Walking on air

I got up early. Really early this time. I was meeting a friend in Milwaukee, and she was only available early in the day. At 3.30, my cellphone started chirping to wake me up. I was out of the hotel just after 4. An hour and a half later, the Sun rose. It was a beautiful sunrise. I took a few photos. The traffic was light. Which was great for me. Since I needed to get to Milwaukee early, I took the interstate all the way.

After the short detour to Milwaukee, I was back in Chicago. Completing the circle. I was back were I started.
Almost 11 000 kilometers in three weeks. More than I ever expected. But the byways and detours was something that added a lot of kilometers. But they were well worth the ride. I wouldn't be without them. The GPS helped doing this. A lot. Ah! Modern technology! I was a bit concerned that I would go tired and would not be able to complete. Or just freak out and drive directly back to Chicago. But it has been surprisingly easy. Of course, twelve hours on the road some days has been tiring, so those days, I have been able to do nothing when arriving at my hotel for the night, other than dropping on the bed and falling asleep. Thus, the blog entries have not been so frequent as normal. And not as long. But I guess it is not that much of a problem.
It has been a fun roadtrip. I have seen a lot. A lot more than I have depicted or written about here. That would take too long to do. But I have the memories. When I and my friend spent three and a half weeks on the road on Greyhound buses 21 years ago, we also saw a lot and did a lot, but the photos were far too few to tell the whole story. But we also have the memories. And we still sometimes talk about them when we meet. I would of course wish I wasn't alone on this trip, but that is how it is. And I just have to accept that.
For my last nights in Chicago, I found a motel an hours drive NW of the city centre. It was not far from a train station. In Arlington Heights. Cheap and ok. I got to wash my clothes for the last time. That was needed. Didn't want to spend my last days in the US wearing dirty underwear...
I had planned to take the train to the city center. Don't like to drive in cities. Not even Oslo. And since the train station was only a short (less than an hour) walk away, I decided to park the car for the day.
21 years since the last time I was in central Chicago. One of the only things we (I and the friend I was traveling with at the time) we did, was to go up to skydeck on Sears Tower (or Willis Tower as it is called today). I knew I just had to do the same thing again.
I walked the 3 miles to the train station (I misunderstood which station was closest), only to find out I was 1 hour early. But not that I am complaining. I stood at the station waiting in the relative nice temperate air. Watching people walking about in the small center around the station. There had been a serious thunder storm the night before, so they were repairing some electrics on the line that had been fried. Thus, the train was 20 minutes late. In the end, it arrived, and I got on. I sat down beside a young woman. After we started driving, she picked up her phone and started talking to someone. Mostly "I am so f¤!"# tired. I am freaking out here! I just need money! And that is the only reason I am on this train! If I could afford a car, I would have driven, but now I am stuck on this train!" And so on. No a happy commuter, I can tell you that.
We arrived in Chicago OTC twenty minutes late. I wasn't in a hurry. So I didn't mind. I walked across a bridge, and there, on the right, the giant stood. Willis Tower. I want straight to the door for the trip to the Skydeck. After standing in line for security check. For buying the ticket, and then another for going on the elevators, it was finally my turn. The elevator accelerated, and I could feel the light g on my shoes. I had to pop my ears every 20 floors or so. The elevator was really moving. After just over a minute, we had zoomed the 412 meters to the top. I disembarked the elevator, and walked over to the windows. What a view! Love it!
After walking around the building, I found that they had added a new feature. Four glass boxes where you could stand, and look straight down to the street below. Like standing on air. I had to try that of course. The lines were , of course, long. But in the end, it was my turn. I dropped my backpack on the floor and stepped onto the glass. My brain was screaming "Nnnnnnnoooooooooo!", but I managed to overcome the natural reaction. And there I was. Staring between my feet. Straight down to the street below. More than 400 meters below me. Like walking on air. I may never have walked on sunshine, but now I can safely say I have been (almost) walking on air. My whole body was tingling. This was even better than the Arch in St. Louis. Or more precisely : A totally different feeling. And I loved them both.

Walking on air?

Not quite, but my brain thought so...

Looking up at the boxes way up there. 

After this, I was due for some chow. A street restaurant serving wonderful pasta was just what I needed. Street life gave me just the entertainment I needed to go with my meat-sauce pasta. A filling meal later, I decided to just walk the streets and enjoy watching people and the sights.

Wonderful pasta meal

I took the train home a bit earlier than I had planned. Guess I was starting to be full. Too much seen and experienced in three weeks. I walked back to the hotel from the train station, and turned on the TV. I was definitely getting into overload. But this was my last leg, so it was not too early.

Chicago seen from the train.

Afterthought

It has been an enjoyable trip. In a day or so, I will be on the flight home. This has been a different trip from most of my vacations lately. I felt I needed an "easy" vacation this time. And I guess it has been. No strange languages. No strange cultures to relate to. So I am guessing, this has been like a real vacation for me. It would have been boring if I didn't cover so much. See so much. Laying on a beach for three weeks? Not me. Maybe when I'm old and gray.
Stats : 11 000 km, 16 states, 15 hotels, 11 blog entries, 3 observatories, 2 national monuments, 1 alligator bite, 0 McDonalds meals. That's about it. Hope you enjoyed the ride as much as I did.