Chicago Architectural Tour

One of the weekends this summer, Ryan and I were able to get a day to ourselves in downtown Chicago. I've always wanted to do one of those architectural tours down the Chicago River on a river boat, but it's hard to convince a native Chicagoan to do that type of thing. Luckily, I was able to talk Ryan into it. The weather was perfect; although it was the middle of summer, there was a nice breeze and there were enough clouds to make it quite comfortable. Having an almost-one year old means we don't get much alone time, and we appreciated having some time just to enjoy each other's company.

Since I went to college in Michigan, I spent more than a few weekends visiting downtown Chicago back in the 90's. I was surprised, taking the tour, to learn about how many residential high rises have been built just in the last ten years. It's rare that a city center gains so many people, when the typical behavior is to sprawl out into suburbs. I can see why so many TV shows and movies are finding it an attractive place to film, when it's a new kind of "it" place to be. (Ryan and I tell each other than when we retire, maybe we'll get a condo downtown and enjoy the urban life. For now, though, having a yard with a swing set, and a lot less traffic, suits our lifestyle better.)