23rd Nov, Home.

Wake up at 7 AM on a holiday. That's earlier than even normal weekdays. However, there was more to this than just catching the early morning rays, we were off to the big daddy of the midwest - Chicago!! Forever remembered as Al Capone's headquarters back in the day, and proabably the first place where bootlegging started, Chicago is a fascinating, fast, tough city. And we were going to explore it like two simple tourists.

Armed with my carefully planned itenenary for the 3 days, my suitcase filled with clothes and make-up (big city girls dress well, right?) and loads of enthusiasm I hoppped into the passenger seat of our of our trusty steed.

Me: "Hey why aren't we moving yet!?"
B: "Windows are frozen up"
Me: "But you always park it facing east to catch the sun! And you've been revving the engine for over 60 secs. Why are we still inside this igloo!!?"
B: "Patience... I do this every morning"
Me: [114 seconds of my trip already over and I'm freezing my butt out here] "We should've got antifreeze."
B: "For the windows???"
Me: "Duh..."

After what seemed like eternity we could finally see the building before us. Hooray! And then there was light... now I know the weight of that line. With renewed excitement I buckled myself in and started on an alto rendition of "How do I live without you...". Nice.

I will f.fwd through the next two hours because there really isn't much to describe when you're driving through Indiana. Flat. Harvested corn fields that stretch all the way to the horizon. I slept for a while, feeling the momentum of the car drag me into a vortex. "Wake up, we're here."

"Huh???"
"Starbucks, coffee. Breakfast."
"Oh...", rubbing eyes and helplessly watching my reverie vanish, "Yes, coffee. I need some." [South Indian caffiene addict that I was]

Muffins, bagels, lattes and several thanksgiving wishes later we were back on the road. I felt zesty. Thats the best way I can describe my reaction to a nice cuppa. Many more renditions of various pop tunes followed. I'm sure B flinched when I hit the high notes.

Two hours later, we were face to face with the steely maze of downtown Chicago. Our gps system began to show signs of failure in the big city. The high rises were messing with the satellite signal. Damn. While I tried all antics to catch the elusive signal, B vigilantly avoided the maddening cab drivers and their poetic honking. I will not elaborate on their colorful language- this blog is meant for everyone. Hand signals take a completely new meaning too.

We finally made it to our hotel... the oldest in town! Even the name had a historical ring to it. Nothing like the single worded "Hyatt" or "Drake" for me, thank you. Having found our nest for the next 3 days, the immediate need of the hour was to park our wheels someplace safe. That led us on another couple of rounds round the block. Eventually, the friendly doorman pointed out the right place. Aha. Gotcha.

I do not recall anything that elicited a breath holding reaction (swimming not included), but this lobby was unlike anything I had ever seen before. It was grand. It was colorful. It was breath taking.