The Weekend Edition: A Weekend in Chicago

Image Source

It has become a bit of an annual trip for us in January to take a weekend trip to Chicago and mix friends, shopping, and food.  We have gotten pretty good at this, and we made a few great stops to recommend to the world.  First, here are the necessary ingredients to a great weekend in Chicago:

1. A fun and funky hotel for your stay
2. Some shopping on and around Michigan Ave.
3. A delicious restaurant for dinner
4. A purely Chicago brunch joint on your way out of town

We accomplished all of this and more!  Let me share my favorite spots from this weekend.

Hotel: Hotel Monaco, Chicago
I love to stay at Kimpton hotels in general, and Hotel Monaco in particular.  The décor is colorful and worldly, the entire staff is so friendly, and as a pet-friendly hotel, they lovingly provide me with a goldfish during my stay as a travel pet.  Meet Sven, my pal fish for the weekend:

I also love that I get to raid the mini bar with a free $10, drink wine during the daily happy hour in the lobby, and lounge around in my animal print robe.  The Monaco always has great rates during these slow weeks of January, and it is an awesome value.


Shopping: Michigan Avenue and the surrounding area
I make sure to do two things to prioritize my shopping time: I only go to stores that I can't shop at near home, and I make sure that I don't stay in one place for too long so that the hubs doesn't get too bored.

Dinner: Eataly, Chicago
The Chicago location of Eataly (a play on the word Italy) opened recently and has been incredibly busy ever since.  It is an all-things-Italian marketplace/restaurants/café/bar.  And it. is. INCREDIBLE.

The restaurants are so busy, you need to go put your name in and expect to wait 90 to 120 minutes.  While you wait, you can get a coffee, wine or beer, some prosciutto and fresh mozzarella, or buy anything from pasta to fresh meat and fish, cheeses and meats that you've never heard of, chocolates, or cooking utensils.  We ate at the pizza and pasta restaurant area, and everything we ate was incredible.  I have an entirely new outlook on what pasta should be, and I can't wait to experiment with my new found pasta respect.

Make sure you save room for dessert because the night would not be complete without a delicious LavAzza coffee and a gelato, artisan dessert, or crepe from the Nutella bar.  I bought a giant bag of beautiful Italian treasures that I have never seen before, and the next week will continue my culinary adventures.  Eataly serves as dinner and entertainment for a full night out.

Via Eataly

Brunch: Eleven City Diner
This cute, totally Chicago-type restaurant feels like a hybrid between an old school diner and a Jewish delicatessen.  And the food is impeccable. 

The challah french toast is a great staple to the menu, and the Bad A** breakfast sandwich was a perfect breakfast sandwich with perfect potatoes.  Intelligentsia coffee tops off the menu with love. While there are a lot of fantastic brunch restaurants in the city, this one continues to deliver every time I am there.

Bonus!
Mariano's Fresh Market, Halsted and Monroe
Even though we were so full from breakfast, we still managed to buy a ridiculous amount of fresh food.  Why go grocery shopping anywhere else when you can go buy lots of deli salads and pot pies, topped off with delicious gelato, oysters, fresh sushi, or bulk spices in the same place?

This was my own suggestion for a weekend in Chicago, but there are lots of other great weekend ideas for the taking!  If you need an idea starter, check out a book like this for your path of travel:
The New York Times - 36 Hours

Finding your spot.

Image source

I have never been to Portland, Oregon, but I am certain I love it there.  I imagine that I love the trees, the strange people, and the Pacific Northwest.  I also am quite sure that Zooey Deschanel and I would be friends if we knew each other.  Maybe in a previous life, Zooey and I grew up down the street from each other in a funky Portland neighborhood.

To test my theory on how well I know myself, the hubs and I took the quiz on findyourspot.com.  It is a fun quiz that asks questions about what you like in a city (e.g., size, weather, transportation) and gives you a list of places that match your living style.  Here is a partial list of our cities:

• New Haven, CT
• Baltimore, MD
• Portland, OR
• Hartford, CT
• Frederick, MD
• Salem, OR
• Milwaukee, WI (Holla!)
• Charleston, WV
• Santa Fe, NM

How exciting!  Many of these are cities I have felt, without ever visiting, that they would be great.  This list told me a few different things.  First, I know that I know myself well.  My hunch on cities turned out to be true when proven by another source.  Second, I have some traveling to do to see the cities I am sure to love that I haven't met yet.  And third, I love where I live.  Milwaukee is a great city (totally underrated) and I am happy to be right where I am.  I have found my spot...for now.

And I am still going to pretend that Zooey and I are besties, and that the flat mates on New Girl are my friends too.

Image Source

Where would you take your guests in your home town?

Via blog.wisconsinlodging.org

Here is a fun game to play.  I have been asking myself and others this question: If you had friends coming in to town for three days, where would you take them to eat to get them good food but a quintessential city experience?  As we debated about Milwaukee destinations, the hubs and I decided that this was still a bit too wide open, so I tried to think of the different experiences I would want to have during that time.  I would want a great breakfast/brunch, a good lunch, and if there were three dinners, a low end, medium, and higher end restaurant.  And maybe some sweets, or some drinks? Here is what we came up with for Milwaukee.

Breakfast/Brunch: Blue's Egg

Image by Jeff Beutner via Expressmilwaukee.com

Sweet or savory, you cannot go wrong at this place.  Make sure you get some stuffed browns (hash browns done right), and enjoy some Valentine coffee, one of the many awesome Milwaukee based roasters.  Honorable mention to Maxie's Southern Comfort, their sister restaurant, for dinner.


Lunch: Milwaukee Public Market

Via milwaukeepublicmarket.org

You can get all types of food here, or just look at the big fish case, or wander aimlessly.  I personally like to sit at the counter of the Margarita Paradise Mexican restaurant, get some salads to go from Aladdin, a Middle Eastern restaurant, and end my trip with a glass of wine at Thief Wine Bar.


Dinner ($): Rustico

Via rusticopizzeria.com

This is some delicious pizza you can enjoy with some classic exposed cream city brick walls and a taste of the Historic Third Ward.  This pizza tastes amazing even when you are sober, which cannot be said for every pizza place as you edge closer to campus.


Dinner ($$): Crazy Water

Via expressmilwaukee.com

As an American fusion restaurant with perhaps some French bistro-like roots, the menu is always comfortable and flavorful.  We are still waiting for an episode on the Cooking Channel filmed at Crazy Water on which we were interviewed.  If you are lucky and have only two people, you might get the little bar nook table.


Dinner ($$$); Lake Park Bistro

Via onmilwaukee.com

Part of the Bartolotta restaurant dynasty in Milwaukee, this is a great setting for a very nice dinner that doesn't feel too steakhouse-y or supper club-y.  Fancy chic, and always fantastic classically prepared dishes.  And the service is impeccable.  I couldn't decide between the chocolate mousse and the crème brulee, so the waiter brought me both.


Sweets: Rocket Baby Bakery

So Milwaukee-cool in the older part of Wauwatosa (North Avenue).  Bread, pastries, and the most vibrant selection of colorful macarons ever.


Drinks: The Safe House, and The Nomad
For touristy fun, go to the Safe House, a hidden spy lair that is unmarked, and you need a password to get in.  I am not going to tell you the password, that is what the Internet is for.

For casual dive bar fun, hit up Brady Street starting at the Nomad.  In true Milwaukee style, you can get the "Prix Fixe," which consists of a shot of Jameson, a can of Pabst, and a cigarette for the bargain price of $5.


Other Cities?
Blog readers, share what you would do differently for a tour of Milwaukee, or share a few from your city. Madison, WI?  Twin Cities? Chicago? Baltimore/DC? San Francisco?  Sharing is caring.

Enjoy your own city, and love where you live.

What does it mean to "pre-board"? Do you get on before you get on?

Photo Source You Tube video - George Carlin on airline announcements

After taking a vacation that includes flights and airports, I always appreciate all of the mundane and comical things that occur.  If you have never heard George Carlin's stand-up routine talking about the hilarity of flying, you are missing out (and click the link above).  It is prior to 9-11, but still quite funny.

Here are some of my observations, and matching commentary, from this week's escapade:

1. Socks and sandals: While I understand the logic about the "functionality" of socks and sandals through airport security, it doesn't make it any more socially-suggested.
2. Luggage: Where is this guy going with a guitar and a cat?  The obvious answer is Denver (the destination of his flight), but what is his master plan? 
3. Paging last call: I saw a guy miss a flight - by a long shot.  How do you miss a flight in MKE?  There are only tens of people in the airport at any given time.
4. Carry-ons: Whoa.  Did you know that some airlines are charging for sodas and carry-on luggage now?  Soon it will be cheaper for me to buy all toiletries and clothes when I arrive at my destination and travel luggage-free.
5. Security: Moving through security is an art form, and my favorite game.  Try and get behind middle-aged business men, they are security ninjas.  Thank you, middle-aged white guy for adding those easy in-and-out lace locks on your bright white New Balance sneakers.

I love people-watching in airports.  The international terminal at Chicago O'Hare airport is easily my favorite place to casually gawk, but Milwaukee and Denver will have to do this week.  I still got to see an Ace Ventura look-alike, enough socks and sandals to last a lifetime, and plenty of wonderful people that held doors, said "go ahead first," and made sure we made it everywhere safely.  Which, with our travels into flooded Colorado, was all that we really needed. Thanks, world.

Granola-munchers unite: Pike Lake state park trails

Since it was the first day of fall here in Wisconsin (i.e. 59 degrees in July), trail hiking seemed like the perfect Saturday activity.  Preparing for the day meant long sleeves, bottled water, sunglasses, running shoes, tunes, and delicious earthy snacks.  I prefer the Simply Trail variety by Archer Farms, in a smiley face container of course.

Today's destination for the hubs and I was the brown trail at Pike Lake state park near Slinger, WI.  We felt a little bad for driving there since it is so close, but figured it was our civic duty to fork over the money for a state park pass anyways.  As we got started on the trail jogging, I couldn't help but imagine that I looked like a felt like a character from the Troop Beverly Hills movie:

Via zeebox.com

My other thought was, "I can't wait to find out which one of us takes a digger first."  It was not me.  I told the hubs that I was laughing "with" him, not at him.  The red spot in the middle is where he bit it.

One of the high points of the Pike Lake trails (pun intended) is the nice lookout tower on the top of Powder Hill.   You can see the lake (below), farms, the countryside, and Holy Hill in the horizon.  I hope my butt looks better after all of those stairs.

After a mid-trail break to rehydrate, make fun of high schoolers, and eat some trail mix, we continued on our path.  At this point the landscape was looking eerily like the Hunger Games (maybe we were just getting tired) and we kept each other amused by me shouting at the hubs, "That's nightlock, Peeta!" and by him doing his usual interpretive dance hand movements to whatever rap music he is listening to on his iPod.  For example, giving "toot toot" and "beep beep" hand motions for "Remix to Ignition" by R. Kelly.  I like to try and guess what  he is listening to by his interpretive dance hand motions.  Since I like to soundtrack my life, I felt like my usual running playlist was not a fit for the woodsy nature I was in, so today's hike was soundtracked by Bon Iver's self-titled second album.

Via treeswingers.com

Finally we made it back to the car after some slight detouring, as apparently we have a difficult time following colored stakes.  We decided that we wouldn't last long on Survivor with our lack of direction and my interest in eating snacks every 45 minutes, and mostly because we couldn't find our way out of a paper bag.  Ah tired legs, it's nap time.

A blog about blogs. Blogs better than this one. You're welcome.

I am really enjoying reading some of my favorite sources for eye candy and inspiration because I am always comforted to find other people that think or feel in the same bizarre way that I do, or that I can look up literally anything.  The hubs and do about 15 combined searches a day on Wikipedia. 

Since one of my best hobbies is napping, I sometimes need inspiration for living the full life.  Here are some of my new and old favorites to read to ensure we are L-I-V-I-N.

Snippet and Ink: For the best eye candy, wedding or otherwise, check out Kathryn's blog.  The only downside about it is that I wish I could plan a wedding once a month.  There has never been better inspiration boards in the history of blogging, and this is the essence of style over just fashion.

Coco+Kelley: Speaking of style, not just fashion, I love to read Cassandra Lavalle's blog so that I can dream about being that put together.  I use her blog to peer pressure myself into taking my hot mess down a few notches.

Victor Schueller: For positivity and self help, I must recommend my friend Victor.  First, he is one of the most positive and genuine people that I know, so his attitude is legit.  When I listen to his radio podcasts for guest appearances, I am often like, oh, I don't buy into that shenanigans.  And then I am like, huh, good point.  Positude, people.

Jen Lancaster and Jenny Lawson: Jen Lancaster and Jenny Lawson's blogs, while not related, offer enough sarcasm, swearing, and better-than-fiction stories than I could ever live in a lifetime.  And believe me, I am trying to keep up.  These are for a good laugh and when your positive attitude is even annoying you.

Rick Steves' Travel Blog: Rick Steves is one magoo dude, but damn if he isn't always right.  Don't travel to Europe without Rick Steves and a nerdy back pack that you only wear with one strap.  Apparently, that is Rick's preferred method of travel, with backpack circa 1987.

22 Words: Random, fun and quirky inserts of things you never knew you needed. But you TOTALLY do.

Don't get me wrong, I am keeping up my black-belt napping skills.

France: Je ne sais quoi

Traveling to France has always been an obsession for me. The people, the food, the buildings, the lifestyle; all of these things are fascinating and uniquely Francophone. My husband took me on my third trip to France this spring, and I was reminded of some of the most fantastic details of French culture that bring that certain "je ne sais quoi" to French lifestyle that I attempt, often unsuccessfully, to insert into my own life.

1. Wine and cider: I have never met a wine or cider (try cider from the Normandy area) that I didn't like. I am also reinvigorated on the fact that I can drink rosé without feeling trashy.
2. French bakery: Nearly any patisserie has the most amazing selection of food art that I have ever seen or tasted. Pain au chocolat, brightly colored macarons, and fruit tarts are among the the best. The best bakery to duplicate this in the Milwaukee area is Le Reve in Wauwatosa village.
3. Parisian life: Woven patio chairs during a two hour lunch and walking everywhere has a certain flair to it. It sure beats my hour commute and ten minute working lunch break. There is also something irritatingly fashionable about wearing a lot of black. As someone who wears as much color as Rainbow Brite, I realize I am not achieving my full fashionista potential.
4. Live history: There is something remarkable about being surrounded by hundreds of years of history that is alive and well. My heart lies in the Normandy area in France, and history feels like last week, instead of something you read in an old textbook. I once met a man who watched the American soldiers' boats come ashore during the D-Day invasion on his eighteenth birthday. His stories were so fresh and full of life as he described "the war."

The importance of travel is to teach you about other perspectives in the world, and to learn about who you are as a person. If you are not more open-minded about the world around you or you do not end your travels with a better understanding of yourself, you may be missing out on the best part of travel and the details of joy that it can bring.