Chicago: Day 8 - 9

Over the weekend, Steph and I took a drive up to St. Louis to meet up with Laurie, his fiance Allyson and Aunt Theresia.

The plan was to visit Six Flags (a major amusement park located throughout the US) on Saturday and to go to David's Bridal on Sunday. As the drive would take us 5 hours, we decided to drive up on Friday evening, after Steph knocked off from work. I cooked dinner for the both of us ( a simple meal of stir fried beef and lemon-sauced chicken - all bought pre-marinated), so that he could come home to a piping hot meal and have more time to pack :) 

It felt good, like I gained a brownie-point on the Achievement Board.

A few hours later, we were on the road and heading down the highway towards St. Louis, Missouri. Along the way, we stopped by Springfield to pump petrol and grab some takeaway dinner. Steph wanted rice and was craving Asian, so we kept our eyes pealed for anything that possibly screamed "chop suey" or "chinese buffet". It was 9.30 p.m. and I was hoping that the stores would still be open. A silent prayer later, we chanced upon a half-lit sign that said "THAI BASIL". The place was empty but it looked authentic enough (despite the red booth-seats) . We ordered one portion of Seafood Basil Rice and Green Curry with Chicken.

About an hour later, we were in our motel room tucking famishedly into our meal - and boy were we surprised! Steph claims it was the best Thai food he's ever had here. He and Laurie had agreed to stay at La Quinta Inns and Suites, a decent motel with relatively spacious rooms and a simple but satisfactory breakfast spread (complete with a DIY waffle station - YUM!).

Aunt Theresia, Laurie and Allyson arrived at about 5 am that morning. As it was still too early to check-in, they caught some sleep in our room while Steph and I grabbed some coffee at a nearby Starbucks.

Steph busy at work, even when we are (far) away!

At about 9 a.m., we decided it was time to head back. But when we parked in the carpark, we found ourselves yawning, so we caught some shuteye in the car instead. Unfortunately, car seats of a stationary vehicle are terrible places for naps. I got restless after awhile and decided to entertain myself with my iCamera :) 

View of the lovely summer sky
through the sunroof of Steph's car :)

Shutterbug happy :)

Beautiful white puffs in a sea of blue :)

Every was soon awake and after refreshing ourselves, we headed for Six Flags! I was amazed at how big and death-defying some of the rides were :) Allyson, Laurie and Steph were daredevils. They were eager to go on some of the really thrilling rides. I, however, was a low-moderate risk-taker :P Hence, my stomach churned at the thought of going on some of these rides. All I needed though, was a good warm-up :) The first ride that we sat on was a crazy roller coaster called Batman which swung you around with your feet suspended wildly in the air. It was fun!

Deciding to take something that would cater to Aunt Theresia next, we went on a "steam-engine" train that brought us on a little tour around the theme park. We saw more thrilling rides, some that even made my head spin simply by watching it.

Aunty Theresia and me

Laurie and Allyson

The death-defying wooden rollercoaster...

The next few rides that we sat on were slightly milder. We chose some rides that Aunt Theresia could ride on too. As there was an average wait of 15 to 20 mins for the rides, we decided to take some photos while queueing, for keepsakes!

The crazy tracks of a twirly ride that makes use of your body weight
to spin the cart as it speeds round the tracks.

Waiting for our turn at the log ride.
I told Aunty Theresia that she needs to scream at least once at an amusement park :P

At Kiddy Land, sitting on one of the milder spin rides.  

Say "Cheese!"

One of my last few pictures with my CK sunglasses :P Sob.

We sat a series of mild rides, in a hope that Aunt Theresia would join us. There was one that was really tempting. You get to be suspended high in the air on "swing-like" seats whirling gently round a tall, vertical pole (like a carousel). The catch is you're suspended so high in the air that you get a magnificent bird's eye view of the entire area. But it's definitely not a ride I'd recommend for someone with a fear of heights:P

After awhile, Laurie and Allyson headed off for some water theme park fun. The rest of us decided to grab some food to satisfy our hunger. According to Steph, the funnel cakes here are a must-try. 

Funnel cakes are simply a gigantic mass of sugar and flour that's twisted and deep fried. It's like eating waffles with ice cream, just lighter. The one we got was decadent - it had ice cream, whip cream, chocolate fudge and icing sugar all over it. It was just so good that we had to grab a second one!

Let's dig in!

What are you staring at??

After eating, I decided to do a little shopping. We came across a souvenir shop selling WarnerBros stuff - including Marvin the Martian items, a smart alien that somehow reminds me of Steph. (It's interesting, come to think of it, about how different personalities affect the characters you'll pick. I still recall Ian hugging a Taz the Tasmanian Devil stuff toy during his graduation. Steph, on the other had instinctively chosen a Marvin the Martian keyring.)

By the way, did I tell you? Steph has a thing for hats. Or rather, finding the perfect hat or cap :) One that fits him to a tee. After trying on different types of caps and hats, we finally found one that suited him perfectly!!! (At least, I think it did ;P)

Looking good!! ;) 

When we walked out from one of the shops, Steph handed me a cute, jazzy-looking monkey. It was a little gift he had gotten for me to keep me company at home, while he's away at work :) *awwww*

I was really touched. He had gotten me a gift too from the Misty Maid souvenir shop at Niagara Falls - a tiny glass bulb filled with 19K gold flakes suspended in water.

Meet Coco. 

Soon it was 8 p.m. and time for us to go. Laurie and Allyson met us at the entrance. We headed back to the motel, washed up and prepared ourselves for dinner. Laurie suggesting heading down to a nearby IHOP for dinner. Apparently, IHOP stands for International House of Pancakes. It's a common american diner like Applebee's. "You must try it when you're here!" Laurie had said. "The pancakes here are fantastic," Steph agreed. So we ordered a few scrumptious dishes to share.

Steak and Cheese omelette :)
They actually fill it with hash/rosti and mushrooms inside!
It also comes with a plate of three pancakes so you can imagine how stuffed we were!

Allyson's blueberry pancakes. 

Grilled Tilipia with Hollandaise sauce.

The pancakes had to be packed to go as we were too full. It would be the next day's breakfast ;) By the end of dinner, we were all so stuffed and sleepy. We could not wait to hit the sack that night. There was still a bridal fitting and a long drive back to the city the next day :P