Chicago, IL: The Windy City

Day 1 (and only): So this trip was pretty monumental for me, as I have never been out of the bordering states of Georgia (much less on a plane!). 20-something of my classmates and I decided we were going to ace our PANCE (national boards for PAs) and jet-setted to the Windy City for a 3-day CME board review.

Adam and I booked our flights back in November, and even now I can remember the nervous feeling I got. For some reason I had all this anxiety about being on a plane in the air. Probably because I have never ridden a roller coaster... and the fact that I'm pretty claustrophobic.

Anyhow, we woke up at 4:15 am to head down to the ATL airport and got there almost two hours early for an 8:25 am flight! We heard that the wait time to get through security was 2+ hours because of a closed major security terminal. We ended up waiting only 30 minutes or so and had plenty of time to relax (hype myself up - to my poor friends: thank you for the kind reassurance).

Taxy-ing (sp?) around the runways sent my stomach on a whirlwind of its own! We finally lifted off and I became bored with it shortly thereafter. Needless to say, I have conquered my fear of flying! (sans alcohol, at that.)


| Impatiently awaiting our flight |

We landed safely and sound around 9:30 am (1 hour time difference) and headed to the conference center to drop off our things and then took uber straight into the city.



This was the first spot we came to, and arguably the most beautiful. Overlooking the Chicago River, you can easily spot the Trump Tower, Chicago River Walk and many sightseers (myself included) experiencing all that Chicago has to offer.

We quickly made a game plan and were off to explore. First things first, however: coffee break!

Everywhere had revolving doors! So classy.

We decided to climb aboard a Wendella Chicago Boat Tour to kick things off. This way we could learn the layout of the city a little better. It was a beautiful day for some sightseeing. Check out how green the water was! The tour guide said it was from the algae Lake Michigan produces. 

   

      

After the boat ride, we hopped off and headed for Millennium Park, where I had to see the infamous 'Cloud Gate' aka 'The Bean'. It was super cool and fun to take pictures of!

After all of our adventures on foot, we got super hungry. Deciding what to eat was easy: deep dish all the way! Had to. We decided on Giordano's.. still to this day Chicago locals feud on which restaurant makes a better deep dish!

         

With full bellies, we decided to end our day on a high note (see what I did there?). The Willis skytower jets 103 stories into the sky and provides miraculous views of the entire city. With shaky knees, we stepped out onto the ledge and found ourselves hovering over the city with a clear view. (Adam didn't look down.)

After the sky tower experience, we decided to wrap things up and headed back to the hotel. I ended up sitting through lectures from 6:45 am - 5pm Friday, Saturday and Sunday while Adam lived it up. He walked the entire city one day and even got to experience a game at Wrigley Field!

This is what I got to see while sitting in class...

Thanks for having us Chicago! It was a lovely city and we will definitely be back.

xoxo, ab