Soccer junkie has made it back from the Windy City...and in one piece as far as I know! A compelte review of the game itself will come either later tonight or tomorrow...for now, just a review of the trip itself since I've promised a few people who asked about it that I'd just write it all in here...
Saturday began bright and early (well, dark and really early), so that we could get to Philadelphia Int'l in time for an 8am flight to O'Hare... For a first trip through PHL, and considering that my brother explained it as one of the worst airports he's flown out of, I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. The airport was very easy to navigate, the terminals are a reasonable size (we flew out of a gate at the very end of the concourse, and it was not that far of a walk), sitting areas were comfortable and not overcrowded (more than enough room to stretch out my legs and slouch in my seat, and I'm 6'3"), and there are plenty of food options and places to grab magazines and newspapers (especially in the connector buildings).
Saturday began bright and early (well, dark and really early), so that we could get to Philadelphia Int'l in time for an 8am flight to O'Hare... For a first trip through PHL, and considering that my brother explained it as one of the worst airports he's flown out of, I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. The airport was very easy to navigate, the terminals are a reasonable size (we flew out of a gate at the very end of the concourse, and it was not that far of a walk), sitting areas were comfortable and not overcrowded (more than enough room to stretch out my legs and slouch in my seat, and I'm 6'3"), and there are plenty of food options and places to grab magazines and newspapers (especially in the connector buildings).
We flew out on a United A320 (after what had to be the longest mechanical delay I've had---more than 90 mins, kept on the plane (at the gate) while they worked to try to fix a nitrogen tank used if they need to blast the door open), which was a pretty comfortable plane. There's a visible difference in legroom between standard economy and their "Economy Plus" (they advertise as 5 extra inches of legroom), which makes the seats seem really close together, but all-in-all it's comparable to every other major airline. Thankfully, United hasn't done away with in-flight entertainment (a lot of airlines have completely removed their systems to save weight and, subsequently, fuel), which will be a huge help on my flight to Las Vegas next month (starts with a 5+ hour flight to LAX). The movie on our flight was alright, I just can't remember the name of it (I almost dare to call it "cute," though)...something starring Rene Zelwegger, Harry Connick, Jr., and the guy who used to play Dr. Skoda (the psychologist) on Law & Order (his role was damn near hilarious).
Anyway, we got to O'Hare, checked into our hotel, and prepared to head downtown. Jeff (brother) decided to leave his sweatshirt at the hotel, I didn't even pack and long sleeves (the weather forecast was for 70s and 80s both days), and we both quickly regretted those decisions. We found our way to the Blue Line, found out there was track work going on all weekend, and hopped on a shuttle bus that didn't really move in (what appeared to me all weekend) Chicago's always-jammed traffic. At the second stop, Jeff said he knew where another L line was, so we hopped off...mistake #2 on our part. After about 40 mins. of wandering around various neighborhoods, we stumbled upon the Red Line and made our way downtown to the Sears Tower.
If you ever go to Chicago, a trip to the top of the Sears Tower (or Willis Tower, or whatever they're calling it at that time) is definitely a must-do activity. Even on a hazy day like we had, the views from the tallest building in the country are INCREDIBLE. Though our views of Wrigley Field, US Cellular Park, O'Hare, and Midway were either partially or completely obstructed by the hazy cloudiness (Soccer Junkie also happens to be a stadium and travel/airport junkie), the views of the lakefront, John Hancock Building, the rest of downtown, and the surrounding area is nearly indescribable. An absolutely breath-taking experience.
With only a couple of hours left to kill until it was time to get over to Soldier Field, we decided to head off to experience one of the great NYC vs. Chicago competitions/controversies--- thin crust vs. deep dish pizza. Having been born and raised on the Jersey Shore, just an hour from the East Coast home of thin crust, I was obviously partial going in. That said, we found a real nice place that offered "stuffed" deep dish, which was actually quite delicious...but there was one glaring problem---pizza is not meant to be eaten with a fork and knife. Pizza was, is, and always will be a finger food, meant to be eaten in the "fold and go" method. Just for that, this pizza ended up on the list of pictures from our trip that include a certain finger flying through (I'll explain all that later).
So with full stomachs, it was time to head to Soldier Field. Now, with all our various travels to that point since we had landed at O'Hare (at the hotel, at the Sears Tower, on the L, and on most downtown streets), it was certainly not appearing like we'd have a strong home crowd...and upon our arrival to the stadium, our fears were looking justified. Outside the stadium (and for the first hour or so after the gates opened), it appeared Honduran fans would outnumber US fans 4-to-1...ESPN would use that ratio in their articles (I think that had a lot to do with the US Soccer Federation advising American fans to wear red (Honduras is blue and white), though there aren't really any jerseys or anything for the US team that are red (white home jerseys, navy away), though the ratio was really less than 2-to-1 (more like 60/40). US fans made up approx. 90% of the lower bowl and held large pockets in the 2nd tier, as well as a few in the upper tier. I have to say, this was one of the loudest crowds I've seen at a match---55,647 (second largest crowd ever for a World Cup qualifier on US soil) that easily sounded like a full 50,000 fans rooting for their own country (when, in reality, it was only half that many). The Honduran fans went nuts with their early goal (5 mins. into the game), though the US fans were equally as loud (if not louder) on Donovan's PK goal late in the first half, and nearly blew the roof off the place (so to speak, obviously) on Bocanegra's 2nd half game-winner. I'll post another entry with details on the game, but I'll just say it was a solid game from the Americans, though there is plenty to discuss. Oh yeah, it was 47 degrees out just before gametime.
Anyway, we got to O'Hare, checked into our hotel, and prepared to head downtown. Jeff (brother) decided to leave his sweatshirt at the hotel, I didn't even pack and long sleeves (the weather forecast was for 70s and 80s both days), and we both quickly regretted those decisions. We found our way to the Blue Line, found out there was track work going on all weekend, and hopped on a shuttle bus that didn't really move in (what appeared to me all weekend) Chicago's always-jammed traffic. At the second stop, Jeff said he knew where another L line was, so we hopped off...mistake #2 on our part. After about 40 mins. of wandering around various neighborhoods, we stumbled upon the Red Line and made our way downtown to the Sears Tower.
If you ever go to Chicago, a trip to the top of the Sears Tower (or Willis Tower, or whatever they're calling it at that time) is definitely a must-do activity. Even on a hazy day like we had, the views from the tallest building in the country are INCREDIBLE. Though our views of Wrigley Field, US Cellular Park, O'Hare, and Midway were either partially or completely obstructed by the hazy cloudiness (Soccer Junkie also happens to be a stadium and travel/airport junkie), the views of the lakefront, John Hancock Building, the rest of downtown, and the surrounding area is nearly indescribable. An absolutely breath-taking experience.
With only a couple of hours left to kill until it was time to get over to Soldier Field, we decided to head off to experience one of the great NYC vs. Chicago competitions/controversies--- thin crust vs. deep dish pizza. Having been born and raised on the Jersey Shore, just an hour from the East Coast home of thin crust, I was obviously partial going in. That said, we found a real nice place that offered "stuffed" deep dish, which was actually quite delicious...but there was one glaring problem---pizza is not meant to be eaten with a fork and knife. Pizza was, is, and always will be a finger food, meant to be eaten in the "fold and go" method. Just for that, this pizza ended up on the list of pictures from our trip that include a certain finger flying through (I'll explain all that later).
So with full stomachs, it was time to head to Soldier Field. Now, with all our various travels to that point since we had landed at O'Hare (at the hotel, at the Sears Tower, on the L, and on most downtown streets), it was certainly not appearing like we'd have a strong home crowd...and upon our arrival to the stadium, our fears were looking justified. Outside the stadium (and for the first hour or so after the gates opened), it appeared Honduran fans would outnumber US fans 4-to-1...ESPN would use that ratio in their articles (I think that had a lot to do with the US Soccer Federation advising American fans to wear red (Honduras is blue and white), though there aren't really any jerseys or anything for the US team that are red (white home jerseys, navy away), though the ratio was really less than 2-to-1 (more like 60/40). US fans made up approx. 90% of the lower bowl and held large pockets in the 2nd tier, as well as a few in the upper tier. I have to say, this was one of the loudest crowds I've seen at a match---55,647 (second largest crowd ever for a World Cup qualifier on US soil) that easily sounded like a full 50,000 fans rooting for their own country (when, in reality, it was only half that many). The Honduran fans went nuts with their early goal (5 mins. into the game), though the US fans were equally as loud (if not louder) on Donovan's PK goal late in the first half, and nearly blew the roof off the place (so to speak, obviously) on Bocanegra's 2nd half game-winner. I'll post another entry with details on the game, but I'll just say it was a solid game from the Americans, though there is plenty to discuss. Oh yeah, it was 47 degrees out just before gametime.
As for Soldier Field, it is an absolutely beautiful stadium, definitely in the top 10 (I'd have to really do some thinking to see if it gets into the top 5) of my favorite stadiums. The exterior is hit-or-miss---the original colonnades are striking and classy, but the upper seating bowl looks like a UFO from the east and west sides (the sideline sides) and just looks plain weird from the north and south (end zones), where there's a break in the upper tier (but the sides don't really transition into each other). Once inside, though, this place is a work of art. The outermost concourses feature a history of the Bears, including a wall with the name of every player to wear a Bears uniform (organized by the year they joined the team). All seats are easily accessible, regardless of whether you're sitting in the lower tier (which is very small for an NFL stadium), the 200-level mezzanine, or the upper tier (where the majority of the seats are located). Concessions are plentiful and didn't appear to have long lines, even though the stadium was nearly full (55,600+ in a 61,500-seat facility). After filling up on pizza prior to the game, I didn't try anything from the concessions, so I can't speak for their quality...but the beer guy came by every 5 minutes or so, which is always appreciated in a stadium (especially for football or soccer games).
Anyway, after the game, we began a two-hour trek back to the hotel. Trying to find a cab after the game...yeah, that was a nearly laughable task. Of course, right as we were giving up on the cab and starting to head towards the L, we finally found one. A great day, but one of the longest in my life --- roughly 22 hours on about 3-3 1/2 hours of sleep. Oddly enough, I found myself awake for about 15 mins. at 4:30 in the morning...for absolutely no reason at all.
Sunday was another action-packed day (and set up to be another rather long one), with an early breakfast at IHOP (complete with stuffed French Toast---stuffed with "barbarian cream" as our waitress put it) before check out. Another long trip downtown (we stayed on the Blue Line shuttle bus this time), and we grabbed some obligatory tourist pictures along the river. Our next stop, Millenium Park, was one of the most interesting outdoor spaces I've ever seen: there's a large amphitheatre with an interesting looking soundshell and steel spider-web over the seating areas, a large bean-looking sculpture (which is mirrored and has some of the weirdest reflections when viewed from underneath), a winding bridge, and two towers made of these bricks that project video from within (of people's faces---water then shoots from the mouths of these people). From there, it was on to a short walk along the lakefront (again, we weren't expecting it to be so cold), then we decided to start heading back towards Michigan Ave. to figure out lunch and the rest of the day. Jeff had been pushing Jimmy John's for lunch, but the timing was just not working out. We ended up hopping a shuttle back to O'Hare (good thing we did considering the traffic), and grabbed a bite to eat at the airport.
The flights home were uneventful---a short flight to Detroit, a quick tram trip to the clear opposite end of the mile-long terminal, then another relatively short flight into Philadelphia. Interesting to see the transition from Northwest to Delta as it goes---one flight was on a Delta-livery plane, the other on a Northwest, and the magazines were still noting changes for those who were used to Northwest's offerings (Delta offers slightly different beverage options, etc).
All in all, a great trip---I hope to update this post with pictures and videos as I finish getting them uploaded onto my computer!
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