Chicago Walk: Last hours on State St. & Wabash

I am back in Portland now after a nice long thanksgiving visit with my parents in Chicago, and other family in Ohio. The Midwest is alright, but it's just too cold. It was so nice to take a walk here last night. It was chilly, but not nearly as troublesome as Chicago winter. That being said my last day in town (Wednesday) was pretty perfect, with clear skies...and I don't need to reflect too much on the weather the day before which involved so much wind there were 20 foot waves on the lake. Yeesh.

 

We met my Mom for a lunch downtown and some shopping at the Christkindlmarket in Daley Plaza. Dad and I also did some walking along State St. and Wacker, and could check out the progress on the Sullivan Center (formerly the Carson, Pirie, Scott Building,) the new LEED certified dorms for Roosevelt University, and the "Lightscapes" Street decoration for Christmas (pictured above. You can almost make out the purple, green, and red lights here.) I was happy to find a way to sneak in a few purchases from the market in my already packed suitcases, including snowflake ornaments, an advent calendar, and (at long last) a tree topper that fits my medium/apartment-sized Christmas tree!

 

And lastly, of course, we had to drop in Macy's to see the holiday decor. The trees in the Walnut Room were my favorite. I also noticed for the first time that there seems to be a Christmas fairy that goes around the restaurant granting wishes. The decor elsewhere in the building was just as I remember. I'm not a big fan of the ornaments hanging below the Tiffany Ceiling, since that's pretty enough on its own! 

I'll be headed back for another shorter trip right at Christmas time. Between preparing for that, Crafty Wonderland, and the holiday season, I should be pretty busy through the end of the year!