It’s hard not to love visiting a new city, but falling in love with a new city is different. I fell in love with Chicago in the summer of 2021. My whole family was getting together for my cousin’s wedding which further led to a girl's trip with a friend of mine. I want to take you through my trip and I have generally based the timeline and activities on my memory and the photo in my camera roll. 

My parents and I arrived in Chicago and headed straight to our hotel, the Westin Chicago River North which was right on the canal in the heart of downtown Chicago. The canal was one of, if not, my favorite parts of the city. In the two weeks I was there, I spent a lot of time at the canal reading, going on walks, hanging out and sitting, and grabbing coffee. The window in our room faced the House of Blues and I happened to bring my t-shirt that has the House of Blues on it as a pajama shirt, which was a fun coincidence. Right after we checked in, my dad and I got ready to go to a Cubs game. We met my cousin, Laura, and her dad, my Uncle Gary, and we had a blast together, per usual. The Cubs beat the Cardinals 10-5 which led to my buying my favorite baseball hat. Later, we had a family dinner at an Italian restaurant with the bride and groom-to-be. After dinner, my cousins and I went to a bar together and we had so much fun. They introduced me to mocktails in the bars because they have a wide enough bar to make a variety of fun non-alcoholic drinks (I am intolerant to alcohol). One of the following days, as our family explored the city, my parents and I went to visit some family from the other side. My cousin, Ben, and his husband, Joe, live in a stunning house more south of the city than the Southside. Their house has the most beautiful details such as a silver foil ceiling in the kitchen and a crystal-ball looking thing at the bottom of the handrail for the spiral staircase. Their house has a whole history behind it and is known to be haunted. The next morning, it was wedding day! We all got ready and had some professional makeup help, which I desperately needed for my lavender eyeliner to pair with my floral dress. My cousin, Cassey, was the most breathtaking bride and had a beautiful ceremony with her husband, Brad. We all had the best time at the reception. I think that part of the reason this trip was so special was because it was the first time my older cousins saw me as an adult. I am 10-20 years younger than some of my cousins which means it took a little longer for me to mature in their eyes. But throughout this trip my cousins made me feel more accepted as we went on our little adventures and made our own memories without our parents. 

For the second half of my trip, I spent it with my friend, Rachel, who lives in Chicago now! We had a fantastic time and fell more in love with this city as we explored together. First, I got us tickets to a tourist trap called, WNDR Museum. They have some cool illusions but not worth the time or money, in my opinion. We later met up with a friend who is from the suburbs of Chicago after a walk down Oak Street Beach. We met him for dinner and ended the night at Navy Pier. The view from the Ferris wheel was spectacular! The next morning we had brunch on the canal which was lovely. Like I said before, the canal is one of my favorite parts of this city and the view never gets old. Of course we had to hit the Bean which was bigger than I had expected and somewhat anticlimactic considering it’s a big silver bean. Rachel had to take an exam for a summer course, so we hung out at the Starbucks across the street from the Bean. Maybe I was a little worn out from looking at it that whole time. My friend, Lily, who I stayed with in Colorado was also in town and we got to hang out. Her friend, Brynn, lives there and she brought us to some fun little spots around town. The most memorable place is a speakeasy that had karaoke and we lived for it. I had some yummy mocktails and an absolute blast. Rachel and I just loved everything about the city. We had a great time just walking the streets and exploring the nooks and crannies of the city. I’d say the only mistake we made together was how we decided to go back to visit my cousin at his house. We didn’t want to pay for an Uber to his place, so we decided to take the red line to the last stop. Bad decision. We got an Uber and put in the address my cousin gave me and then as we got closer, we realized that the address didn’t exist. Our Uber dropped us off in the middle of a neighborhood and my cousin sprinted to get us. Honestly, I don’t think my parents know this story but it was an adventure for sure. Good times in Chicago for sure. 

I love Chicago. I loved being able to spend time with a lot of my family but also being out there with a girlfriend! If I were to live in a big city, Chicago is the only one I’ve visited that I would live in. It’s a cleaner New York and I appreciate that. I want to go back as soon as I can!