Thursday, June 13, 2013

Chicago - A Photo Essay (With Some Naked People)

We just got back from a long weekend in Chicago where we did mostly sight-seeing, eating and watching naked people bike ride.

Saturday night we stumbled upon the World Naked Bike Ride, which was hundreds and hundreds of Chicagoans pedaling through the streets bare-ass to bike seat!

Well, most of them were bare-assed.















My photos didn't turn out well but believe me when I tell you we saw lots of weenies dangling off bike seats and boobs bouncing around. It was terrific!

That's one of the best things about traveling, just when you think you've experienced it all - Willis Tower, Hawks in OT, crack popcorn - here come 400 naked people pedaling by.

Here is the video I took.



You can't see much because we were in the back of a cab and I didn't start filming until it was nearly passed (as I was too busy gleefully looking at strangers' private parts), but the atmosphere was great. Traffic completely stopped and everyone was taking photos. Ray and I were practically high-fiving in the car while the cabbie asked us, 'Are these the gays?' 

And isn't that the other thing about traveling, things surprise you that surprise no one else. We had brunch the next morning with my friend Sandy, who is photographer in the city, and she goes, "Oh yeah, photographers do photo essays on it every year."

She was shrugging it off while I was mapping out where I should stand next year.

It's all downhill from there, but here are some of the other sights we saw.




Buckingham Fountain - Famous for Married with Children, Jen and Patrick's engagement and the site of our Garrett's Chicago Mix popcorn eating frenzy.

The Chicago Architecture Foundation had this scale model exhibit of downtown. Come to think of it, we stumbled upon it as well.




 




We walked about 9,000 miles on Friday. Actually is was less than 5, but it nearly killed us. We are soft Cincinnatian's who drive everywhere.

The next day when Ray proposed an architecture tour (as seen from a boat on the Chicago River) I couldn't have been more delighted. We'd get to sit down for 90 minutes!


Willis Tower from the boat.




The Civic Opera Building was my favorite on the tour. It was built in 1929 and is shaped like a throne. You can see better here.



This wasn't on the river tour but what an odd little marvel. Plus it was gorgeous. My guess is that it leads people in one building directly to the snack machines in the other building.



Here we are in the lock waiting to get into Lake Michigan. About seven minutes after I took this photo I started to get sea lake sick. The bigger the boat, the sicker I get.


 The last event at this abandoned lighthouse was a wedding. I loved that.


This lion demanded a photoshoot. And a snack.



The Ralph Lauren restaurant requires reservations for lunch and looks like a country club, and is about as uptight. There are portraits of horses hanging the walls.



The interactive mirrored public art of Chicago. Or, the bean.

Hi!







I'm not sure if they photobombed me or if Ray is photobombing them.



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