Chicago
Wish I Was There
Aug 11th
My fellow Global Traveler staffers have been writing about the NBTA (National Business Travel Association) convention in Houston. Unfortunately, I am not there this year, although I will be in Houston later this summer.
I have attended several NBTA conventions with GT over the years. They all have involved work, of course, but I also had a lot of fun and got to experience a lot of interesting things.
The most important part is the work, which at GT always involves fun anyway. It has been really motivational to see the various GT people working the booth, discussing ads, contemplating future editorial features and meeting other business associates. Seeing the energy and synergy reminds me of how exciting working at GT really is.
I have also enjoyed quite a few food and beverage choices at the conventions. One year, I had a delicious cold pea soup. It was so good, I shamelessly asked for another cup. I have also had samples of many different airline meals like chicken kebobs and California rolls.
I have tasted a lot of beverages, too. I have tried foreign beers and wines, relaxation teas and interesting energy drinks. Not all were great, but I am glad to have tried them.
Away from the convention, I have enjoyed touring around the host cities. In Boston, we took in a Red Sox game at historic Fenway Park. In Chicago, we enjoyed an after-convention party at the InterContinental Hotel on the Magnificent Mile.
Houston is one of my favorite cities (even with the heat). It’s a great choice for the NBTA convention. I hope my GT friends get to enjoy it as much as I do. I also hope it is still standing after my GT friends leave.
I am sure everyone is having a good time at the NBTA. Although I am not physically there, I am there in spirit with them, and I look forward to reading more stories here and hearing more when we next speak.
– John Wroblewski, distribution specialist
Visit Chicago
Jun 16th
There was a lot of excitement in Chicago last week, and there will be plenty more in the upcoming couple of weeks. Unfortunately, none of this involves either of the woeful baseball teams.
Last Wednesday, the Chicago Blackhawks ended a 49-year drought by winning the Stanley Cup. On Friday, an estimated one-million-plus people were downtown for the parade and ceremonies honoring the team.
This weekend, the Blues Fest is here. Few things in life are better than a warm evening by Lake Michigan with jazz greats supplying the soundtrack. The James Cotton Blues Band with special guest Matt “Guitar” Murphy as the headliner.
Starting June 25 and running through July 4 is the Taste of Chicago. The Taste is Chicago’s largest festival and the world’s largest food fest. The musical headliners this year are Los Lobos and Los Lonely Boys. The Steve Miller Band, Rob Thomas and dozens of other acts will be performing.
At the Taste, the food is the main attraction, however. There will be more than 50 food vendors serving Chicago mainstays, plus assorted other specialities such as crab nuggets, mango rice pudding and chicken apple gouda sauage. You can’t go away hungry from this event.
It will be a great time in the downtown area. I must admit, though, that from my distributor’s point of view, I hate the congestion. Forget your car, take public transportation and be prepared to endure some major crowds en route to having a great time.
By July 5, after these events are done, summer will be in full gear in Chicago. Maybe even our baseball teams will start to heat up.
– John Wroblewski, distribution specialist
Off the Beaten Track
May 29th
Our recent road trip from Chicago to Portland, Ore., involved the usual preparations: map out the route, make motel reservations, rent the truck, pick up some essential goodies and stock the cooler. Daughter Jenny felt it was also important that our trip include a few minor side trips to visit some unique if not downright odd roadside attractions, if for no other reason than to break up the drive and provide conversational (and blog) fodder for the long, dull stretches of the interstate. So she did her research and came up with several candidates, from which we winnowed the choices down to just one or two a day. I wasn’t terribly interested in roaming too far off our westerly route and eating up too many of our daylight driving hours aimlessly meandering unmarked backroads.
While certainly there are numerous historical sites, museums and natural wonders all across the country, Jenny sought the advice of RoadsideAmerica.com (“Your Online Guide to Offbeat Tourist Attractions”) to satisfy her desire to check out the more obscure and unsung attractions (and I’m using that term loosely) along our route. Even taking into account that we were traveling midweek before the summer travel season got underway, these places were quite deserted, and we were generally the only visitors in sight. Most were, as my dad likes to say, surrounded by miles and miles of nothing but miles and miles. But I would not say I regretted any of our little detours; it was actually nice to get away from the roar and rush of the interstate and sink into the landscape for a bit.
Our first stop came on the first day of our trip as we ventured out of Chicago, across Illinois and into Iowa. We were looking for “The tree in the middle of the road.” Following the directions from the website and some cautionary words about rutted roads, we trekked several miles down gravel county section roads until we came upon our goal. An immense, 100-plus-year-old cottonwood tree rooted at the intersection of two roads loomed up before us. Its deep green leaves rustled and shimmered in a soft breeze against a beautiful deep-blue sky. We just stood and looked up into the web of branches, breathing in the scent of growing things and listening to the songs of meadowlarks and the peaceful calm of an early spring evening. After a hectic day of packing and then maneuvering an unfamiliar, bulky vehicle through traffic, those moments of stillness were a blessed balm to our spirits. Now that was a roadside (or, literally, in-the-road) attraction I could really appreciate.
Our second day was a long, soggy slog through a very rainy Nebraska, and we limited our explorations to an authentic (and rather tired-looking) tourist trap (complete with a large metal contraption identified as such hanging from an exterior wall) in North Platte just off I-80. This was Ft. Cody, honoring “Buffalo Bill” Cody, who owned a ranch nearby, purchased from the earnings of his very popular Wild West Show. It is primarily a gift shop with a few historical displays and a corny stockade. You can view the stuffed remains of a two-headed calf and check out some authentic cowboy gear (saddle, chaps, guns and the like) and a few impressively heavy and warm buffalo coats. We enjoyed a few giggles over the more tacky aspects of the place — a nice, bright memory on a gloomy, wet day.
The following day found us hundreds of miles away and thousands of feet higher in elevation, standing on a blustery Wyoming plateau at about 6,000 feet gazing up at a 60-foot-tall, pink granite pyramid. The pyramid was built by the Union Pacific Railroad in the 1880s to memorialize the Ames brothers, who figured large in the history of the company — until their shady dealings led to their downfall. A rail line once passed nearby, but now the monument sits alone a few miles south of the interstate and the “town” of Buford (population 1), surrounded by sagebrush, prairie dogs, antelope and fantastical stone outcroppings. Sparse, fluffy white clouds in a chilly blue sky had replaced the previous day’s gloom, and far to the south we could see the bright, snow-covered peaks of the Rockies. Once again we breathed in the quiet and sense of vast space, reluctantly strolling back to the truck as the many miles we had yet to travel pulled us back to the highway.
If you should take a road trip this coming summer, give yourself the gift of a few unconventional stops along the way. You may find them to be the highlights of your journey!
– Patty Vanikiotis, proofreader
A Day with the Mets
May 26th
As a Chicagoan and Cubs fan, I am not supposed to like the New York Mets, right? Well, I do, because the organization makes it easy to like them.
I’ll start with Nicole Chayet, the media relations coordinator. Despite it being one of the hardest tickets to get all season, Nicole couldn’t have been more facilitating to Louie Atsaves and myself in our effort to experience CitiField and share it with Global Traveler‘s readers. At CitiField, all staffers from the first parking lot attendant to the elevator operator to the field security were as pleasant and helpful as could be.
CitiField is one of the newest and most impressive stadiums. The design was intended to bring the fans closer to the field. The concourses are wide and airy. Much of the area features unobstructed sightlines to the field. More than 40 percent of the stadium’s 42,000-capacity seating can be found on the Concourse level.
One of the highlights for us was talking to legendary groundskeeper Pete Flynn. Flynn has been a groundskeeper since 1964. Flynn has done it all. He drove the Beatles from the stage at second base to their awaiting limo during their 1965 concert at Shea Stadium. Many years later, he drove McCartney to the stage to appear with Billy Joel in concert. Flynn talked of his love for the team, the fans and, of course, the field. Willie Mays was the best he has seen.
During batting practice, we were up close and personal with the players and coaches, discussing travel and baseball. There is never an obligation for anyone to talk, but many did and others politely declined for various reasons (most having to do with baseball activities).
Mick Kelleher, Yankees coach and former player with our Chicago Cubs, talked to us at length. Kelleher named Chicago as the city he enjoyed the most during his career (with the Cubs or as a visiting player). This was before he even knew we were from Chicago. Once we told him that and said we were big fans, he expressed genuine gratitude.
We also interviewed Yankees coach Tony Pena. Pena (former major league catcher) also named Chicago as his favorite place to visit. He mentioned shopping as the reason.
Finally, we settled into our seats and enjoyed a great game. Jason Bay‘s two-run home run was the key hit in the 6-4 Mets victory. Johan Santana pitched seven-and-two-thirds innings to earn his fourth win. Everyone went home happy, especially me and Louie.
The Mets are currently in last place at 23-23, but they are only four games out of first. They might not be in first place (yet), but they are definitely first class.
– John Wroblewski, distribution specialist
