As planned, we met at Lucky Us for breakfast. It was a bit crowded trying to fit 4 adults and three kids around the table in the dinette, but we managed. All I can add to the scene at breakfast is "thank goodness for Dust Busters"... After breakfast and bathroom breaks, we headed out to Navy Pier, which is about a half mile north along the lake shore. The walkway along the shore is very pretty, and we walked across the first bridge over the Chicago River in the process. There were plenty of boats in the river below since it was the Saturday of Labor Day weekend.
Navy Pier is 3,300 feet (1 km) long, and it was part of the original plan for Chicago. Its original purpose was for cargo and passenger steamers on Lake Michigan, but today it is Chicago's #1 tourist attraction. The picture at the left shows Bob, Jill and the Grandkids standing about halfway out on the pier. One of the attractions for visitors is the marvelous views of the Chicago skyline.
We even paused briefly so that "Parrot Head" Bob could have his picture taken in front of Margaritaville". The original pier had a long warehouse with very ornate round brick and stone ends with tall columns. The original ends remain, but most of the structures in between look new.
The stroller was really for Katie (the youngest), but as you can see, it was more of a group effort in terms of riding and pushing. It was probably most useful for storage of clothing, juices, food, etc.
At the end of the pier the view of the harbor and the skyline was excellent. The photo at the right shows Grandma and the Grandkids looking at the waves (and the seagulls). It was a mainly cloudy sky with a 10 mph breeze off the lake so it was quite comfortable although no one seemed to notice as there was so much to see.
At the end of the pier there is also this huge anchor, which is also a kid magnet... It is hard to get this group to sit/stand still, but the anchor slowed them down, except for Sarah who is swinging on the chain.
We then walked back down the pier to the amusement park. Bob was assigned to "guard" the stroller and other gear while the rest of us rode the farris wheel. I felt sorry (not) for Bob as he had 15 uninterrupted minutes of peace and quiet. The picture at the right shows the Admiral with Sarah (left) and Katie. You only go one revolution on the farris wheel, but it takes 10 minutes so there is plenty of time to enjoy the view.
Jill, Will and I sat in the other side of the same car. At the top there is a beautiful 360 degree view, but unfortunately there are plenty of pieces of the wheel in every picture that I took. It was one of those classic situations where your mind ignores all of the obstructions in your view, but the camera catches everything that your brain ignores in a picture.
Then it was time for a ride on the merry-go-round. This time both Dad (Bob) and Grandpa (John) got to watch and try to take pictures. From all accounts it was a great ride. Sarah and Will are on the right and Jill is holding on to Katie on the left with the Admiral barely visible in between. Then it was time to find a restaurant for lunch.
We had a 20 minute wait for a table, but we were entertained by an acrobat (Sarah in the picture at left). As usual, Katie, who is the youngest and smallest, packed away the most food.
After lunch we took a bus from Navy Pier to the Willis Tower. Katie managed a brief nap, but everyone else was still doing well. It used to be the Sears Tower back when it was the world's tallest building. As usual, most every one, including the locals, still call it the Sears Tower. When we arrived, we found that there was a two hour wait, and after a meeting of the minds (picture at right), we decided to "just enjoy the view looking up", and then we headed back to our respective abodes and rest a bit before dinner.
This is the view looking up from the base of the Willis Tower. It looks endless from this point of view. We did some grocery shopping on the way back to Lucky Us, and before we knew it was time to meet up for dinner at Giardino's which is a classic place for Chicago style deep dish pizzas.
Jill had made reservations and had already ordered two deep dish Chicago style pizzas. That way they start cooking the pizzas when you are seated, and then you can order salads, kid food, drinks, etc. from the table. It all sounded kind of strange to me, but these pizzas evidently take at least 30 minutes to cook. While we were waiting on the plaza outside, Will and Sarah found two new friends and pretended to be some sort of animals. We drew the line when the animals wanted to drink from the outdoor fountains...
After dinner it was time for everyone to finally crash. We got back to the boat about 8:30 pm, and the Admiral immediately started talking about it being bed time. Indeed, we were tired, but it had been a wonderful day!
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