Chicago II

Norwegian Lutheran Memorial Church at Logan Square Chicago 

The day after we arrived in Chicago, we went to meet the kids at Logan Square to go to a farmers' market near the square.  As the four of us (Gunnar, Inger, Tove and I) exited the Blue Line train at Logan Square we were greeted by a huge Norwegian flag that was flying in front of the church.  We walked in and were greeted by several Norwegians (mostly expats).  We sat for a while talking about the old country and drank coffee and ate waffles.

The kids patiently await as their dad searches for the quilt to put down on the ground for them.

Ahhh! Quilt down.

Devon requested this photo of the ladies in different shades of pink. 

After the farmers' market, Ryan took us to a place that served excellent donuts.

I had a genuine Czech pilsner.

Not sure what everyone was looking at.

City of the big shoulders

Chicago

BY CARL SANDBURG

Hog Butcher for the World,

   Tool Maker, Stacker of Wheat,

   Player with Railroads and the Nation's Freight Handler;

   Stormy, husky, brawling,

   City of the Big Shoulders: . . .

The poem continues here

Or you can watch Mayor Rahm Emanuel read it here.

Chicago River  

We checked Gunnar and Inger into their hotel across from Grant Park.  They stayed at the Congress Plaza, a grand old hotel on Michigan Avenue.  Here's the view from their room.

Room with a view.

We spent some time in the loop area, where the Chicago River winds through the city's center featuring a skyline filled with interesting architecture, not just steel and glass.

The Emerald Loop Irish Pub where in 2008 Tove, Ed, Cindy and I had a drink the day after Devon and Patrick were married.

We took the water taxi - cheap and fun

When Devon and Patrick got married this Trump project was under construction.

From the water taxi

The Riverwalk is being extended.  It will be really nice.

I enjoy visiting my children and grandchildren in Chicago.  Devon delayed Graham's 2nd birthday celebration so that we could be there to celebrate with them.  Graham is enthralled with airplanes, so Devon chose airplanes as the theme for the party.  She had those half-sized cans of soda pop, and the small bottles of wine that you find on airplanes. She had photography books of air flight and toy airplanes, it looked really cute.

Graham LOVES his hat.

Seriously

Loves

The hat. 

Piper was the attentive big sister at her little brother's birthday party.  She even helped Graham open his presents!

Taking a break from big sister duty

She is so adorable.

She was showing us some dance steps. 

Graham was willing to trade his favorite hat for a birthday hat

Devon records the big moment.

I think everyone was clapping.

We brought clothing we bought in Norway for Graham's birthday, but we stopped at Walgreen's on the way to the party to buy Graham a toy, too.  We didn't realize how noisy the jigsaw was until Graham started playing with it while it was still in the box.  Next year . . . a drum kit!

He really liked that jigsaw

If grandfathers can't buy noisy, irritating toys for kids, then who can? 

Travels after the reunion

We took Tove's brother and sister-in-law, Gunnar and Inger, to the States with us.  It was their first trip to the USA.  They were afraid that their English skills would not be good enough to travel to America, so they were more than glad to have us as tour-guides and chaperones.  I took hundreds of photos.  These are but a few.

We were blessed with beautiful weather the entire trip.  This is from the lookout point after crossing the Golden Gate.  Gunnar bought a SF Giants hat.  You see a lot of Yankee and Dodger hats in Norway, but the Giants hat will be quite distinctive. 

Coit Tower from the vantage point of Lombard Street.

Gunnar Inger and I

The view from our hotel. 

From the sublime to the ridiculous.  Salem, Oregon.  My dad had a 1959 Cadillac convertible.  What a car.

American cuisine. 

We drove Highway One from SF to LA.  The buildings in the foreground are part of the lighthouse complex.  It is used as a hostel now.

We stopped here for lunch.  The white monster is our Buick Enclave rental car.  It was a very comfortable car that easily fit all of our luggage and passengers.  Great for long distance travel with 4 adults and luggage for 3 weeks of vacation.  

Hollywood!  That screwy ballyhoo-y Hollywood!  We took Coldwater Canyon over the hills from Studio City to Beverly Hills and then east to Hollywood.  They've really cleaned up the tourist spots in the last 10-15 years.

After Hollywood, we went to Venice Beach where people were roller blading, guys were hawking medical marijuana cards, and oily men were lifting heavy weights.  After a nice lunch at an Italian restaurant with a nice patio, we traveled south to Laguna Beach.

California surf decor

View from our room

Gunnar and Inger catching some rays

I really liked our hotel, but I think a lot had to do with our room with a view.  I have to say, though, the staff was friendly and attentive. 

After three sun-filled days in Southern California, visiting old friends, meeting my tenants and visiting my step-sister, Shirley, it was time to head across the desert to Las Vegas.

Taken on Shirley's patio in Newport Coast.  We had dinner at one of my favorite restaurants, Bistango.

I took this picture through a plexiglass window on one of the pedestrian bridges over the strip.  Then I flipped it with software.  

Las Vegas is a fun place to take foreign tourists.  It is uniquely American; over the top; profane and limitless.  We went to a musical the one night we were there, "The Million Dollar Quartet" based on a recorded jam session that took place in the late 50s with Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash and Jerry Lee Lewis.  The musicians who played these guys were very talented.  Fun show:



The next morning we headed toward The Grand Canyon National Park.  I had never been there, so I was very excited about this part of the trip.  We booked rooms at one of the park's lodges, and I am glad we did.  The rooms were clean, comfortable, large and very convenient.

The only negative on our visit was that the day we arrived a huge forest fire went out of control in Northern Arizona.  The fire obscured the views somewhat.  Otherwise, the canyon is indescribable.  I've seen many pictures and films but you just can't translate the real-life 3-dimensional experience onto 2-dimensional screen or paper.  Since we have all seen hundreds of pictures of the canyon and even though I took over 100 pictures, I have limited myself to just a few:

I like this photo because it gives some perspective with the people in the centre of the photograph. 

Bright afternoon sun, but it was cool (as our jackets reveal) 

The next morning I got up at 5 a.m. to catch the sunrise over the canyon.  It was a beautiful morning, but rainclouds pretty much hid the morning sun.

I wasn't the only early riser!

Not long after I took this it started to rain. 

I had planned on driving through Oak Creek Canyon en route to Sedona, but the forest fire closed the  Oak Creek Canyon road.  So we took a detour east of Oak Creek Canyon to get to Sedona.

Sedona is blessed with beautiful red-rock craggy hills surrounding it.

View from the restaurant patio where we had lunch in Sedona.

Lunch was delicious.

Saguaro outside of Phoenix.  I had no idea that these cacti bloomed from their "fingertips".

Blooming fingers.  

 We spent the night in Phoenix.  The next morning we departed for the last destination on our trip.  Tove and I would stay with Ryan and Wendy.  Our now well-seasoned USA travellers would be on their own for several days in a hotel in Dickie Dick Dickens' Chicago.