So the plan was to get up early and have a swim in the hotels pool, but.. (here it comes..) we were still on S&TT time and therefore woke 30 mins before we had to check-out.. rush rush hurry hurry and we were in the rental car... again..
We had decided to visit Chicago itself as so far we`d only been in the suburbs, we were in no hurry so we drove down on minor roads back from Madison, (route 12 for those taking notes) it was a cool drive, we saw proper fraternity houses with genuine Greek writing outside and everything, something we don`t get at home.
Arriving back in Chicago we booked into a hotel at the airport so that tomorrow we`ll wake up in about the right place (subtext: get more sleeping time!) and headed into town. Once there Tamsins shopping instincts took over and the Museum of Science lost out to the delights of Filenes basement.. all was not lost though as outside we found.... a Ghiradelli soda fountain! 2 enormous piles of Ice Cream later and the evening was well under way.. we drove back to the Motel and decided to hit the Drive in cinema just one more time...
| On the way to the drive in my eye was caught by a mass of neon, it turned out to be a piece of prime Americana! "Dads Slots" was the name of the store, it was mecca for slot car racing fans! two HUGE eight lane race tracks were bathed in neon, there was a soda fountain at one end of the room, and the main counter contained all the components you`d ever need to construct your own slot cars.. | |
| Along the back wall was a straight drag racing track with proper electronic timing and sponge balls to bring the cars to a safe stop.. the place was about to close but the girl behind the counter could see how excited I was and let us have a free 10 mins... Too much fun! the whole place reeked of classic America.. and not in a contrived way, it`s just a place that local kids go to race cars but it has that indefinable aura that only chrome, neon and wood can create.. Check it out! |
For the road trippers among you I strongly recommend highway 45 from Des Plaines up to the airport at Pal-Waukee for an overnight stay, for on that 5 mile stretch of road you have, The Slot Shop, A Dennys, A Triple Screen Drive-in Cinema, and a Motel with a Jacuzzi and Waterbed in the room! (80 bucks a night, Forest Lodge) ..what a perfect place to spend a day! (And I didn`t even mention the McDonalds museum that is on the same stretch of road.. ..because it`s crap.)
Drive in cinemas are too cool.. to these English eyes even a bad film looks good at a drive in, and tonites picture was a test of that maxim, "Species" it was called.. it should have been called "Specious".. a sub-Aliens plot glued to some gratuitious breast shots.. but hey, we were in the drive in.. listen to the crickets and watch the airplanes land behind the screen.. top entertainment.
Tomorrow we fly from Chicago to Boston.. so we`d better get packing..
Back to intro..
Onward ..tomorrow is another day!