Spring semester 2009 is done. Finally. I don't know what it was but I never got settled into it (despite the fact that I had some great students). I cannot claim that it was just drudgery; I have had my share of fun.
In March I attended CCCC for the first time in years. It was good to dip back in to academia (though it was sort of a quick dive in and out). It was better to see San Francisco again and to visit with friends.
This time we even made it to Pier 39, thanks to a tourist trap bus tour. Don't get me wrong, seeing the city by bus is a fine thing. And I've never been on a double-decker before (this one even had leftover British ads with the prices in pounds). It was a bit too windy for comfort and it was really cold when we drove across the Golden Gate. Still, the views were lovely. I didn't enjoy the guide's banter. It was weak and his attempts to flirt with some of the ladies was weaker. It probably threw the guy off when he forced Terry into admitting that she is a native San Franciscan. She probably knows the city better than he does. Snerk. I didn't really regret it when we got down by the water and had some time to kill before the return.
The wharf is as you would expect. I like the water and the sea lions but could do without all the junk shops and the crowds. I much preferred our time at the Farmer's Market. I would give a lot to have something even approaching that here. All we can seem to manage are a few booths. I blame the corn syrup and fuel manufacturers. Thankfully they don't seem to have the same grip on San Francisco. There are so many booths filled with gorgeous produce, cheeses, artisan breads...chocolates, tea, and so on, that I didn't know where to look. I did manage to snag some goodies for hotel snacking and for the trip home.
In April we headed north for a weekend in Chicago. We took the train from Lafayette to the city and I am pleased to say that it really went smoothly. Apparently the downturn in the economy is good for one thing. Less freight=fewer delays for Amtrak. Adam booked a hotel that was comfortable and had a great view. I took this photo from our room. It is hard to go wrong when you're that close to Tiffany's.
Since it was my birthday weekend I got to set the agenda. This trip was all about buildings and food (cue The Talking Heads here). We started with lunch at Lou Malnati's. We got some minestrone while we waited and it was very good...flavorful and yet light enough that we weren't destroyed by the time the pizza came. The pizza was good but I have to say it wasn't my favorite. Maybe getting the specialty butter crust wasn't the best move. The butter just sort of coated my palate, giving the pizza a greasy feel. The sauce is fresh...less like pizza sauce and more like a light sauté of tomatoes. I can see why it has its devotees but I can't count myself one of them.
We walked off some of the pizza by strolling back to Michigan Ave for some window shopping. I was pretty tired after that so we retired to the hotel. We ate dinner at the hotel restaurant, an English style pub called The Elephant and Castle. The food was okay but the beer was very welcome. We turned in early and were ready for the next day.
We started at the Shedd Aquarium. Unfortunately, my favorite exhibit (the beluga whales) was closed. There were no whales, dolphins, or penguins. Essentially, all of their big draws are shut down for renovations. It was actually kind of interesting to see how they tried to compensate for the loss. The first thing was they gave us tickets to a 4-D movie experience. We had two choices and I opted for the one that didn't feature SpongeBob. The film was 3-D and included "bonus" elements like squirting water, breezes, thumps in the back and so on. The wee ones did not enjoy the experience and there were some tears and quick exits. After the show Adam asked about it and it turns out that SpongeBob loses more kids. Go figure.
In addition to the film we got to see a feeding in one of the huge tanks and that was quite entertaining. There was some talk going on at the sharks with an expert...but my crowd issue kicked in and I just plowed right through. All in all, it was a good try but I recommend waiting for the full exhibits.
After the Shedd we took a long walk, following a path in a guidebook featuring architectural highlights. The first leg eventually took us to Millenium Park in Chicago. The second picture is of Buckingham fountain in Grant park. The first is a picture of a reflection in "the Bean" in Millenium park. (Why did I put them in backwards? I don't know! I'm just learning here).
We took a break and had lunch at The Gage, my favorite restaurant during this trip. It is right across from the park and serves what amounts to gourmet pub fare. I don't remember if it bills itself as a gastropub but I think the label fits. We ordered a glass of a lovely Pinot Grigio (perfect on a sunny day). And I insisted we try an appetizer: the poutine. Adam had no idea what to expect but I have been fascinated by it for awhile. It sounds a bit disgusting but so do many of our comfort food classics. This version was french fries with elk ragout and fresh cheese curds. Adam didn't care so much for the gaminess of the elk but found that the tang of the cheese and the starch in the potato worked together to smooth that out. I agree though I don't think I minded the elk as much as he did. I don't know that I would order it again (especially in warm weather) but my curiosity was satisfied. We didn't finish it so we did have room for the main course. Adam got a gourmet burger with camembert (I think) and I got a delightful sandwich: a shrimp BLT with avocado, microgreens and lemon aioli. I don't know what possessed me but I even ate the tomato. All in all it was a great meal and we left ready to make the rest of our journey.
Some of the buildings were difficult to get a good view of. We saw some examples of Chicago windows and some interesting details in stonework. Sadly, we couldn't get into The Rookery for the Frank Lloyd Wright entryway, but we saw the outside. We approached the Sears Tower, and a couple other buildings. Luckily we did get into the Chicago Cultural Center. I love stained glass and that Tiffany's ceiling does not disappoint. The whole interior of the building is just gorgeous. The literary themed mosaics were especially nice to see.
My feet started to blister up so we made our way back to the hotel for a break. On the way we saw the Wrigley building, the Bob Newhart apartment building, Tribune Tower (the one that was on CSI NY and has the pieces from other famous buildings) and this awesome sculpture. American Gothic isn't my favorite but for some reason I have always really enjoyed riffs on it. I remember I used to wear a button that had replaced their eyes with flashing red lights. Ah, high school/college. Good times.
After recovering, we went out for dinner at a Brazilian steak house. Basically, it is a meat orgy. You pay a fixed price and begin at the salad bar. The salad bar was quite nice and I think you could do well to just stick to it. It had a lot of fish dishes, grilled vegetables, and other salads in addition to the usual fare. My favorite was a cold shrimp salad in a lightly spicy tomato sauce. When you finish there the discs come into play. One side means go, the other is a pass. "Go" means that the men carrying around their skewers of grilled meat are welcome to come to the table to offer you a piece. There was lamb, various cuts of beef (ribeye, flank, prime rib, sirloin...you name it), sausages, pork, chicken, shrimp, and pineapple. Lobster is an extra fee. I liked most of what I tried but honestly that much meat is a bit overwhelming, especially as we were still pretty fresh out of our Lenten pescetarian diet. It is a whirlwind of activity. I guess I am happy that I had the experience. Adam was sorry he didn't get to get a really good look at the cocktail waitress in carnivale garb (read: very skimpy outfit with feathers). I am not so sorry he didn't. I wouldn't have wanted to have to pull out one of the only phrases I remember from Portuguese class: Eu tenho um d'or de cabeça. (I have a headache).
We needed to walk off some of dinner so we made our way through some shops. We had a great time at the Lego Store and I made a stop at Nordstrom. I bought myself a big birthday treat: a Marc Jacobs handbag (30% off!). Now my breakup with Coach can be official. We ended the evening with some apple crumble å la mode and a cognac at The Elephant and Castle. That definitely counts as a win.
Our last day in Chicago was rainy and a bit cold. We decided to end as we had begun with some Chicago Style pizza. This time we went to Gino's East. We hadn't been there in years. We began with what they called minestrone. It was not good. I think the base is cream of chicken soup. Possibly from a can. Yuck. The pizza, however, was quite good. I didn't have an issue with the crust and the sauce was thicker and spicier. I still don't know if I like this place or Giordano's better. And to be fair to Lou Malnati's we didn't get our usual pie with spinach and that may have been an unfair disadvantage. I guess we'll have to return for a more controlled experiment. Now that we know the train trip is doable there should be plenty more opportunities.
That just about brings me up to date. Derby was a fun time and I got through another mandatory graduation ceremony. My summer has begun and I am sinking into it in earnest.
This past weekend Adam and I walked along the canal in Indianapolis. It is an excellent walk (flat, along water, with lots of opportunities to people/pet watch and dream about high priced real estate ownership). There were bonus ducklings too!
It couldn't have been better weather either. It was sunny (after all the rain earlier in the day, I'm surprised) and cool with a nice breeze. We stopped at one end at a place called the Creation Cafe in Bugg's Temple and had beers and appetizers on the terrace. The apps were tasty. The stuffed mushroom had a nice cheese blend and weren't oily at all. The cheese quesadilla was good too. The beers were local and really hit the spot. I was surprised at how much I liked the Three Floyd's Alpha King Pale Ale. I don't generally go for those. In this case the light citrus flavor worked well with that bitter hit. It was refreshing and matched the food. It also didn't weigh me down as we walked back to the museum.
We finished the night at the IMAX theater with Monsters vs. Aliens in 3-D. We had some time to kill before the movie so we sat in part of the atrium at the museum. The other part was curtained off for a wedding and wedding reception. The highlight for us was when the recording of soft crap jazz stylings was interrupted by some music from Star Wars (though I do believe they cut off the Imperial March). I believe that the music was tied to the introduction of the bride and groom. Awesome and good for a laugh.
If the rest of my summer goes this well it will be a rousing success.
1 comments:
Nice update! We went to The Gage on our last Chicago trip, and just received a shipment of four Malnati's pizzas. You have fine taste :-)
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