Everyone Should Go on the Architecture Tour

April 11, 2014: My parents came to visit!  It was a short trip, but we had a great time trying a few new restaurants (Bistro Campagne in Lincoln Square was a big hit), hanging out, shopping (well, my mom and I shopped, anyway), and going on the super awesome Chicago Architecture Tour courtesy of the Chicago Architecture Foundation.  (If you have booked tickets for a non-CAF boat tour, you are on the wrong tour.  Get a refund, go to the CAF, and get your tickets for the correct tour.)

The Architecture Tour is one of those touristy things that even the locals think is the coolest thing to do.  In fact, the Architecture Tour is listed as the #1 thing to do in Chicago by US News and World Report and many other publications.  I can't tell you how many people have asked us if we've gone on the Architecture Tour yet, so now the answer is officially yes.  And we will both join the litany of asking people, "Have you done the Architecture Tour yet?  You should!  It's awesome!"

Now, I should be clear.  There are lots of architecture tours put on by the CAF.  Pedway, Segway, walking, bus, all sorts of tours.  But when people talk about THE Architecture Tour, they are talking about the river cruise up the north, south, and main branches of the Chicago River through downtown Chicago.  What can be better than spending an hour and half riding lazily down the river in nice-ish weather looking at beautiful buildings?  Not much.

The day dawned bright, sunny, and warm.  We met my parents at the Water Tower near their hotel on the north end of the Mag Mile.  We took a lovely stroll down the Mag Mile to the dock at the corner of Michigan and Wacker and got in line to board the First Lady boat.  Our volunteer docent from the CAF was Barry, a slightly nerdy middle aged man who loves Chicago architecture and was one of the best boat tour docents we've ever had.  (This is high praise.  My family likes boat tours a lot.)

The weather quickly turned overcast, the clouds almost black at times, and the wind was blowing, causing a noticeable drop in temperatures near the end of the tour when we were on the lake.  However, it created a very dramatic backdrop to Chicago's skyline and architectural gems.  I don't remember what all of the buildings are, but here are plenty of shots to give you a taste of what you'll see on the tour.

 On the boat!  Without jackets!

 Mom and Dad!

 Trump International

 The fire boat!

 The Wrigley Building

 The Chicago Tribune Tower

 The underside of the bridges looked cool!

 

 I liked this one a lot.

 Merchandise Mart!  (Candor Headquarters in the Divergent series)

 Boeing Headquarters

Now we head from the main branch to the north branch of the river.

 Bridge that is almost always left up.  The railroad lowers it and drives a handcart across is once a year to retain control of this particular bridge.

Now down to the south branch.

 

Boeing again!

 The Civic Opera House, home of the Lyric Opera of Chicago.  It is massive!  And you can live in apartments above the theatre!  Michel, why didn't we think of that?

The former Mercantile Exchange

This is an apartment community in an S shape.

Now it's time for the many views of the Sears Tower.  (Yes, I know it's technically the Willis Tower, but it will always be the Sears Tower to me.  Barry even took a vote of the passengers to find out what he should call it--Sears Tower won.)

Those white things hanging out at the top are those observation decks that you can walk out on and look straight down to the street.

Back to the main branch and out to the lake.

 Though we didn't find this out on the tour, this gold-covered building is the Carbide and Carbon Building.  

 Wrigley Building again

 The Tribune again

 The building with the yellow dome in the back is the Intercontinental Hotel.

 The official end of the river.  Lake Michigan is on the other side.

 

All in all, it was a fantastic tour, and we highly recommend everyone do it!!!

Elizabeth and Michel Enjoy Tea for Two

A week and a half ago, I had the opportunity to do some travel for work.  I spent three days in the Poconos with my Chicago co-workers and fellow Year Up-pers from around the country planning, collaborating, and aligning our goals and processes.  It was a lot of work and a lot of fun.  However, Michel and I wanted to do something a little special when I got back, so we decided to go on our second date from How About We, the website through which we set up our anniversary dinner.  This time we decided to do afternoon tea at Jolly Posh, a British specialty foods store in Lakeview.

Despite having to hunt for a parking spot due to it being opening weekend for the Cubs, we just made it to our 2:00 p.m. tea time.  The store is tiny, and the walls are lined with every sort of British tea, preserve, candy, and cookie imaginable.  If you are more interested in the savory than sweet, you can stock up on bangers, puddings, and meat pies as well.

The "tea room" was basically 4 tables in the middle of the shop, and there were two other groups having tea besides us.  We ordered immediately upon arrival and were quickly presented with piping hot cups of P. G. Tips tea, a nice tea along the lines of Lipton.  And then we waited.  And waited.  And waited.  We waited so long, the little girl at the table behind us was in tears from being so hungry.

Let me pause for context:  I love afternoon tea.  A lot.  I always felt so grown up when I got to go to tea with Mom at the St. Regis, and I've asked for a tea party for several major occasions in my life.  I introduced Michel to high tea when we were on our honeymoon in Spain.  We spent 3 days in Madrid, and I really wanted to have high tea at the Ritz Carlton.  Michel was a game.  He left the Ritz that day a total high tea convert, and clotted cream is still one of his favorite things.

So we were willing to wait for really good tea.  Finally our sandwiches, scones, and pastries arrived.  The sandwiches were ham, salmon and cucumber, and English cheddar and mayo.  The sandwiches were all good, even if the bread was rather stale.  Raisin scones with clotted cream and strawberry preserves were next, followed by the sweets: vanilla and chocolate macarons, sticky toffee pudding, and lemon squares.  I quite liked the lemon squares, but the rest of the sweets were nice and unmemorable.  The clotted cream was rather disappointing; it didn't even have enough flavor to be bland.  It just existed.  But the scones!  The scones were delicious!  Hot out of the oven (and the reason for the long wait), fluffy, and filled with juicy raisins, the scones alone redeemed the rest of the average tea.

 

Despite the scones, however, it was not a particularly impressive afternoon high tea.  If you really want to do tea right in Chicago, go to one of the big, old hotels like The Drake.  It's honestly not that much more expensive, and it's a quality tea experience.  That being said, it was fun to visit a new shop and have the special day date.  And if you want some good British snacks and treats, this shop definitely is your place!