The other week, we went to Chicago to celebrate my 30th birthday with family and friends, and to visit some of my favorite Chicago places. We started off with a trip to the Lincoln Park Zoo on Thursday:
We made sure to see the penguins, Nicci's favorite animal:
On Friday, we went to visit the Museum of Science and Industry, which is apparently (according to their website) the largest science museum in the western hemisphere. I mentioned to the woman at admissions that I was in town for my 30th birthday, and that I used to volunteer at the museum (a long, long time ago), and she gave us a big discount! That was really nice. Here is a picture of me on a climbing wall that represents navigating the ups and downs of business:
On Saturday night, we had a big party at the Street Side Bar and Grill in Logan Square, with a bunch of my friends and family. Here are some of my friends, with a handsome guy in the middle:
Nicci's family also came up from Missouri as a surprise. Nicci didn't even know they were coming! Here is Evan (Nicci's brother) sitting across from me at Street Side, with a reserved expression:
After the party, Nicci was not feeling well, so she went home, but I continued my night of debauchery at Maciej and Christie's sweet new pad. I didn't take any pictures, though, just in case I run for president some day...
After that, Nicci and I checked into our favorite Chicago hotel, the Inn of Chicago. We got a sweet room on the top floor, with a great view of downtown. It faced west, too, so we saw two sunsets over (or through) downtown. Here is a picture of almost the same view, from the hotel's roof deck:
I also worked some more of my birthday magic: the hotel manager gave us free drinks for my birthday!
We enjoyed our last day in Chicago, Sunday, doing some shopping on the Magnificent Mile. Here is Nicci taking a quick, pink break from shopping:
All in all, it was a great trip. Thanks to all my family (and Nicci's family too!) and friends for making my birthday party an excellent night!
Click here for more photos.
