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Chi-Town don’t owe me nothing!

Chi-town don't owe me nothing except a warm welcome when I come back. And I will be back. 48 hours was not enough time for this trip. I didn’t get to do a lot of things. Chicago was phenomenal. Here are some things I experienced/learned:

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1. Chicago is a beautiful city. Period. A cross between Manhattan and Atlanta. The architecture is NY. The level of blackness is Atlanta. I’m totally here for it.

2. Boys Town is super cute and super gay. I’ve never seen a gayborhood of this magnitude. It’s rainbows everywhere. On the ground. On the signs. On flags. Everywhere.  The whole city seemed gay friendly. 360 Chicago had rainbow flags and #prideviews posted on the windows. That’s new to me. Thanks for the suggestion Dee Dee.

3. We went to The Chicago Diner, which has been meat free since ‘83, and happened to be in Boys Town.  It’s a small diner with a retro 80s feel. Not the best vegan food I’ve ever had. But, the experience was cool. Side note: Giordano’s pizza was really good. I ate alllll the dairy all weekend. I may pay for it in a day or two.

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4. 360 Chicago Observation Deck is a must. It’s a total view of the City of Chicago complete with a bar and places to sit.  We chilled there for a little bit, sipped a cocktail and took in the scene. They also have this experience called The Tilt. It tilts you out so that you are looking more at the ground below. I wanted to lay flat over the ground. Daredevil, I am. It only tilts about 20 degrees though. I passed. Side Note: The views of the skyline at the Planetarium River Walk are the perfect blend of magical and peacefulness at night. 
 

5. We walked the entire Magnificent Mile and it has just about every high end shop you can think of. I love a good luxury brand but I didn’t buy anything. You can truly shop til you drop.

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6. The Sugar Factory is so overrated. I didn’t get their huge drink with the smoke coming out. But I did get one of their specialty cocktails. The root beer float. I didn’t drink it. But I didn’t send it back because I was being adventurous with my drink selection. Not their fault. The food sucked.
 

7. The Taste of Chicago was fun. I bought 60 tickets and finished with four left. Most tastes were 6 tickets. I had the jerk chicken and festival, lobster nachos, one Harold’s chicken wing, one Harold’s fried shrimp, lemon Italian ice, jollof rice and plantains, turtle cheesecake, chocolate vegan cheesecake and a Chicago mini dog (which has bright green relish on it).  Everything was ok. I expected way more food vendors. Roscoe’s Chicken in LA is way better than Harold’s. But my favorite was the Chocolate Covered Chocolate Nice Cream. Nice Cream is vegan ice cream made with bananas. DELICIOUS!

8. And we did “Girl Trip” for the Taste of Chicago. We had on our Jill Scott and Chill shirts. We all wore different variations of the shirt/outfit so we weren’t exactly the same. I know. I’m such a hypocrite. Anyway, Chicago has no idea who Jill Scott is. We were asked on a few occasions which one of us was Jill. 


9. Let’s get to this Jill Scott Show. Mase opened. Missed him. Got to my seat just in time for Anthony Hamilton. Just saw him two weeks ago in Columbia, SC. But Chicago brings the energy of just wanting to have a great time. Hand dancing. Singing along. Up out of their seats.  Then Jill comes on. She is my absolute FAVORITE artist and has been since her first album. I’ve missed about three shows in the past 18 years. She always takes you on a ride. Her songs make you think of where she was in life when she wrote the song. And then where you were in life when you first heard the song.  I learned that I am not the biggest Jill Scott fan ever. I think some others had me beat.  One guy kept yelling that she was his baby mama the whole time while sitting next to his wife. Chicago comes to have a good time. No time for heels and full face beats. Comfortable clothes, flat shoes and ready to party. The city doesn’t sleep.


10. Shaw’s Crab House Sunday Brunch. Great find by my bestie. I approve. Thank me later.  

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