Navy Pier at Sunset

The Navy Pier in Chicago is quiet in early May, which is fine if you're not fond of crowds, and normally, the Navy Pier draws a big crowd. From Memorial Day to Labor Day, the Navy Pier puts on a fireworks show twice weekly, all synchronized to music.

The pier extends nearly a full mile out into Lake Michigan. If you walk past the pier rides (including a replica of the world’s first Ferris wheel at Chicago’s 1893 World Columbian Exposition), shops, food, museums, fun house and theatre, you'll get to the end of the pier where you'll be rewarded with a nice view of the Chicago skyline. You can also look out over Lake Michigan to see the Chicago Harbor Lighthouse.

The pier's the perfect place to indulge in a hot dog, but there's just one rule: no ketchup. A real Chicago style hotdog is said to be "dragged through the garden" - an all beef dog on a poppyseed bun, with yellow mustard and condiments like tomato slices, chopped onions, dill pickle spears, and maybe lettuce or cucumber slices. Pipkin ate all the greens off of the hotdog, leaving Domo with just the hotdog and mustard - "the important parts" in Domo's opinion. It's nice when vegetarians and meat-eaters can get along.

Pipkin found this giant rocking horse in a covered storage area at the end of the pier. If you've read Margery Williams' Velveteen Rabbit, you'll understand why this sight left Pipkin feeling a little sad. This horse is so handsome! He should be out where people can ride him! Domo assured both the horse and Pipkin, that the horse would be out on the pier when the weather got better.

And with that thought, Pipkin watched the sun go down, hoping for warmer days.

Do-Rite? Alright!

From L-R: Buttermilk Old Fashioned, Lemon Old Fashioned, Boston Cream Pie and Candied Maple Bacon

Pipkin and Domo don't normally indulge in donuts, but when they do, they head to the best donut shop wherever they happen to be traveling. In the past, that's included Voodoo Donut in Portland, OR, and Rachelle's Donuts at the Beast in Toronto, ON.

Diablos Rex, Voodoo Donut

Maple-bacon (so Canadian, eh?) by Rachelle's Donuts

Donut breakfast was in order, and luckily, Pip and Domo were staying in the Mather Tower (aka the "Gothic Rocket") just a couple blocks away from Do-Rite Donuts.

 

Domo's got the address info here for you: 50 W. Randolph St. between Dearborn and Clark. Look for the giant donut!! 

This giant donut!

Do-Rite Donuts makes their donuts fresh every morning, in small batches of no more than 36, with vegan and gluten free options, and daily specials. Officially they're open until 2 PM or whenever they run out, and believe me, if you don't get there early, you might miss out on your favorite donut!

For busy bees in the Loop, Do-Rite Donuts has curbside service (since there's not space for a drive-thru in downtown Chicago). Call ahead with your order and they bring your order out to you when you get there! Sweetness!

The Second City, Chicago

A visit to Chicago wouldn't be complete without a night at The Second City, the comedy club/improv school that's famous for alumni like Tina Fey, Amy Sedaris, Stephen Colbert, Steve Carell, Bill Murray, Mike Myers, Jane Lynch...the list goes on and on!

The Second City is in its 50th year, with several shows every day of the week. Pip and Domo saw the hilarious sketch comedy show Depraved New World, which takes you inside the minds of people and what they're really thinking. There was a lot of amazing talent on stage. They can't wait to see more from Tawny Newsome.

Buckingham Fountain

In the last post, Pipkin and Domo were at the observation deck on the 103rd floor of the Willis Tower. From there, they could see Chicago in all directions. Looking west, they saw this:

It's Lake Michigan and the waterfront parks. Just beyond the red CNA building is a partial view of Buckingham Fountain. The photo at the top of this post is a view in reverse! Pip's at the fountain, with the red CNA building, and the tall, black, bundled tower structure in the back is the Willis Tower.

Buckingham Fountain is one of the world's largest fountains, built in the late Baroque "Rococo Wedding Cake" style. It reminds Pipkin of the fountain at the Palace of Versailles.

Located in Grant Park, the fountain operates from mid-April to mid-October, from 08:00 to 23:00. On the hour, the fountain's peak will shoot water to a height of 150 feet (46 metres). In the evenings, the water show is choreographed to music and lights.

Domo and Pipkin didn't have time to visit the park again at night, but if you can manage it, visit at dusk to see it during the day and at night when the lights come on in the city. It is incredibly pretty!

Nice try, Pip!

103!

Guess where Pipkin's posing?? 103 is the first clue!

Here's the second clue. Pipkin's looking to the north.

And now Pipkin and Domo are checking out the southside.

Facing west.

Recognize it yet?

They're at the observation deck on the 103rd floor of the Willis Tower (formerly the Sears Tower) in Chicago, Illinois! In the photo above, they're in the glass box known as the Ledge, which stands 1,353 feet up, and 4.3 feet out from the building.

You can see the north branch of the Chicago River here.

There are two boxes on the west side of the building, and it's fun to watch peoples' reactions getting into the box. If you're not fond of heights, you might not want to step in.

Clearly, Pipkin and Domo have no problem with heights.

Looking east at Lake Michigan

It was a beautiful day when they went up the Willis Tower, so they got amazing 360 degree views of Chicago. They can't wait to explore more of the city. So far, they've found Chicagoans to be polite, friendly, and the city is very clean.

Pipkin's favorite thing about Chicago so far is the waterfront, more specifically, the public's access to the waterfront. What you see above is Lake Michigan, and all that green space downtown along the waterfront is a series of gardens and parks, all free to the public. Look at all those baseball diamonds! It so easily could have been high priced waterfront real estate, but instead, the City of Chicago has beautiful green space for everyone to enjoy.

Just behind the red CNA Center building is Buckingham Fountain, one of the largest fountains in the world. Pipkin and Domo are headed there soon, so you'll get a closer look. You can also see the Shedd Aquarium, Field Museum and Adler Planetarium jutting out into Monroe Harbor. Click on any of the photos above for a larger picture.

Keep coming back to the blog to see more of their adventures. Chicago!