12 million people live along the shores of Lake Michigan - the only Great Lake to lie wholly within the United States, btw - and most of them live in the Chicago and Milwaukee areas.
We started the day with a beautiful view of Lake Michigan (and downtown Chicago), as seen from the top of the Willis (formerly Sears) Tower:
The Willis Tower is a 108-story building, towering 1451 feet over the Windy City. It was the tallest building in the world upon its completion in 1974 and remained so until it was surpassed by the Petronas Towers in Kula Lampur in 1998 (it remains the tallest building in the Americas; fascinating info about the worlds' tallest buildings can be found here, if yer into that kind of thing).
It's really, really, really tall... the Skydeck is the observation deck on the 103rd floor, and it is not for the faint of heart, let me tell you. The elevator takes you to the top in only 60 seconds (and just as many ear-pops) and the $18.00 admission charge was totally worth it, simply for the panoramic view of Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin and the water.
We then thought it'd be a nice contrast to get a little closer to the water itself:
Most of the Chicago waterfront is beaches and/or parks, and though not so packed in the above picture taken on Tuesday morning, you should have seen it on the holiday Monday - ka-ray-zay! The Lake Michigan coast is often referred to as America's 'third coast' because of the incredibly fine white sand, and it certainly has the feel of Miami Beach (or so my friend says) and it reminded me a bit of the Mayan Rivera, minus the palm trees and hurricanes, of course.
The Art Institute of Chicago lies at the southern edge of Grant Park, and provided a much needed respite from the mid-day heat. It has one of the world's most notable collections of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art, and it's Contemporary American Art collection ain't too shabby either.
Works by Monet, Renoir, Matisse, Cezanne, Van Gogh, and Georges Seurat's Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte (of Ferris Bueller's Day Off fame) all grace the walls here... it's actually a little overwhelming to process the historical significance of everything you see as you wander around.
Among the most important works in the Institute's American collection (and three of the most famous American paintings ever put to canvas) are Grant Wood's American Gothic, Edward Hopper's Nighthawks and Mary Cassatt's The Child's Bath. American Gothic is a pop-culture classic, having been spoofed, imitated, and duplicated in more contexts than almost any other work of art... that was a real treat to see up close:
The Institute was an amazing experience all around; a stunning, world class collection that's gotta be on your itinerary if you ever find yourself in the city. Oh... we had classic Chicago deep dish pizza and the White Sox won too, so that was a good day in my books!
So, how in the world could blue collar Milwaukee, Wisconsin stack up to the awesomeness that is metropolitan Chicago, you might ask yourself? Well... very well actually - thank you very much!
Milwaukee is home to over half a million people and is a surprisingly pretty city. Settled originally by French-Canadian fur-trader-type folk in the early-19th century, and populated by large numbers of German and Polish immigrants after that, the city is an interesting cultural mecca in the middle of America's dairy heartland.
We did the obligatory Miller Brewery Tour (which was both really cool and hilarious at the same time - what time did you say it was again? Oh, that's right... Miller Time!) and ended up in the beer garden, naturally, before being rolled on down to the gift shop - where we each spent way more time and money than we would have if we'd not tasted every brand Miller-Coors has to offer (beer marketers have it all figured it out, man - but you probably don't need to be told that, do ya?)
We did manage to stagger our way down the street after leaving the brewery to one of Milwaukee's oldest and best restaurants. Kegel's Inn is the real deal; an authentic, family run German beer hall with delicious, traditional beer and unbelievably good, rich German food. We had the Hasenpfeffer (marinated rabbit) and the house specialty, roasted duck - and, OMG - there are no words to describe either the beautiful flavours, or the severe bloating that both provide.
And, of course, no trip to Milwaukee is complete without a trip to catch the lowly Brewers loose to whomever happens to be in town - this time it happened to be the (also lowly) San Francisco Giants:
This was the last ballgame on my trip, and it was a bit of a blur to be quite honest - what, with all the beer and small animals clouding our heads. Miller Park is a neat park - not the most impressive I've ever seen, but a nice shallow lower bowl that really puts the fan in the game, which is important and not something you see everywhere.
All in all, I dig Milwaukee - it has a cool, laid back vibe; young, sporty and environmentally conscious - a good place to raise a family, which is why the people seem to like it here. I'm not sure you need to go out of your way to see it, but if you have the chance, I'd certainly recommend it - but watch out for the beer, they take it seriously and it'll get to ya (as I found out this morning - what did I bring back from Milwaukee? A hangover).
No song or clip today... I wouldn't even know where to begin to be honest (there's gotta be a song about beer I could use, but that would be beating a dead rabbit - or duck - and there's no need for that).
Oh, and the other Great Lakes... Superior, Huron, Erie and Ontario... but you knew that... *winkie face*
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment