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.

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.

denmark: copenhagen

My flight from Porto, Portugal went smoothly, and arrived on time in Copenhagen, Denmark. This was my first trip to Denmark, so I was really excited.

I had been checking out the weather ahead of time, and it didn't look terribly good. As I looked out the window of the plane, it looked awful. Gray skies, 'visible' wind, and rain. Yuck. I could also see a bridge as it went from above water to below. Very cool.

I've wanted to come to Denmark for a long time, but this time I had a good excuse to finally make the trip happen. One of my former students had moved there with his parents, and I'd been given an open invitation. (Not just a "you should visit" invite, but a "we'll love it when you come" invite.)

In other words, it was a change to catch up with some people I love, and see a new place. Yahoo!!

Irina picked me up at the airport, and showed me how the metro makes it really easy to get back to the family flat. It wasn't cheap, but I already knew this ahead of time. Denmark is one of the most expensive countries in the world.

As small as Denmark is geographically, it used to be a world power, and still does very well economically. They have a high tax rate, but the government uses those tax monies well (most of the time anywho,) and provides a lot to the people. Public transport is everywhere, you don't need a car. Most people have bikes, but that's it.

The roads are in great shape, the health system takes good care of people. Local libraries are awesome.

While we were on the train, Irina explained to me that the actual boundaries of Copenhagen are quite small. Even though the rest of the world sees the city as one city, those who live there know that not many addresses actually have Copenhagen in them. My friends live in Frederiksberg, which I would consider part of the city, not separate. Anywho.

We got back to the flat and stayed up quite late chatting about anything and everything. They'd come back from a trip of their own, so they were still jet lagged and it was easy to stay up late.

My old student was fast asleep of course, I knew I wouldn't see him until the next day.

I slept well, and still somehow woke up early the next morning. Why does this always happen? I got to chat with my old student, though at that point the conversation was entirely on my side. He clearly understood me, but had sortof forgotten how to speak English. Funny how speaking various languages involves so many different skills. I wasn't worried though, I knew he'd remember everything quickly.

The next morning, Morton went to work, Irina went to Danish class, and my old student went to school. I putzed around doing a whole lot of nothing in particular until almost noon.

Denmark is pretty far north, and it was June, so I knew I'd have plenty of daylight to walk around.

Instead of taking the metro, I decided to walk. The weather was much better than I'd expected, so I wanted to take advantage of the ability to walk while I could.

My first stop was just across the street, a supermarket. I found skyr, which I absolutely LOVE. It's generally known as Icelandic yogurt, basically a really thick yogurt. You can stand your spoon up in it. It's also fairly high protein, for people who pay attention to such things. I fell in love with it when I lived in Iceland.

While walking around the supermarket I really noticed the high cost of EVERYTHING. Even buying food in a supermarket is expensive, it's not easy to cut down on food costs if you're trying to stay on a lower budget. Sigh.

As I continued walking I took note of all the bicycles, some of which are really expensive. People in Denmark invest in a bicycle, knowing it should last them for many years. I noticed huge murals on the sides of some buildings. I noticed a surprising number of churches for a country that is (currently) not terribly religious.

My first actual sight was a castle. Denmark still has a royal family, (though they don't do much of anything useful,) so of course there are castles.

I'd already decided I probably wouldn't enter anything while I was there, as I didn't want to pay astronomical entrance fees. 80 kroner is over $10USD!

Rottenberg slot (castle) is quite small, but is surrounded by a moat. (No crocodiles, as far as I could tell.) Very cute, very picturesque. The castle is now a museum. In front of the castle is the King's Gardens. (Konigshavn.) Basically a giant lawn with trees thrown in in a few places. There were also some flowers from time to time. A great place to have a picnic. (With food I couldn't really afford.)

I wound my way through the city to one of the most photographed places: Nyhavn. When I first heard Irina say the name, I missed it completely, because it does not sound like I thought it would. It comes out as Noo-ha-oon. (At least, that's my best attempt at the phonetic spelling.)

Nyhavn is a series of colourful houses/buildings along one of the marinas of the city. No matter what the weather is, the colours stand out, it's always a good picture. Because it is one of the most recognizable areas of the city for tourists, it is also packed with people.

I chose to walk down the opposite side of the marina, as I don't love walking through huge crowds. All those photos of people by themselves in that area are completely photoshopped.

I kept walking in the old city, eventually coming to a platz in the middle of four buildings. As there were soldiers in ceremonial garb in front of the buildings I figured it had something to do with the royal family. There was also a statue of a guy on a horse in the middle of the platz.

I looked it up later and learned that Amalienberg is considered the Queen's home. Why any one person needs four large buildings, I don't know.

Part of it is a museum; as before, I skipped going inside.

Not too far from Amalienberg is a big church. At least it seemed big to me. St Nicholas has a huge cupola, which is beautifully painted. There are signs when you enter that remind you to keep quiet, and it seems most people pay attention to the signs. Yay!! You could hear cameras being used, but there wasn't much talking.

I kept going, and go to the moat surrounding an old fort. Normally I'd go in a fort, but I didn't want to spend the entrance fee, so I skipped it as well. The moat itself was quite photogenic, especially with the shape of the moat, and all the clouds rolling through.

While I was watching I noticed that the tops of the land on the walls of the fort seemed to be a popular running trail.

I walked past a fountain that is supposed to tell the story of something, I suppose I should've paid a bit more attention. Or looked it up later. There were so many people crowded around, I didn't want to stop.

After that I finally came to the other most photographed sight in Copenhagen: The Little Mermaid. I really have no idea why this is such a popular thing to see. It's a relatively small statue, a mermaid on a rock. I don't get it. Yet, the area is packed with people. Of course I took my photo, but I was having more fun watching all the people in the area. What am I missing about this statue that makes it so popular?

It took me a while, but from there I basically walked back to the flat, stopping a few times to take a photo. I had dinner with the family, and just hung out. My former student was remembering various English words already, and it was fun to hear him switch between English, Russian, and Danish, all very quickly.

The next morning I was actually productive at an earlier hour, yay. I helped drop off my former student at school, it was neat to see what another preschool looks like. Then I rode the metro into the city center with Irina. She went to Danish class while I started exploring. She already speaks Danish quite well, but in order to gain permanent residency and eventually citizenship, she has to pass a test which is pretty difficult, even for native speakers. Taking language classes is a necessity.

I had to cross a couple short bridges to get to my first sight, but that is common in Copenhagen. The entire city is built on and around water. The Danish Empire used to be very dependent on water, or at least the power of the water, through its navy.. The whole country is on or near water.

I love books, I wanted to see the King's Library. It is actually made of two buildings. One, the new one, is called the Black Diamond for the way it looks. I was more interested in the old one, because there was a reading room. The new building is quite interesting architecturally, I loved the way it looked inside. There are escalators that take you up to the second level, which leads to a walkway going across the street to the older building. The older building is basically the stereotype of an old European library.

When I got to the door of the reading room I was disappointed to see a sign (very clearly displayed,) that said (in Danish and English,) that the room was only for studying and reading, no visitors allowed.

I thought about sneaking in (there wasn't anyone guarding the door,) but I wanted to respect the request. Instead, I satisfied my desire for a photo by using the windows in the entrance door.

I found a modern sculpture not too far away from the library, also on the banks of the water. More fun with time delayed photos. I kept walking, following one canal that seemed to be sortof a back street area. It was definitely in the city center, but there weren't many other people wandering around.

This canal/street took me to my next sight, another church. They really are all over the place, in a city that isn't super religious!

As this church was Protestant, the interior was relatively simple. Big, but simple. While I was in there someone was practicing the organ, which was awesome to hear. People who can play an organ are amazing. Their hands can do different things at the same time and their feet are essentially dancing. Plus I love the power of the music. I sat and listened, and appreciated. 

I had to wait about half an hour for the next church to open, so I wandered the area a bit more. This was right near the University of Copenhagen, of which one of the buildings had some constuction going on nearby. I know construction is needed, but it's so loud and annoying.

While wandering around I came to the Round Tower, which is exactly as it's name says it is. It is a round tower. There are no stairs to get to the top though, it's a spiral incline going up the interior of the tower, all the way up.

On the other side of the tower was a church that was open. Lots of wood, some gold accents for decoration. The organ was in the back and it was very pretty. After looking around there it was time for the other church to be open, so I went back. It turned out to be quite small inside, and not at all interesting. I liked the organ best of all, mainly because the pipes were in an interesting location; at my eye level!

After that I went back to the place Irina and I had split up in the morning, we'd agreed to meet for lunch. We walked to an area called Papiroeen (sp?) which means Paper Island in English. It used to be a paper making factory, but is now full of food trucks/stands, and is a great place to find a variety of cheap (by Danish standards anywho,) food for lunch.

We walked around the entire area, and both ended up choosing from a place that had hummus. Yum. There was a stand making delicious looking drinks; I was able to have one without alcohol and it was 'only' $10. Crazy! The weather was fantastic, so we found a place to sit outside and enjoy the sun. We definitely weren't the only ones thinking that way, but it didn't seem crowded.

From there I went with Irina as she ran some errands, including returning a book to a library. The Danes have everything so organized, I loved it. We also stopped in a grocery store, where I bought a couple soft drinks made by Danish companies, just to try them.

We came home and sat for a few minutes. Morton came home from work and brought my old student with him. Irina and I took my old student to the nearby library, as there was a festival of some kind happening outside the library.

The festival itself didn't end up being very exciting, but I liked the library. In addition to books, they had a climbing wall, a tunnel slide from the second to the first floors, and other amazing places for kids to play. If libraries in the States were like this one people would spend a lot more time at the library!

We went home and after not too long, walked back out, this time with Morton. We went to a neighborhood restaurant that serves typical Danish food. We all ordered the same thing, so the restaurant served it family style and we served ourselves. Pork with a crispy top, it was soooooo good. I saw other meals served while we were there, and realized that no matter what each of us had ordered, the portions would've been huge.

Somehow, despite eating plenty, we all had room for ice cream on the way home.

The next morning was Saturday morning, which meant no one had to get up, or be productive at any specific time. Morton had made bread dough the night before, so he baked traditional Danish morning rolls. (When you see them in bakeries, they're always labeled 'morning rolls' and they'll look at you funny when you try to buy them in the afternoon.) Irina made omelettes too. Basically, I was fat and happy. Especially since I also had some skyr.

After a while we all went for a walk, I had no idea where we were going, but I knew that in the early evening the three of them would hop on a bus to go visit friends for a night. I'd then stay in their flat for a few more hours, then catch a bus to my next city.

It turned out there was a local street fest of sorts. The street had been blocked off, and a few things had been set up. It wasn't big, and we weren't there very long, but it was nice to see people out enjoying themselves, and getting to know their neighbors. I think public monies help pay for this sort of festival. 

We kept walking, and eventually ended up at a park. It was a much bigger park than I expected from the rather small entrance. Apparently you're not allowed to ride bikes in the park, so there were several bicycle stands just outside the fence.

There are a number of paths in the park, we followed one of them. I would've had no idea where I was going, I was glad Irina and Morton had spent time there previously. There were a few small bodies of water, and bridges going over the water. At one point I looked over and realized I was looking at a Chinese temple on a small island! Talk about a surprise. I think it was there for decoration, rather than actually being used.

Then we came to a huge lawn. At least, that's how it felt to me. At one edge of the lawn was a fairly steep hill, leading up to another castle. This was Frederiksberg Slot, originally the summer home of the royal family. It is now used as the military academy for the country, if I remember correctly.

Irina and Morton set out a couple blankets, I went up the hill to get closer to the castle. I didn't want to go in, but I wanted to be closer, and to be able to look down the hill at the 'lawn.' I'd been up there for a few minutes when I looked over and saw my old student coming up the hill to meet up with me. How fun!

We walked over to another edge and he pointed out something in the city to me. Then we raced down the other end of the hill, it's amazing how fast a 4 year old can run. I was terrified I would fall, (or even worse, that he would,) but thankfully we both survived the run.

About the time we got back to Irina and Morton, it was time to go. Everything was packed up and we slowly made our way out of the park. From there we walked to a nearby bus stop, which was where I had to say goodbye to the family. Even though I'd only been with them for three days it had been a really good catch up, and I hope it happens again soon!

After they got on a bus, I kept walking, just for the sake of walking. At some point I realized I'd started heading back to the flat, so I checked out every grocery store I passed. I found skyr to take with me on the bus that evening, as well as a couple rolls for the next morning. I knew everything would be heaps cheaper at my next stop, so I didn't stock up.

From there I went back to the flat and killed a few hours. I packed everything up, cleaned up, and left the flat. I left the keys on the table, hoping I hadn't left anything behind. Of course I was running slightly behind, so I ended up having to speedwalk (and occasionally jog, which isn't super easy when carrying a pack and purse,) all the way to the bus stop. I got there about 7 minutes before the bus was supposed to leave, so life was good!

After I win a lottery, I definitely want to come back to Copenhagen, and to the rest of Denmark.