The Grand has Landed. . .in Chicago

We picked Jordan up at the airport yesterday. . .

Chicago Midway. . .which, by the way

is THE most organized airport I have ever been in. . .wow!

We parked in the garage, literally steps from the baggage claim. . .

Jordan’s flight from Houston landed a few minutes early,

he’s 19, so was able to get himself to the baggage claim area. . .

 

I was all set with the camera, but he sneaked in so quick I missed my shot. . .

so. . .I made him pose when got to Navy Pier. . .

it was really bright. . .he’s squinting a bit. . .

but I don’t care. . .I’m so excited to see him. . .


We just did the double decker

Chicago Trolley Tour yesterday. . .

on our way Downtown Chicago in a few minutes. . .

lots to see and do today. . .

’til next time,

Janice and Dave

CHICAGO. . .finally

Next Tuesday, the #1 Grand, our first born, and only grandson,

will arrive via Southwest Airlines. . .

We promised the grands when we started traveling,

that we would fly them out to meet us. . .

so Jordan’s finally taking us up on it. . .

we decided we should make a dry run to check things out

but first. . .some lunch.

When someone makes a great recommendation, I make a note of it in my Travel Spreadsheet. . .

then when we arrive in an area. . .I have all these great places to check out. . .

so when Judy mentioned in a comment to Marsha and Paul

to check out Frank’ Pizzeria on Chicago’s Northwest side,

I decided that would be a great place to have our first taste of Chicago Pizza. . .

EXCEPT. . .

evidently, they are CLOSED ON MONDAYS. . .hello. . .

all righty then. . .nothing to be done about that. . .

so. . .on to the next thing, Wrigley Field. . .

which took us through this great little Northwest Chicago neighborhood.

All these cute little houses, lined up side by side,

with yards as neat as a pin. . .really lovely. . .

and the copper clad windows on this condo unit were so great. . .

We just wanted to check out where Wrigley Field was located. . .

we have tickets for a game next Thursday. . .

so I know we will get some great pics then. . .

so we just parked at McDonald’s across the street, and got a couple of quick shots.

and on we go. . .here’s the EL. . .

we really thought we would be taking this in,

but, we are so far out, it would cost almost $60 per day roundtrip

for the three of us to ride. . .so, it’s way less expensive to just

bring the car in, and pay $21 parking. . .

Dave hasn’t found driving in Chicago to be any worse

than driving in Houston. . .so there ya go.

Of course, we’ll try to avoid rush hour times. . .
I’ll let you know how it all goes. . .

Finally. . .what we’ve been waiting for. . .
the Downtown Chicago Skyline. . .

as seen from Navy Pier

I’m sure I’ll know what some of the buildings are

after we take the Architectural Boat Tour next week. . .

We checked out Navy Pier, and had lunch. . .

but decided to save all the sightseeing and tours

for when Jordan arrives next week. . .

 

So, that was it. . .our first day in Chicago. . .

exciting huh?

 

There’ll be much more to share next week,

 

‘til then,

Janice and Dave

Belvidere Illinois–almost to Chicago. . .almost

We moved the coach from Madison Wisconsin to

Pine Country (Outdoor World) in Belvidere Illinois

which is still 65 miles from Chicago. . .guess why?

because it’s part of our Thousand Trails “Membership” package

so there’s no charge for us to be here. . .yaaa!

After some of the prices we’ve paid to stay up here in

the Great Lakes Area. . .”free” is good for the budget.

Boy, am I ever glad it’s free. . .’cause it’s only 30A service,

and it has gotten hot. . .up into the 90’s. . .

Now, that would normally not be a problem . . .right?

We can still run one A/C. . .and just maneuver appliances and such. . .

trust me. . .over 12 years of full timing. . .we’ve figured out the 30A misery. . .

The problem happens about 2 o’clock every afternoon. . .

the sun is beating down on the MAIN Breaker Supply. . .

those breakers heat up. . .and TRIP!

So. . .no one in our row is tripping their individual breakers at their pole. . .

but we have to wait for the tech to come over. . .unlock the main breaker box,

and get us all up and going again. . .yaaa. . .NOT FUN!

okay. . .enough whining. . .on to the fun stuff. . .

Next week, our #1 Grandson (he’s the only boy) will be here. . .

so. . .before he gets here, we’re going to move the coach over to the KOA

where we will have FHU and 50 AMP service. . .yes!  Also about 20 miles closer to the city. . .

Belvidere’s claim to fame is that it is the City of Murals. . .

you know I love my murals. . .and since we weren’t fixing to go into Chicago

on the weekend, we decided we would go check them out. . .

I’ll just show you this really great one. . .and include the rest in my album.

 

As we were walking about snapping pics, one the shopkeepers came out

to see what we were finding so interesting. . .it really is a pretty little town. . .

obviously an important place, at some time in history. . .

so we chatted with her a bit about the town and her business,

and told her exploring little towns is a great way to get a nice walk in. . .

we thoroughly enjoyed it.


I know this has not been all that exciting. . .

but I wanted to chronicle Belvidere for our journal. . .

Next time. . .Chicago. . .I promise!

 

‘til then,

Janice and Dave

 

Belvidere Illinois - Summer Trip 2014 VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

 

LiveJournal Tags: Full Time RV Living,Motorhome Travel,Illinois,Belvidere IL,Thousand Trails Membership,Pine Country RV Park,Outdoor World

Madison Wisconsin–The State Capitol

We had a very easy drive of less than two hours

from Wisconsin Dells to the Wisconsin State Capitol of Madison. . .

but first, we need to do a little motor home maintenance.

may as well stop postponing this little chore. . .

Dave discovered that we were passing right by Camping World

on our way to the RV park in Madison. . .

and since the “house batteries” we needed to replace

we the same price there as other places he had checked,

may as well stop by and let them take care of it. . .

and while they did that

we may as well go tour the State House. . .right. . .

as we approached we could tell. . .

that it was going to be just lovely. . .

and it was. . .

just spectacular!

sometimes you gotta take the tour. . .

or you won’t know about the Starfish Fossil located on the Northern Interior Stair Case. . .

or the trumpeter’s balcony located on Level 4. . .

where all the musicians reigned,

while the singers performed from Level 2. . .

now. . .isn’t that interesting?

and although we had been told by a blog reader (the best folks ever)

we may not have found out about taking the elevator to the 4th floor,

and climbing 46 more steps, and 11 spiral staircase steps

to the outside observation deck. . .SCORE!

loved it!

loved Downtown Madison so much. . .

we went back on Saturday for the Art Fair and the Farmer’s Market. . .

here’s my favorite skyline view. ..

isn’t it just a beautiful little city?

and to top it off. . .our electric only campsite located at

Lake Farm Campground

was located next door to Lussier Family Heritage Center,

a sort of nature center, with all sorts of walking, hiking, biking, skiing trails. . .

and best of all. . .

I was able to pick blackberries. . .

enough to make us a wee little blackberry cobbler. . .perfection!

See you next time in CHICAGO. . .EEK!

 

‘til then,

Janice and Dave

 

		Madison Wisconsin - State Capitol VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

 

LiveJournal Tags: Full Time RV Living,Motorhome Travel,Madison WI,Wisconsin,State Capitol