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September 6, 2012  Day 118      Chicago, IL       Total miles to date:  2413.6

Approaching the /Chicago skyline

Buildings on our tour

Willis Tower (former Sears Tower)

We have had a pretty amazing day.  Seeing the Chicago skyline from our boat for the first time ranks right up there! We left Waukegan at 7:00 am and arrived at DuSable Marina at 11:45.  It seems surreal to be docked right at the base of downtown Chicago. After lunch on board, we set off with Chuck and Becky to find the Architecture River Cruise.  We were fortunate to find the one provided by the Chicago Architecture Foundation on The First Lady and we only had to wait 30 minutes before it departed. We were not disappointed! The ninety minute cruise was narrated by a CAF docent who gave us an extensive description of over 50 buildings as we cruised slowly on the three sections of the Chicago River. She explained the history, the occupants, style of architecture, the architects, and many interesting facts about the buildings. We saw the Trump Tower, the Wrigley Building, Willis Tower, Aqua at Lakeshore East, Merchandise Mart, Chicago Tribune, Marina City, Lake Point Tower, and many others.  Since our boat is too tall to fit under many of the bridges on the Chicago River, we will need to take an alternate route around Chicago, and we did not want to miss seeing these buildings from the water.

333 West Wacker Drive

Entering Navy Pier

The Lighthouse at Navy Pier

Next we went to Navy Pier and walked the whole length of the pier and then walked through the interior of the buildings on the way back. There is a very nice Stained Glass Museum inside with many pieces displayed in the hallway.

We walked back downtown and had pizza at Giordano’s at Prudential Plaza.  An excellent choice!  The pizza was superb and we need to rest after so much walking.  We finally made it back to the marina by 8:30!  We were exhausted from our long day, but we are happy to be in this fascinating city.

We will continue our sightseeing tomorrow!