The two highlights of the day: food and Hamilton. I got a good night’s sleep and started the day indulging in a “French toast flight” at Batter and Berries in the Lincoln Park neighborhood. I had been planning this breakfast for weeks, so it should come as no surprise that I didn’t even need to look at the menu. I ordered the “super flight”, which includes four of the regular French toast menu items (blueberry, strawberry, caramel, and lemon) along with this week’s special: Heath. I started by trying a couple of bites of each one and then decided to work my way up from my least favorite to my most favorite. I cleaned the plate.
Fortunately (for my waistline), I decided to walk from there to Lincoln Park to visit the conservatory and zoo. I have fond memories of the orchid room on my last visit to Chicago many years ago, but there weren’t too many in bloom today. The conservatory did provide a nice respite from the brisk morning temperatures. Then it was back to the cold as I walked around the Lincoln Park Zoo, a free Chicago attraction housing a large variety of animals. My favorites are always the gorillas, but I loved watching the monkeys swing (one kept hitting the glass because he overshot the rope!) as well. I spent a couple of hours wandering around the zoo and adjacent boardwalk before jumping on a bus to walk the Magnificent Mile. I stopped into a couple of stores before making my way to my afternoon destination: the CIBC Theater for Hamilton.
I’m not one of those people who has been wanting to see Hamilton since it first came out. I was ambivalent about going to see it in Boston. But, when I saw that it was playing in Chicago, I decided I might as well see what all the hype is about. I spent the first few songs thinking I should have saved my money, and then…. it won me over. Not being a history person, I figured I’d be bored watching people sing about one of the founding fathers for three hours and wouldn’t be able to follow the plot. On the contrary, I found myself having a new appreciation for Alexander Hamilton and I would recommend the show to anyone. It was that good.
I went back and forth on what I wanted for dinner tonight several times, and finally decided to forgo the deep dish pizza and head back to Lincoln Park for dinner at Riccardo Enoteca. It was a very good choice! I ended up eating at the bar instead of one of the cozy tables (which would have required a long wait) and enjoyed pennoni carbonara and panna cotta. A delicious end to the day!
Traveling with Laura 