Just one short week after I arrived home, my Deutsche löwe came to visit me in my country :) His two week stay was action-packed and neither of us had had time to recover from moving away from Sweden yet.
Act 1: Chicago
I met Stephan at the airport in Chicago and introduced him to one of my high school friends, Anna, who works/goes to school in the city now. By the time we got back to our super-nice room at the brand new Wit hotel, it was already late and we were tired so we decided to just have dinner there. The rooftop restaurant/bar/lounge sounded promising but that seemed like the place to be on a Wednesday night so it was way to loud and crowded for our tastes. Instead we had over-priced "tapas" at the other restaurant: prime rib tartar and scallops with marinated mushrooms. Plus we got free desert because they were out of the one I wanted! The next day was so hot and we spent most of the time out in the sun walking around town. First stop- the Sears Tower. I know that Chicago has some big skyscrapers but I never realized how they could make someone nervous if they weren't used to such big buildings all the time. The sky was a bit hazy from the top and we just missed the grand opening of the new observation decks on the very top that have glass floors so you can see straight down the 103 stories. Oh well. Next stop- Millennium Park. Too bad we didn't have a change of shoes and socks, all the little kids looked like they were having so much fun splashing in the fountains. We kept walking down to the lake shore with the intent of going out to Navy Pier but we decided it was too hot, too far away, and not really worth going. So instead we followed the Chicago river along the Riverwalk area back to our hotel to get the car. Last stop- Museum of Science and Industry. We didn't have as much time as we would have liked to be able to really play with and see everything but we stil had a good time being big nerdy kids, especially in the space section. On the way back from Chicago we stopped in Lafayette for gas and dinner. We ate on the patio at McAllister's Deli and got a free show- a huge thunderstorm rolled in as we were having dinner with some great lightning striking in the distance so Stephan could see what a real Midwest thunderstorm was like, up close and personal!
Act 2: Washington D.C.
After just one day in Indianapolis, meeting my family and going shopping/seeing town, we were off again- this time to our nation's capital. We stayed in Old Town, Alexandria, a posh suburb on the Virginia side and home to some of my family. The first afternoon was spent walking around Old Town, checking out little shops and the Torpedo Factory which used to be exactly what it is called but is now an artist enclave. After dinner we opted to take a ghost tour which was funny although a bit cheesy and juvenile. The first full day we used to check out the Smithsonian Museums: the main building, Air and Space, American history, and a fabulous and authentic Native American lunch at the food court at the American Indian museum. We also payed our respects to our nation's founding documents at the Archives where we got to see the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. We spent the evening visiting and having dinner with Uncle Mike and Aunt Debbie who helped us make arrangements for the next day. Debbie so nicely gave us a ride out to Mount Vernon was fantastic especially since we were one of the first groups to get to go through the house that day. Then we headed out to Arlington National Cemetary for the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknowns. From there we hopped on a bus tour that took us into the Capital and let us all of the various presidental monuments plus finishing off the American History musuem (we saw the original Stars and Stripes!) and a quick look in the Natural History museum.
Intermission:
We had two more days in Indy which we spent at the Children's Museum seeing the touring King Tut and Egyptian artifacts exhibit. It was really well put together and extremely interesting. The other day we drove up to Purdue so Stephan could see where I go to school, meet some of my friends, and visit with my Grandparents. Plus he had rootbeer for the first time! at Triple XXX along with the famous Dwayne Pervis burger :)
Act 3: Kentucky Lake/4th of July
Friday before the Fourth of July, we piled into my dad's new car and took off for Kentucky Lake. My mom's entire extended family was having a reunion there for the holiday. We got to go tubing on the lake that evening and Stephan has now met just about all of my relatives! The actually 4th got a bit soggy when a storm came pouring down, threatening a tornado on our picnic pavillion. The big fireworks got rained out although one of my 2nd cousins was shooting some little ones off for the kids. The traditional "Kentucky Derby" horse race took place and Stephan was winning jockey :) The next day we drove back to Indiana and made it just in time to grab dinner and go downtown to see the fireworks at home which had also been rained out the day before.
Final Act: Saying Goodbye
We had two more days in Indiana before he had to say auf Wiedersehen- one day we went to the zoo and the other day we just spent hanging out at home, the two of us. I was extremely sad to see him go because the next time I will see him will be at Christmas, hopefully in Berlin. Until then we are making due with video chatting and letter writing, trying to stay busy until school starts. So now I am finished writing in this blog, at least for now, as I am home and will not have such exciting adventures to share. But stayed tuned, because a sequeal maybe in the works detailing my next trip to see my love.
Act 1: Chicago
I met Stephan at the airport in Chicago and introduced him to one of my high school friends, Anna, who works/goes to school in the city now. By the time we got back to our super-nice room at the brand new Wit hotel, it was already late and we were tired so we decided to just have dinner there. The rooftop restaurant/bar/lounge sounded promising but that seemed like the place to be on a Wednesday night so it was way to loud and crowded for our tastes. Instead we had over-priced "tapas" at the other restaurant: prime rib tartar and scallops with marinated mushrooms. Plus we got free desert because they were out of the one I wanted! The next day was so hot and we spent most of the time out in the sun walking around town. First stop- the Sears Tower. I know that Chicago has some big skyscrapers but I never realized how they could make someone nervous if they weren't used to such big buildings all the time. The sky was a bit hazy from the top and we just missed the grand opening of the new observation decks on the very top that have glass floors so you can see straight down the 103 stories. Oh well. Next stop- Millennium Park. Too bad we didn't have a change of shoes and socks, all the little kids looked like they were having so much fun splashing in the fountains. We kept walking down to the lake shore with the intent of going out to Navy Pier but we decided it was too hot, too far away, and not really worth going. So instead we followed the Chicago river along the Riverwalk area back to our hotel to get the car. Last stop- Museum of Science and Industry. We didn't have as much time as we would have liked to be able to really play with and see everything but we stil had a good time being big nerdy kids, especially in the space section. On the way back from Chicago we stopped in Lafayette for gas and dinner. We ate on the patio at McAllister's Deli and got a free show- a huge thunderstorm rolled in as we were having dinner with some great lightning striking in the distance so Stephan could see what a real Midwest thunderstorm was like, up close and personal!
Act 2: Washington D.C.
After just one day in Indianapolis, meeting my family and going shopping/seeing town, we were off again- this time to our nation's capital. We stayed in Old Town, Alexandria, a posh suburb on the Virginia side and home to some of my family. The first afternoon was spent walking around Old Town, checking out little shops and the Torpedo Factory which used to be exactly what it is called but is now an artist enclave. After dinner we opted to take a ghost tour which was funny although a bit cheesy and juvenile. The first full day we used to check out the Smithsonian Museums: the main building, Air and Space, American history, and a fabulous and authentic Native American lunch at the food court at the American Indian museum. We also payed our respects to our nation's founding documents at the Archives where we got to see the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. We spent the evening visiting and having dinner with Uncle Mike and Aunt Debbie who helped us make arrangements for the next day. Debbie so nicely gave us a ride out to Mount Vernon was fantastic especially since we were one of the first groups to get to go through the house that day. Then we headed out to Arlington National Cemetary for the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknowns. From there we hopped on a bus tour that took us into the Capital and let us all of the various presidental monuments plus finishing off the American History musuem (we saw the original Stars and Stripes!) and a quick look in the Natural History museum.
Intermission:
We had two more days in Indy which we spent at the Children's Museum seeing the touring King Tut and Egyptian artifacts exhibit. It was really well put together and extremely interesting. The other day we drove up to Purdue so Stephan could see where I go to school, meet some of my friends, and visit with my Grandparents. Plus he had rootbeer for the first time! at Triple XXX along with the famous Dwayne Pervis burger :)
Act 3: Kentucky Lake/4th of July
Friday before the Fourth of July, we piled into my dad's new car and took off for Kentucky Lake. My mom's entire extended family was having a reunion there for the holiday. We got to go tubing on the lake that evening and Stephan has now met just about all of my relatives! The actually 4th got a bit soggy when a storm came pouring down, threatening a tornado on our picnic pavillion. The big fireworks got rained out although one of my 2nd cousins was shooting some little ones off for the kids. The traditional "Kentucky Derby" horse race took place and Stephan was winning jockey :) The next day we drove back to Indiana and made it just in time to grab dinner and go downtown to see the fireworks at home which had also been rained out the day before.
Final Act: Saying Goodbye
We had two more days in Indiana before he had to say auf Wiedersehen- one day we went to the zoo and the other day we just spent hanging out at home, the two of us. I was extremely sad to see him go because the next time I will see him will be at Christmas, hopefully in Berlin. Until then we are making due with video chatting and letter writing, trying to stay busy until school starts. So now I am finished writing in this blog, at least for now, as I am home and will not have such exciting adventures to share. But stayed tuned, because a sequeal maybe in the works detailing my next trip to see my love.
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