Sears Tower
As this brief stop was also Darren’s first in Chicago, I had great intentions to write about it as well. Unfortunately, I failed miserably! Our two full days went largely undocumented.
View from Lincoln Park
We had great intentions about the Architectural Boat Tour, but ended up walking from Lakeview into the city, with a nice stroll through Lincoln Park. After lunch with out friend Victoria (of Amsterdam fame), we headed to Rock Bottom to meet my friend Alberto for drinks before heading back home for dinner with the kids.
The next day, we decided to continue to eschew tourism, opting instead to head up near Evanston to accompany Victoria to return her rental car. This wouldn’t be particularly noteworthy, only the rental car was a Dodge Charger, which was the most unlikely car I could imagine my dear friend driving. Even more noteworthy was the layer of crumbs that had struck the backseat of the car over the course of the three days or so the car was in her possession. It seems two children under the age of three are a bit like having a tornado in tow at all times; a really fun tornado with a trail of raisins and cheese sticks!
The Infamous Cinnamon Rolls
We did this on a very full stomach after hitting Ann Sather‘s like we were going to the electric chair. Darren’s decision to get the cinnamon rolls and the potatoes as his chosen sides was impressive, but he didn’t actually eat it all.
Alberto and I at Rock Bottom
For lunch we met up with our friend, Neil, at one of his old haunts, Piece. Unfortunately, we didn’t receive his message advising us to, “save room for meatball subs!” As we were still in an Ann Sathers’ coma when we arrived, we pathetically had to watch Neil eat his sub while he mocked us.
Dinner that night was at one of my favorites, Mia Francesca, and I had the extra joy of eating with lots of people I like: Victoria, her husband Troy, her brother Stephen, and Stephen’s girlfriend, Suzanne. I ate a mighty bowl of sausagey pasta, enjoyed everyone’s company, and didn’t take a single picture!
Our flight the next morning was at nine, so the fun had to end. Maybe next time we’ll take that boat tour….
Francoise's Miscellany 
I was somewhat disappointed with the architecture boat tour, due to the errors of the tour guide. The perspective from the boat was nice, however.
That’s a bummer- I’ve heard so many people rave about it over the years. From what I understand, there are two companies that do it, located adjacent to one another. Do you recall which one you did?
sweet