The Abegweit"?! In Chicago?

We're on the Chicago Lakeshore, heading for the Navy Pier not far away.

Moored amongst sleek yachts and sailboats -

is the silhouette of a ship that was undoubtedly a ferry. 



As we got closer we recognized her name: 

The Abegweit?  How on earth did this vessel come to be here?  Abegweit is the Miqmaw name for Prince Edward Island - Cradled on the Water - and has been the name of at least two of the ferries that connected Canada's smallest province to the mainland. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MV_Abegweit_%281947%29

And sure enough this was one of them.  It was decommissioned in 1982 and sold to the Columbia Yacht Club where it now serves as a training facility and headquarters. 

 

Blair remembers many occasions waiting for hours to board the ferry back in the 70s.  Those days are over now that there's a permanent bridge to the Island.  But it's nice to see the Chicagoans kept the name of the ship and its connection to Canada. 

We carried on to the Navy Pier - a big entertainment spot with a Children's Museum, a shopping mall and a tavern where we rested our weary buns.  This wasn't just any tavern - it was Harry Caray's tavern. 

(picture to come soon)

He was the long-time voice of the Chicago Cubs - the guy who sang "Take Me out to the Ballgame" during the 7th inning stretch at Wrigley Field.  He's passed on, but his tavern is a virtual museum to his character.  There's a bronze bust of his head in the entrance where visitors - famous and not - have their pictures taken.  We couldn't resist the temptation.  The walls are lined with pictures of celebrities next to the bust - from Burt Reynolds to Bobby Hull.  But no one asked for a print of our photo.  I wonder why? Blair's name starts with a 'B.'

Our last stop before we caught the bus was also unexpected.  We got to sit on Bob Hartley's couch!  You remember?  Bob Hartley was a psychiatrist played by Bob Newhart in his first TV series. 

I have to say we were more in need of massage therapy than psychotherapy at that point but the sculptor had definitely captured Newhart's spirit.

Then it was back to Wicker Park and one of its many fine restaurants for supper. (Cumin - Nepalese/Indian cuisine) We were both in bed by ten.  You could hear the noise of the El not far away, but it wasn't loud and I think it eventually lulled me to sleep.

The Chicago Institute of Art

From Millenium Place we climbed a graceful curving pedway to the Chicago Art Institute and then had to descend several stairways to get to the main entrance.

Blair and I love the works of the French Impressionists.  Wherever we travel we try to take in the big public art collections - the Orsay and the Louvre in Paris, the National Gallery and the Tate in London, The MOMA and the Met in New York.  They all have awesome displays.

But we both agree that Chicago has the best group of impressionists of any we've seen in North America.  Beautiful Van Gogh's, Monet's, Pissaro's, Renoirs, Degas. 

Then there are the moderns:  Picasso, Braque, Morot and Modigliani;

and the Americans - Hopper with his Nighthawks and Grant Wood's American Gothic. 

And Georgia O'Keefe! 

It was a Monday - but the gallery was very crowded.  They weren't all tourists.  There were people who were clearly taking time away from work to browse the walls and the halls.  And everywhere you looked there were reminders of the great generosity and great wealth of the benefactors who contributed money for construction or for collections.  Millions and millions of dollars.  Of course I kept asking what this says about the differences between the US and Canada - two rich countries.  But in the 19th century Canadian millionaires were not trying to build collections of European art the way they did in the US.  For example when we were in Cleveland last year we learned that two of its wealthiest families spent a year traveling around Europe in 1860s and - impressed by all the classical monuments and great masters - determined to buy a bunch to show that America could be as grand as Europe.  Perhaps Canada never had that much disposable wealth...or maybe Canadians were closer to Europe and thus less impressed by the ostentatious nature of some of its culture.

The Chicago Institute of Art celebrates America of course - these beautiful stained glass windows by Marc Chagall - the America Windows.

There's so much!  It's the second largest gallery in North America. 

Blair loved the furniture collection - art deco and bauhaus style; even if you don't like art it's worth the visit to experience the graceful space.

Check out the website.  http://www.artic.edu/aic/

By the time we were finished in the gallery, we were pooped.  And we sure didn't want to face the late afternoon rush hour crowds on the El.  So with regular rest stops at conveniently placed benches we walked along the Lake Michigan waterfront.  The battery in one camera was just about dead but there was still life in our other one.  And that was a good thing.  Check out the next chapter for an unexpected look at a piece of Maritime Canadian history!

Chicago - Where wind and beans go together:)

Gorgeous day - only a bit breezy.  No sign of the big winds suggested by Chicago's nickname as the 'Windy City.'  Turns out that name's history is fairly hazy.  True, Chicago has its fair share of wind.  But there's an equally popular belief that says the name describes the boastful, arrogant character of  its citizens, following the 1893 Chicago World Fair.  Blair prefers the version that goes like this:  Back in the 19th century there was a powerful rivalry between Cincinatti and Chicago.  They were both big into the meatpacking business. The term 'windy city' was first coined in a Cincinatti newspaper to describe Chicago - whether it was for its boastfulness or its winds - nobody knows for sure.

So we headed along Milwaukee N. to catch the 'El' or 'L' - the clunky
rapid transit trains seen speeding through all kinds of movies such as The Fugitive or
Ferris Buehler's Day Off or Risky Business.  Three of my favourite movies by the way.

The El isn't particularly different from any of the others in different American cities.  But
it's neat to be able to sail along overlooking the city.  In some places, it's unbelievable how
close it gets to the apartments and houses along the tracks.  

No sooner had we stopped at the train station than a voice rang out directed at Blair.  "Ya need some travel information? Sir?  Sir!?"  Blair doesn't automatically respond to the 'sir' moniker.

But we couldn't ignore the loud voice attached to a bulky, uniformed transit employee. His advice - buy three day passes down the street, then come back and get on such such and such a train and get off at such and such a stop. 

We were heading to Millennium Park and the Chicago Institute of Art.  This was a natural starting point for a couple of art lovers and sculpture gawkers. By the end of the day we were exhausted and sore but exhilerated.  And the rest of the week would provide similar emotions.

Millennium Park is close to the lakeshore, adjacent to the Art Institute and surrounded on three sides by beautiful, tall, old buildings.  But the piece of sculpture at its centre holds its own - a magnetic, gleaming, oblong glob of mirror-polished metal.   It was created by Anish Kapoor and it's official name is Cloud Gate but everyone here, naturally calls it 'The Bean!'

With our appetite whetted for spectacular art we headed across the plaza to
the Institute of Art.  Check it out in the next chapter!

Art, Architecture and a Way Home - Intro

(This is the first of a series of chapters devoted to Chicago.
It's the only way I can think of to tackle our experiences and
impressions.  There'll be 8 to ten of them I expect.)

After a month on the road, we've learned a few lessons!
One of them is this:  If you have to drive into the downtown
of a big city try to do it on a weekend.  So, equipped with
our trusty GPS we arrived easily at our destination.

Thanks to our Lonely Planet Guidebook, we'd found a B & B in a
neat neighbourhood, just outside the downtown core, but right on
the "El" line.  Even better, they had a studio apartment available!
(www.wickerparkinn.com)

So, we spent Sunday afternoon learning about our new digs
and felt very much 'at home.'  This city is so relaxed!  Not like
NYC or Boston or St. Louis.  There's a cafe on every second block -
good coffee and good food. There was one called Filter and another
called The Wormhole.   And even here, outside the downtown
core, there's cool architecture and a sense of humour.  Check out
the store at the bottom of this group of pictures.

Wicker Park's Flat Iron building

It's the boring store!

We were going to go in, but a busload of kids arrived!

Huck Finn Country

I know - it seems like I'm taking forever to get us to Chicago.  It has to do with my lack of persistance at the keyboard and trying to get as much in as possible. 
So this will be short but interesting (I hope.)

We left Kansas City a week ago heading for Springfield.  It was a beautiful day - we weren't in a big hurry and we saw the signs by the side of the road - and a name
that struck a chord in our memories. Hannibal, Missouri.

So we ditched the interstate and followed the directions down to the Mississippi River.  (Everytime we do something like this, the voice on the GPS gets perturbed:  'When possible make a legal U turn!')

What could be a nice way to spend an hour on a fall Sunday afternoon than visiting the home of Samuel Clemens, AKA Mark Twain, with his famous creations Tom Sawyer?

Turns out thousands of other people had the same idea - because this was
the day for the Folk Life Festival in Hannibal.  Normally we'd head
in the other direction - I'm no fan of crowds - but this was likely to be
our only visit here...so off we went.

This fair didn't seem to have any of the usual corporate sponsors...It was
a seemingly chaotic but obviously well organized Local event.  Of course
local merchants and artisans were trying to sell their wares. 

For example a potter had created thousands of 'name pebbles.' If you found your name in these bottomless baskets, you could buy the pebble for 3 bucks!




Or how about home made cherry pie! You could have some for free if you entered the cherry-pie-eating contest!

I was sure Blair would jump in...He loves cherry pies!  But we'd just had some
barbecued pork sandwiches!  No room. 

We got a kick out of the buildings and sites that were so familiar to us from

our literary childhood: Tom Sawyer's white-washed fence!

And the homes of Samuel Clemens' childhood that became the locations in his books.

We liked Hannibal.  It didn't have that 'Disney' feel to it that so many historic

sites are taking on these days.  Maybe that's a tribute to Samuel Clemens
enduring legacy.  We're glad we dropped in.

Buffalos and Barbecue

The last time I wrote we were still 800 miles away from Chicago.
Colby Kansas is flat and friendly.  Its welcome centre is there to
encourage travelers to hang around and visit their art gallery or
theatre.  But the cheerful man behind the counter was unfazed by our
intention to keep going.  He told us to make a quick stop at Oakley, Kansa.
This is the town where Buffalo Bill Coady got his name.  (Annie Oakley
was part of his wild west show...but had no connection to Oakley
Kansas.  Go figure.)

Anyway, we stopped to view the beautiful monument to the dreadful
contest which gave him bragging rights and his name. 

In 1868 he competed with another
buffalo hunter - Medicine Bob Comstock - to see who could kill the most
buffalo in one day.  Bill won the day - too bad for the poor animals who would soon disappear forever.  But it was a
different time.  Bill was one of
the west's great myth builders.

His wild west show defined the romance and excitement that we all associate with the
opening of the west.  Blair and I couldn't resist entering into the spirit when we had the
chance! 

There's really not much I can add to these - sometimes there's no accounting for

the silliness that helps to make the miles seem shorter.

So off we went to Kansas City - and decided to spend two nights there.  Our hotel was

downtown - not far from the mighty Missouri River and a farmer's market area that

was deserted (except for a goblin or two) - mainly because market day is on Saturday and this was a Thursday!

We didn't know much about KC...other than part of it is in Kansas and the other part

is in Missouri.  And something else:  they make great barbecue here.  So, after night fell, we drove off to another seemingly deserted area of town and found Arthur Bryant's.  It was not deserted.

People of all descriptions and colours were enjoying KC's version of health food.  Delicious fries and braised pork on a bun along with local brew.  I've been trying to get in regular walks every day, but there's no way a daily walk can overcome the fat, cholesterol and other delicious calories we've  been consuming on a fairly regular basis.  Sigh.

We compensated the next day with a lovely meal of vietnamese food - spring rolls and noodle soups.  And some walking.  We were encouraged to check out one of North America's first shopping malls built in 1927.  It was a remarkable example of ornate and fanciful architecture. 

There are even bronze copies of European sculpture.

 but it was as if all the upscale stores from Fifth Avenue in New York City had set up branches here.  And they aren't outlet stores, either.  Very pricey. 

Of course its impossible to take the pulse of a city by staying a couple of nights and reading a few chapters in guide books.  A lot of the US cities built on the old industrial model have had to try to redefine themselves as those industries became obsolete.  The downtown cores seem hollow - lots of buildings but not enough people to fill them.  At least that's the impression I've had - KC and Cleveland (a previous trip) are struggling.  St. Louis and Chicago are thriving.

We were getting anxious to get to Chicago.  We had one more night on the road at Springfield, Illinois, and then an easy drive into Chi-town on Sunday morning.  We took one last stop at a Route 66 diner - this one is the Polka Dot Diner.  No polka dots in evidence, but some good burgers.

At this point we were only an hour from our studio apartment in Chicago.

More on that next.