Day 3: Beef, Science, and Pizza

We started our day like we usually do by sleeping in. Madison's roommate, Jordan (who lives near Chicago) met us at the hotel.

Our first stop was the Al's Italian Beef location right down the street, recently named the Best Sandwich in America by Food Network. Aside from their delicious spiced beef, they're known for dipping their sandwiches in "gravy" (Italian for any sauce, but theirs in more of an Au Jus). They're also known for the "Italian Stance" (which I'm pretty sure predates Guy Fieri's "The Hunch") to keep you from dripping gravy all over yourself. And they have posters of Coach Ditka everywhere.

We spent most of the day at the Museum of Science and Industry. I'd wanted to go on our last two visits, but it's actually a good distance away from downtown. Our original plan was to drive, but we didn't want to deal with traffic and parking, so we followed the Concierge's suggestion and took the bus.

The museum is on the site of 1893 Columbian Exposition, also known as "The White City" since all of the buildings were white and it was lit at night with new electric lights. Originally the Palace of Fine Arts (its contents are now in the Field Museum), it's the only building remaining, since the rest were designed to be temporary. The expo introduced the Ferris Wheel and, sadly, one of America's first serial killers (read Devil in the White City). Walt Disney's father, Elias, was one of the construction workers and his tales most likely helped inspire his son to build Disneyland.

We got our tickets at the kiosk and found that general admission was the only thing available. We didn't realize it would be so crowded, so all of the extra experiences like the U-boat tour, were already sold out.

We took the escalators up to the the top floors and just started to explore. The first thing we found was Yesterday's Main Street, which re-creationed a 1900-era street complete with shop windows so that you can look inside.

Two things you can actually go in are the Nickelodeon (which was showing a 1903 silent version of A Christmas Carol that used an impressive amount of double exposure for ghosts) and a very popular (despite the cold outside) ice cream parlor.

Just next door was a giant model train system depicting shipping from Seattle to Chicago. The section with downtown Chicago was so impressive, complete with all the major skyscrapers and a working L train, we didn't even notice the Seattle part at the other end until later.

The Science Storms section was a lot like Durham Museum of Life and Science, but  on steroids. Everything there, like the live tornado chamber and the shifting sands, was much bigger and far more spectacular.

Overhead was a Boeing 727 attached to the balcony and other aircraft suspended from the ceiling. The 727 was donated by United Airlines and it took two years (and a ton of money, no doubt) to get it in the museum. Marsha and I were more fascinated by the video than the actual plane.

One exhibit got my attention just from the name: Colleen Moore's Fairy Castle. I wondered if this was the same Colleen Moore who was a big star during the Silent era (she was a flapper like Clara Bow), and it was. She loved miniature furniture and dollhouse (sans dolls) and spent many years having this castle constructed with actual lights and running water. She even added to it after donating it to the Museum.

Another favorite was the Art of the Bicycle, which traces the invention of the bicycle in the early 1800s to experimental bikes seen today, including one made of cardboard. The first bicycle had no pedals and was strictly for indoor use.

Around every corner you find something new and interesting, from early automobiles to modern farm equipment. We could have easily spent more time there and had several things left that we didn't get to do. All things to look forward to on a future trip.

We took the bus back to downtown and had the first of two goofs: we went to wrong bus stop outside museum, which wasn't where they dropped us off. Then we got off at the wrong stop (my fault for not double-checking). Luckily, we weren't too far off track and had a nice walk down Michigan Avenue.

Dinner was another Chicago staple: Giordano's Pizza. Like Al's Italian Beef, there are many locations across the city. It was very crowded, but considering folks who came in after us, the wait wasn't too bad. Luckily, they let you pre-order so they can start on your deep dish pie while you wait for your table.

It's actually more like a pie than a pizza. The crust is really thick and the cheese and pepperoni are in the middle with another layer of crust over that. The sauce (which was amazing) is actually on top. Our waiter (who was great) warned us that the medium we ordered might fill us up, and he was right. We almost ordered dessert to go. It was worth every bite and there were still people lined up outside for a table when we left.

Finally, we took Jordan back to the train station and saw her off. Then it was back to the hotel and our nice warm room to watch The Martian, which Madison hadn't yet seen, and call it a night. Wonderful day in the Windy City.