Chicago: Day 18 - 21

Dear Diary,

This week has been slow-moving. It's that time of the month again and there's little that I wanna do in the morning except stay tucked under the covers, or under a blanket on the couch watching TV and snacking. In short, I spent the first half of my week, lazing around at home - until the late afternoon, when I finally force myself to head to Starbucks to work on my reflections. Here's a summary of my week and some pictures to go along with it :)

Monday *Day 18*

I went to do some grocery shopping after coffee at Starbucks. Steph met me at the Supermarket after work, then we headed home together. When we went home, I was shocked the moment I opened the door as I saw two strange faces looking at me! It was Cheng's friends :) She had them over for a homecooked dinner, and by the time we were home, they were just done. I could still smell the aromas of her cooking *yum*! Steph and I had left overs from our dim sum lunch yesterday for dinner. We also fried some rice with egg, turkey and the Japanese Garlic Seasoning we had gotten from Mitsuwa last week. After dinner, we then headed to the beach for a walk and to wet our toes. Here are some pics:

I love this shot of a spontaneous kiss :)

Tuesday *Day 19*

In the evening, Steph picked me up from Starbucks and we headed home. Thereafter, we went by Robinson's No. 1 Ribs to order take-out for dinner. We had the smoked baby back ribs with mac & cheese. It was really yummy. It was a little dry, but the sauce and the corn muffin were good. We had it with some left over fried rice from yesterday's dinner. As the weather has been really hot, Steph suggested getting a portable a/c (even though it was against the rental contract), so we headed down to Home Depot. Here's a picture of our new a/c:

Wednesday *Day 20*

I finally forced myself out of the house today and went on a "walking tour" around Old Town. (The itinerary was courteousy of Cheng's other friends, who had left it behind for her during their last visit :) The entire walk actually takes you along the main stretch of Well's Street and North Avenue. Some of the main attractions were St Michael's Church, which had lovely stained glass windows (from Munich, Germany), the Chicago History Museum (which I skipped due to shortage of time) and the many lovely shops and cafes of Well's Street. Of particular interest to me was an old fudge shop and a spice shop. There was also a Jewish cafe! Here are some pictures:

My tour began in the Old Town Triangle District. German immigrants first settled here in the 1950s and built their lives around St Michael Church.

The ceiling of the main worship hall in the church.
You can see the images (from L-R) of the Ox, the Eagle, the Lion and the Man, representing the four Gospels.

One of the many stunning stained glass panels flown in from Munich, Germany.

A statue of St Michael, the Archangel, crushing the head of a demon under his feet.

Welcome to Old Town, a lovely street filled with specialty shops, restaurants and cafes.

Old Town Market. The building is now used as a residential apartment.

The Fudge Pot, a quaint chocolate shop that sells delicious fudges and novelty chocolates.

I could not resist getting a box of mouth-watering treats, which included kahlua truffles, brandy cherry truffles (which burst liquid into your mouth, like an alcohol shot), amaretto truffles (their best sellers), a chocolate pretzel and some hawaiin fudge (i.e. fudge with macadamia nuts and coconut shavings). With the exception of the kahlua truffles (which were pretty average tasting), the rest were absolutely delicious.

Thursday *Day 21*

I decided to explore the city today. I took the CTA from Armitage and headed down to Randolph/Wabash. I was in need of a pair of sunglasses, so I headed to Macy's and found a pair of purple shades from Nine West at the Sunglass Hut for US$55. I didn't buy it immediately though and decided to mull it over. 

In the meantime, I headed to the Chicago Cultural Centre (admission is free) and explored the exhibitions there. Overall, I was amazed by the vast amount of free spaces a person can find in Chicago to just sit and chat. Here are some pictures of the centre and the exhibition I visited:

The beautifully designed ceiling of the second floor of the Cultural Centre.

One of the many free spaces that visitors can savour and enjoy.

The organisers of the exhibition. An interesting organisation;)

At the end of the exhibition, I was left with an uncomfortable sense of uneasiness in my heart. The exhibition was shocking and there were certain exhibits that I found particularly distasteful.There was an overwhelming sense of death and fascination over the temporary nature of life. I just had to get out of there and enjoy a breather of fresh air on some green grass.

Thankfully, the Centre was just next to the Millenium Park. I took a stroll over and sat on the grass. There was a band having an open rehearsal for their performance later that night. It was free entertainment! I just sat there and soon found myself lying down on the grass along with the other city dwellers, hiding away from the hustle and bustle of life. 

About forty-five minutes later, it was soon time for me to head home, but not without grabbing the sunglasses first! I made my purchase and met Steph back at the apartment.

Tonight's dinner was going to be special because  we had planned to have dinner at the Pasta Palazzo, an italian eatery we had spotted while strolling along W. Armitage just the evening before. We were then going latin dancing at Excalibur, a large dance club, later that night. Here are some pictures of our absolutely delightful meal at Pasta Palazzo (and at extremely good prices too!):

Apparently, this eatery has been around for 13 years and is recommended by Zagat, the Chicago Tribune, Chicago Reader and Chicago Magazine.

This cosy eatery has an open concept.
Patrons can choose to sit at the counter and have their food freshly prepared before their eyes.

For starters, we had grilled calamari with lemon-herb vinaigrette.
It was fresh and absolutely well-grilled. Yummy and tender!

Steph's entree: risotto with squid, spinach, calamari and crabmeat.
Absolutely flavoursome and delicious.
(*Be sure to check the chalk board for their daily specials!)  

My entree: Healthy Scallops - linguine with bay scallops in a spicy tomato and basil white wine sauce. 

Sangria! A popular choice of drink here. Complements the pasta too :)  

Social was fun. We drove downtown to Excalibur. Initially, I was a little reluctant because I was unsure of the salsa scene here. I wasn't even sure if I was going to get asked to dance. But I had a lot of fun in the end!

Steph has a strange effect on me. He always gets me to try new things... even though I almost always demonstrate quite a bit of nervousness and reluctance initially. Once past my resistance however, the experience is fantastic:) Steph's a learner and he drives me to try new things too. He does make me feel a little embarrassed though for my silliness and rigidity sometimes:P I just wish I can be as open as he is to new things!

I can't believe that time passes so fast here and soon, I'm coming to the end of my third week! I've received my contract from LSC and I am about to sign and scan it over. I honestly wonder, what will happen over the next two years to come? And what will happen to us...? Time will tell, probably. For now, I'm still telling myself, "one day at a time, Cass, one day at a time".