Azael recently turned 12 in the Spring and to celebrate he and I took a 4-day trip to Chicago (and this is a tradition I'm planning for all of the kids).
At the Chicago Illinois Temple
waiting for the bus
In a wind tunnel at the Museum of Science and Industry
same museum... an airplane
having a mind relaxation competition... the strap on the heads connected to the ball and the most relaxed person won. I was the consistent winner (shocking!)
Going into the U-505 Submarine (a real WWII German sub that sunk 11 allied ships)
The sleeping quarters in the sub were right in the missile room
fun mirrors
electricity
An interactive shadow screen. The beads of sand (virtual, on the screen) would fill in any space created by a person's shadow.
a full-sized tractor
In the Omnimax theater (like watching a movie on a giant round golf ball screen - all around you, sides, top etc)
dancing robot
locomotive
trolley car
electric light-up dress
car of the future (300 mpg)
another shadow screen with butterflies this time.... very cool
In front of the Museum of Science and Industry.
At our hotel, the Palmer House (built after the great Chicago Fire and renovated with the original 1920s decor.)
The lobby and restaurant (check out that ceiling!)
At the Sears Tower, now called the Willis Tower
Eating some amazing Chicago Pizza!
cool flower pot on the street
the fountain at Millennium Park had two large structures with computer screens that would change faces and also shoot out water at people. Lots of kids played in the area.
Azael is in purple
I was there too. :)
standing in front of "The Bean"
standing inside of "The Bean" at Millennium Park
and directly underneath the bean
taking our picture in the reflection of the bean
A fun outdoor auditorium at Millennium Park
getting a ride on a bike taxi (rickshaw).
This is our driver working hard...
Buckingham Fountain at Grant Park
Grant Park beach, just before the 4th of July Fireworks
All the buildings were lit up for the 4th of July
fireworks
after the fireworks hoards of people just walked home... the streets were filled. Downtown Chicago has a lot of people!
In front of the Palmer House hotel
Shedd Aquarium
Walking between Shedd aquarium and Adler Planetarium we found a beautiful view!
interactive display (shadow based) at the Adler Planetarium
A replica of the "Curiosity" rover currently on Mars. It's much larger than I expected.
checking out sunspots (through a special filter, of course)
A pirate ship out on Lake Michigan
On a boat ride viewing Navy Pier in the background
Azael took some great photos from the boat
at an outdoor restaurant after our boat ride
On the Navy Pier ferris wheel... it was very tall!
mini golf
Across the street from Navy Pier we stumbled upon an exhibit of the new Wii U games. There were 6 pods filled with TVs and Wii games. We had a fun time trying it out.
The Field Museum
Azael tried to pose like the figure behind him, but couldn't hold the stance. :)
dinosaurs!
A mummy (real! alive! OK, not alive, but we were hoping)
Sue, the world's most complete T-rex (at the Field Museum)
We had a nice, relaxing time. The buses weren't too hard to figure out. The food was amazing. I learned that Azael loves museums. And he has a sensitive sense of smell (which is why we couldn't ride on a subway... he thought it smelled like a toilet - LOL!).
