March 16, 2023

 It is our last day in Chicago! We woke up and got moving right away so we could make our 9:00 reservation for the Skydeck. We were going to walk, but we were so tired we decided to sleep a few more minutes and uber. When we arrived we learned we were the first reservation so we were going to make it up in great timing!

Our first stop when we got to the top was to go to the ledges so that we didn't have to wait. The ledges go out about 3-4 feet and are completely clear. It was kind of freaky! Rocky did not like it and stood on the inside of the building and looked out. Teddy was braver and got his picture out there. It was crazy to see how far we could see. I learned that you could see the Indiana state border! 

We walked around the building and took in the sites from all angles. We even stood where they stood for Ferris Bueller's Day Off! 

When we headed back down we found the little donut shop, Do-Rite Donuts & Chicken, in the Willis Tower and ate there. I got a old fashioned donut, Teddy got a chocolate frosting donut, Rocky got a blueberry donut and Thom got a bacon egg sandwich. It was all very good!

We got late check out so decided to walk back to the hotel along the green river. It was very peaceful! 

After some Bluey and packing we were on our way to Union Station to catch the train. We got McDonald's for lunch and waited in the Grand Hall for our train to be called. Thom remembered that the Untouchables was filmed at Union Station and there was a scene from My Best Friend's Wedding filmed there too! Because the train was departing from Chicago it was right on time!

I found the whole process interesting. As you were steps away from boarding the train you were handed a little ticket with handwritten numbers on it- those were your seats. Then they went around and asked where you were departing- OSC was posted above our seats for Osceola. 

This trip we spent most of our time in the coach seats. Thom and Teddy played switch, Rocky watched the Greatest Showman and I read and slept. Rocky and I did sit in the observation car for awhile. We played "I spy"- who could find the first cow, house, body of water, etc.

When we were five minutes away from Osceola we were brought to a stand still because switch to switch tracks was frozen so we had to wait for Burlington Northern to come out and thaw the switch. We ended up waiting 45 minutes! 

We were relieved when we got back to the depot- the weather had gotten so bad; it was so slick! We made it home safely.

It was a wonderful trip! People talked about how unsafe Chicago is, but we stayed in the safe areas and never felt that we were unsafe. We received a voucher for our incredibly delayed trip to Chicago so we will have to take Amtrak again sometime!

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