Chicago

The best kinds of trips are ones that are not planned. The ones that are spontaneous. The ones that are drawn out of thin air. The ones where there are no guidelines or expectations, but with open arms and a willingness to get lost. That is exactly how this Chicago trip came to be. It was two weeks out before Halloween and I didn't have any plans. Cole and I decided to look online to see if we could catch any last minute flight deals. Luckily, we hit the jackpot, finding a $49 round trip to Chicago. There was no way we would pass up seeing one of the greatest cities in the world. And it just so happened that a couple of our friends were also visiting Chicago for the Halloween weekend. We wanted to join the party. It was written in the stars.

Due to my time living in Europe, I was an expert on all things considering low cost carrier airline. A low cost carrier flight is an extremely cheap airfare, however you must pay for every other service imaginable. From checked bags, to foods and drinks, to entertainment on the plane, or even choosing your seat there is a fee. However, if you can pack a small enough bag (as a carry-on) and avoid other silly little petty cost then low cost carrier is convenient. I like to call these flights “flying bus” as the aircraft and seats are rigid, basic, and not so comfortable. However as a young man I can deal with these circumstances for short commercial flights.

Cole and I arrived in Chicago on Friday evening (October 30th) after a late flight from Atlanta to Chicago with Frontier Airlines. We got to our hotel around 11 at night so we didn't have much time to explore the city. We were staying with our friends Eric and Miranda in the Intercontinental Hotel on Michigan Avenue. Our Chicago adventure began with experiencing a staple of Chicago Lou Natalie’s deep-dish pizza. All I have to say is that it lived up to the hype! After a few slices I knew I have blown my diet, however it was worth the gluten and calorie intake.

On Saturday morning, I had to wake up early because I was running with the Nike Run Club in Chicago. One reason why this trip was great for me was because I was able to conduct some business while being on vacation. Since I am helping to start a Nike Run Club at my store in Atlanta, Georgia, I contacted the Nike Run Club in Chicago to see if I could shadow their facilitation of a Nike Run Club. I met at the Nike Chicago studio at 7:30 a.m., sitting in on the group meeting before the run with the Run Club coordinator and Pacers. My purpose in attending this session was to meet with Lucas (the Chicago Run Club coordinator) and to get more insight into the logistics and operations of the Nike Run Club. I wanted to be able to bring this information back to the Atlanta store and begin to educate our athletes in all things Nike Run Club.

​I ended up running a four-mile route with one pacer on this windy and rainy day in Chicago. The run was absolutely beautiful as we ran along Lake Michigan. This experience with the Chicago Nike Run Club was beneficial as I was able to develop connections across Nike and was able to discover the city. I love running through a city and getting lost in route. It enables you to get a personal, intimate feel for the city.

Cole and I did not really have plans for the rest of the day. We wanted to watch college football at a bar, so we went to Grind house with Miranda. Eric had to facilitate a training seminar for his company so he would meet up with us later. At the Grind house we ate brunch and had mimosas, and more mimosas, and more mimosas. Lauren (another one of our friends visiting Chicago) met us at Grind house with a couple of her work colleagues. After a few hours at Grind house, we wanted a change of scenery and to experience another Chicago staple. The entire group headed over to Pops for Champagne, a champagne and cocktail bar in a sleek haunt that hosts different jazz artists. Not that we needed anymore drinks, but it was fun to experience a new, hip, hangout spot in downtown Chicago.

The plans for the evening were to attend a Halloween party at the Navy Pier. In my opinion the Navy Pier seems to be a tourist trap during the day, however fro this evening it was hosting a Halloween Party to celebrate the living dead. For Halloween Cole and I were going as “Netflix and Chill”. We decided that we needed to create the most economical and efficient costume that we could pack in one piece of luggage. All we needed to pull of the costume were two long sleeve shirts (one for Netflix, the other for Chill), pajama bottoms, and some hickeys. The actual Halloween party was inside one of the any galas at the Navy Pier. There were different rooms for dancing, drinking, and celebrating the festivities. I have to say the “Netflix and Chill” costumes where a hit. Everyone wanted to take a picture with us and praised our creative idea. And all honesty I wouldn't mind being Netflix and Chill next year. The costume was simple and a hit!

The next day (November 1st) Cole and I wanted to explore the touristy side of Chicago. We obviously had to make a pit stop at the Chicago Bean and explore Millennium Park. After some time in Millennium Park Cole and I decided to meet up with Lauren and her collegeaues in Wriglyville for lunch. As sports fanatics, we had a desire to see Wrigley Stadium and hop around the dive bars in the area. It was awesome to see the environment in the area even during the Cubs offseason, as bars were filled with people watching NFL games. After a brief lunch in Wrigleyville, Cole and I to Michigan Avenue to do some much needed winter shopping. Both Cole and I were extremely excited to shop at UNIQLO. I have been to several UNIQLO’s in the United Kingdom, but this was my first experience at the store in the United States. UNIQLO is an apparel company based out of South Korea. There apparel lines have an Asian influence and they are known for their big, puffy winter jackets. Cole and I fell in love with the store and could have bought out the entire store. After UNIQLO Cole and I were off to see a show at Second City called OKCupid: A Dating Experiment. We have both had heard amazing things about Second City shows as many as many of the actors on Saturday Night Live start their careers at Second City in Chicago.

The show was absolutely fantastic and I could not stop laughing from the start. The show used real OKCupid profiles and conversations based off of a real life experiment on female conducted on OKCupid.

The following day Cole and I still had a few touristy site we wanted to visit. Number one on our list was visiting Sears/Willis Tower. Sear/Willis Tower is the tallest building in the United States. To intensify the experience of visiting this building, the Willis Company constructed Skydeck on the 103rd floor. The Skydeck experience enables individuals to see the impressive view through a glass balcony that hangs outside of the building. Individuals are literally standing in a glass box that hovers outside of the building 103 stories in the air. Te height and extremes really do not hit you until you walk out onto the glass and look down at the street. My heart literally sunk as a stood in the observation glass and took a few pictures. The last thing Cole and I needed to do was attend a Chicago architecture tour along the Chicago river. Chicago is known for its breath taking architecture and I was impressed by the different designs the city had to offer. The tour took us along al three branches of the Chicago River, as we learned about the history of the architecture in the area. The tour was a great way to end our trip as we learned about the rise, the fall, and the rebirth of Chicago.

As it seemed our trip to Chicago was just beginning, it was time to leave this magnificent city. Cole and I agreed that Chicago would be an amazing place to live….for the summer! I do not think either of us could survive a Chicago winter. I cannot wait to return to this city with such great history, culture and food. Until next time CHI-TOWN!