We had a very full first day in Chicago! After making it through a busy airport in the morning, we landed in Chicago a few minutes early and managed to be ahead of schedule all day. The kids enjoyed a new type of food court experience at Food Life in Water Tower Place, where you have a swipe card that you add amounts to at different stations throughout the food court. As you exit the area, they swipe your card and tell you how much you owe--it was definitely a lesson in credit management for many students--they were able to see how quickly things add up when you're just swiping a card!
From there we continued on to the zoo. Although it was a cold day, we still got to see several exciting animals--monkeys, apes, penguins, tigers, giraffes, a polar bear, and several smaller animals that made students go, "What is that thing?" It warmed up by the end, and as always the students helped stimulate our economy by supporting the gift shop.
We had dinner at Gino's, where the 7th grade boys searched high and low for the best place to write their names on the wall (a tradition at Gino's). The students enjoyed a chance to sit down and feast on pizza, Chicago-style.
We capped off this busy day with a jaw-dropping performance of the Blue Man Group. Although they speak no words throughout the performance, they captivated everyone's attention with their expressive faces, impressive visual displays, and rhythmic percussion. We occupied the first five rows of the theater and as a result we were VERY involved in the performance.
Now onto day 2!
