Night on the Town in the Windy City

We caught a very big, very fast train into the city. I for one was nervous.Belle thoroughly enjoyed it, especially the conductor who stamped our pass.

Once in the city, we had to grab a cab to get us from place to place.No, none of us wore seat belts as we were piled on top one another, but yes, we needed to. The movie stereotypes of cab rides are dead on! Crazy, crazy drivers weaving in and out of traffic at highly unsafe speeds for stop and go driving.We decided we couldn't leave Chicago without trying famous Chicago style pizza. Becky R., a Chicago native, led us to Lou Malnatis.
Apparantly this is the place to get pizza in Chicago...the joint was packed.But we entertained each other while we waited and our stomachs' growled."Are you really going to make me pause for a picture now that I finally got my pizza???"Same look as Aron..."Can't a guy eat in peace?"The most unique pizza I've ever had: deep dish butter crust, solid slab of sausage, cheese, and a very chunky sauce on top. Very good...but it didn't taste a bit like traditional pizza.Someone was very happy now that his belly was full!Then we took another cab around the city and landed at the original Cheesecake Factory. Oh yes, it was worth the misery of a very full tummy and a few thousand extra calories.Saw some beautiful architectureBefore ending the evening at Union Terminal to catch a train out of the city.Since we missed the 11:30 train, we had an hour and a half to kill before the next one rolled in. Aron marveled us with his "powerwalking", and even raced Aaron D. who sprinted as Aron strutted his stuff. In a post race interview, Aron attributed all glory to his mom who gave him his hips. We finally boarded the train after 1 am. And after a 45 minute commute to the hotel...

All three boys were out.But the fun was well worth the lack of sleep Friday morning. As Becky R. told us, "We can sleep when we die, guys."

ejk