, nearly everyone drove around the temple area first,) to keep accidents from happening. Given the number of people there, I was thrilled to have the volunteers. It was kinda funny to watch them yell at someone who felt he could cross the street when he felt like it instead of waiting like the rest of us.

We hopped on the shuttle bus, which took us to near where we were parked. This was actually at a nearby high school, and the shuttle buses were school buses! In other words, the holiday weekend for this temple was a really big deal, and took a LOT to organize and support.

After that we went home. Later in the day we went grocery shopping, which I always love to do.

That night I reread the directions for the application for my Russian work visa and realized I needed a blood HIV test, not an oral swab. This was not a fun realization, since it happened in the evening, and I had no idea how to go about doing this. Kelley gave me a suggestion, and I thought I had it sorted to happen the next day.

Monday I went with Kelley to work again, then walked to the place I thought I could get my test done. It turned out, they needed a doctor's order to do this test. Of course, I didn't have this kind of order. Since I don't live in the States, I don't have a doctor, let alone the ability to get an order. Argh.

The front desk manager felt sorry for me, and let me use the phone. I tried calling family members, hoping they could somehow help me out, but the American medical system is beyond ridiculous. I walked back to the library, where Kelley set me up with one of the reference librarians, and lent me her phone.

After calling a gazillion numbers (and dealing with waaaaay too many of those stupid automated menus which never had the option I wanted,) I finally figured out where to go.

I had to wait for the next metra train, but eventually took that and two buses to get to the medical clinic. At the clinic my blood test was done really fast, yay! From there I walked to Union train station, not as short a walk as I'd originally thought, whoops. Fortunately, I didn't have to wait long for a train going home.

The train brought me home, the walk from the train station wasn't long. It was a stressful day, and my last in Chicago, booo.

The next morning Jon drove me to the airport, which was amazing. Of course, I found out my flight had been delayed, argh.

I will always be happy to come back to Chicago and the surrounding area.