Ninety Four Days

Dear Diary,

It's been awhile since I blogged :) This week has been a relatively eventful week. Here are some highlights of what we watched, ate, did and visited:

*Theatre in Chicago*

Steph and I went to catch the Blue Man Group Chicago, on Tuesday night at Briar Street Theatre.

The show was fantastic. Definitely no regrets about it! As reviews say, it is one of the best productions to catch. Highly entertaining especially if you're a lover of visual arts, music and good comedy. The Blue Man Group consists of three Blue Man who act like aliens but they perform a variety of interesting acts, some involving participation from the audience :) It was really good!

Just a tip if you're watching this: The highlight of the show is at the end. Definitely get seats on the main floor and in the centre columns. Also, you might wanna try and see if you can get half-priced tickets online. I actually went downtown in the afternoon to check if I could get any half-priced tickets from Hot Tix (the outlet is located just opposite the Chicago Cultural Centre along Randolph Street). Thankfully, there were tickets onsale for that night! I got two tickets at half price (which would have cost USD$156 originally for two people).

They have a strict policy on photography and videography. However, they allow alcohol in the theatre - which is a plus for me! Get the Mimosa. It's really good! - and they do have a bar providing light refreshments :) There are no intermissions, so make sure you hit the bathroom prior to the show! :P

*Blues in Chicago*

When you're in Chicago, one of the things you definitely need to do is to listen to some really good jazz or blues music. One of the good things about living in Lincoln Park is the close proximity and accessibility to some really good blues clubs in town. Do check out Kingston Mines, or if you prefer a cosier, neighbourhood setting, B. L.U. E.S at Halstead is definitely recommended. (It's just across the road.) We were there on Thursday night, after Steph's rehearsal, and it was still packed even at 10.30 p.m. There's an entry charge of $7 per person. Live music goes on even until past midnight.

*Cupcake Trail - Swirlz Cupcakes*

As promised, I did checkout a few cupcake stores on my list, beginning with the one closest to home. Swirlz Cupcakes is a tiny store located along W. Belden Avenue, just across the road from my regular Starbucks hangout along Lincoln Avenue. It has a vast array of prettily decorated cupcakes, including gluten-free and vegan gluten-free cupcakes.

I love this poster :)

The classic Red Velvet Cupcake

Chocolate Dipped Strawberry Cupcake

Verdict? The cupcakes disappointed:( The appearance of the cupcakes were alluring but I found the cupcakes a little dry. Thankfully, the strawberry buttercream dipped in ganache was delicious but I found the cream cheese buttercream a little too sweet for my liking. Overall, I'd give it a 3.5/5 for appearance, 2/5 for taste.

*Cupcake Trail - Magnolia Bakery*

This bakery was a last minute addition to the list. I was curious when I saw Cheng return home one day with a bag of Magnolia Bakery goodies, so I googled it online, only to discover that this bakery is actually quite a hit! Originating from New York, it has outlets in NYC, L.A., Dubai and Chicago. So I decided to check it out the next time I hit the city.

I actually visited the bakery twice in a week - first, on Wednesday, after spending the afternoon at the Institute of Art and a second time, on Friday, with Steph, after lunch at Macy's. The first time I visited, I tried the Devil's Chocolate Cupcake. The second time I visited, Steph and I had the classic Red Velvet cupcake and their famous banana pudding (which was fantastic!!).

The store front along State Street.

Cupcakes, muffins, pies, pudding or freshly baked goods anyone?

Red velvet cheesecakes! Yum:)

Devil's Chocolate Cupcake. Each cupcake costs USD3.50

Red Velvet Cupcake with it's own special whipped cream cheese icing.
Topped with a blueberry - in celebration of summer! :)

Magnolia's Famous Banana Pudding - USD 4.75 for 12 oz

Scenes from the city. Chicago Theatre.

Verdict? I found the Devil's Chocolate Cupcake satisfactory. The cake bit was good - it's made with dutch cocoa, making the chocolate richer and darker. The chocolate icing however was diabolically sweet. As for the Red Velvet Cupcake, again, the cake bit was excellent - it was by far the reddest cupcake I'd ever seen - but the frosting was still a bit too sweet for my liking. (Steph loves it though:P) Overall, I'll give the cupcakes 3/5 for appearance and 3/5 for taste.

An aside - the banana pudding here is a definite must-try. The taste and texture is absolutely heavenly. A refreshingly, delightful treat for summer and a memorable dessert for any occasion. If you're thinking of packing one home (or back to your hotel), make sure it doesn't remain unrefrigerated for more than 45 minutes!

*Cupcake Trail - Cheesecake Factory@Barnes&Nobles (Starbucks) Cafe*

I've actually tried the Chocolate Blackout Cupcake here twice. It's really delicious and honestly a dark horse, which no one would expect to make it on a cupcake crawl list - simply because it's found at the "Macdonald's" of coffee - a Starbucks Cafe. Ok. To be politically correct, it's a Barnes & Nobles Cafe which serves Starbucks coffee and Cheesecake Factory Cupcakes.

According to Steph, however, this is by far the best cupcake he's ever eaten. Even better than Molly's. (We may be treading dangerous ground here as some chicagoans would regard this as cupcake heresy.) And for once, I'd have to agree.

A Blackout Cupcake is a dark chocolate cupcake topped with chocolate cream cheese icing. I love it because the icing is not too sweet and the cake bit is absolutely moist and delicious. You just can't stop after one bite! Unlike it's competitors, it is not fancifully dressed, but modestly covered in a generous amount of chocolate cream cheese icing. For the understated dessert that it is, I'd say it warrants a 5/5 for appearance and 4.5/5 for taste ;)

*Time for a haircut!*

After being here for a month I so, I decided to lop off parts of my hair as it was getting too flat. Steph needed a haircut too so we decided to try out HeadQuarters at Chinatown. My hairdresser was a Hongkonger who boldly cut off layers of my hair so that it would appear much "thicker". At some point, I did brace myself for the irreversible, but it turned out surprisingly better than I had expected ;) It did cost me USD32 (excluding tips) which according to Cheng is the average salon price here.

*Farmer's Market*

One of the highlights of summer are the Farmers' Markets. You can get really cheap, good and fresh produce from the markets. For instance, there's one every Saturday just round the corner from the apartment, at the carpark of Lincoln Park High School. I love buying peaches and berries from here! ;) You can check out the locations of various Farmers' Markets from this link.

*Steph's performance... in prep for San Francisco! *

Speaking of which, did I mention? We'll be leaving for San Francisco this Thursday for the International San Francisco Bachata Festival 2012. Steph's studio, Latin Rhythms Dance Studio, will be putting up three performances during the congress itself, which will take place from Friday to Sunday. There will be loads of bachata workshops and other latin dance workshops over the course of the three days, with performances, socials and dance parties going on at night, so I can't wait! :)

To prepare the performers (especially the Student Team) for the congress, the studio had a special showcase on a Sunday, just for family and friends, and a second showcase at the studio party the following Saturday. Steph had worked really hard for the performance both on stage and off stage so I was really excited to see it! Below are some pictures from Sunday's showcase and videos from the studio party:

The dance studio transformed into a performance hall.
Friends and family gathered eagerly to watch the various performances.

The student team gearing up for their dance routine. (Steph's the one on the far left)

The second video is of the Latin Rhythms Bachata Legacy (LRBL) Dance Company, which is their professional team. Both pieces performed by the student and pro teams were choreographed by Reynaldo Sanchez, ex-student turned instructor and artistic director of LRBL. Their performance is really amazing and it really inspires me to improve on my bachata. The student team did a fantastic job too! Not to be bias, but I thought Steph looked really hot with his body isolations ;)

Note: You can see Rey in the second video, second couple from the right. The couple on the far right is pretty impressive too!

*Elly's Re-visited*