Chicago Weekend :)

It has become sort of an annual tradition to see my friend Puja on (or around) her birthday. We've been super close friends since 7th grade and have stayed in close touch since graduation from high school and my family's move out of WI. This year it was my turn to make the trek to see her (she came to visit me at our new house last year!). Since I was still living in my apartment and taking the nurse assistant class it was easy for me to catch the Megabus from AA to Chicago! I jumped on the bus on Friday afternoon and rolled into chi-town around 9 that night. Here's a pic of my fancy chariot...

And in case you had any doubts...yes I did sit on the top. The ride was incredibly painless and I got to finish my first book on my kindle! My ticket wasn't $1, but it was pretty darn cheap and totally worth not driving/paying the gas.  

Puja met me at Union station and then we walked to the El station to ride it back to her apartment. We spent the evening reminiscing on old high school memories and all the good times we had. Crazy to think those days were so long ago now! 

Saturday morning we got up and rode back downtown to do some serious shopping. We stopped at Tory Burch to use a gift certificate burning a hole in Puja's pocket (and who doesn't need another pair of shoes??). Funniest moment of the trip was probably when the sales girl asked if we lived in the states...Really? hahaha. Then we made our way down Michigan Ave to H&M (where we tried on LOTS of clothes and bought quite a few too). Then it was time for lunch (shopping works up an appetite!). We stopped in WaterTower Place Mall at "WOW BAO;" it's an awesome thai inspired fast food restaurant known for their bao-these little dough wrapped pockets of chicken etc. So I had one of those, a teriyaki rice bowl and some pomegranate lemonade. Yum.

The mall, which just so happens to be 7 stories tall, was calling our name so we decided to explore. First stop was the Godiva chocolate store where I joined the best free rewards club known to man, well probably just woman.  Then we hit the 40% sale at The Limited and I got a new dress for one of the Navy Balls this summer and a nice top to go with a suit (interviews in my future...fingers crossed!). On the way back down the 7 stories of escalators I found this guy made out of LEGO. And let's face it, being part of my family you just can't pass up anything LEGO.

Back out on Michigan Ave we headed for Nordstrom's Rack and both found some great stuff (a new pair of Rainbows for summer :-). Then we dragged our shopping bags back to her apartment to chill out for a little while. I had plans to meet up with some summer work friends for a drink so I got ready and headed down the street to meet up with them at Paddy Longs. They're known for their beer and bacon-and both were incredible.

Then I came back to the apartment to watch a chick flick (He's Just Not that Into You) and fall asleep on the couch before crawling in bed. Sunday we got up and took the 30-ish minute walk to the Lincoln Park Zoo and saw a ton of furry friends.

My favorite was the 6-month old gibbon monkey you can see on the bottom right corner. After the zoo we walked out and took this pic...where you can just barely see my impending sunburn. I always forget to wear sunscreen the first day that I need to (and my shoulders are still peeling from the UV rays...)

We took our only cab of the weekend to get to another thai restaurant for lunch before we headed back to the apartment to pack up and head back to Union station. It was a brief tres amigos reunion and then I was back on the bus the moment the rain hit (phew!). It was an awesome weekend and I'm so glad I got to get down to Chicago for a reunion weekend :)