It ain't over till it's over

chicago,
originally uploaded by dcodez.

I think one of the best things about having out-of-town friends come to stay is that you get to mix things up a bit. You get to show them places that you like, as well as trying out new places that you both get to discover. Courts and Ell have been such wonderfully brave house guests, gleefully allowing me to drag them across the Windy City in search of fun places to write home about.

Last night we intended on going to the Signature Room on the 96th floor of the Hancock building, where the views from the ladies toilets are the best in town. Honestly. [And note that I did say from the ladies room, and not in the ladies room]. But when we got there, the line-up for the elevators stretched nearly into the lobby, so it just wasn't worth our wait. My lovely friend Jenn came along too and recommended NoMi at the Park Hyatt Hotel, arguably the very best cocktail lounge/restaurant combo in town.

So off we trudged to the shiny and fabulous Hotel, wiggling in the door in our girly dresses and heels (yes, I squished my fat foot into heels for the first time last night - and consequently am back to hobbling in Doc Martens today). Straight up in the elevator to NoMi with no wait necessary, we ordered Cosmobellinis (a blend of my two favourite cocktails du jour) and Courts had a mojito which she declared to be delicious. Given that we were ravenous, the poor waiter had a hard time keeping up with us to refill our nibblies bowl. After two cocktails (and a civilised fight that broke out when Jenn decided to pay), we conceded defeat but wouldn't be silenced until she agreed to join us at Bin36 for dinner.

I love Bin36 cause it's a funky yet very elegant wine bar and restaurant right next to the House of Blues. It's menu is contemporary and the staff are all really educated about the wines that they recommend pairing with the foods. But the girls and I all decided to have flights with our meal. I had a champagne flight, where I was given 3 different champagnes and one rose, and each glass sits atop its own little circular coaster with a description about that wine's characteristics. Presumably this is so you can feel like an educated alcoholic hehe. But in any case, the food and champagne were simply delicious and we were well taken care of.

Jenn left us at that point and the girls and I jumped in a cab to head to Buddy Guy's, a blues bar that the boys at work have been recommending to me for weeks. The bar is on a side of town that I have not been to before and, though I knew the area, I didn't know what to expect of the bar. But my god it was awesome. The sheer talent of the musicians was infectious and the singer was so powerful. She belted out numbers so soulfully, a la Aretha Franklin and her band played along skilfully and I couldn't work out whether the crowd was fuelling the band, or the other way around. I had a wonderful time and I can't wait to go back. My colleague told me that Monday is Open Mike Night, where amateurs and wannabes can get up and jam with a 'professional' band to gain confidence and skills. He did say that no one he's seen has been crap, so obviously you've got to come along with some degree of ability, for which I'm sure the audience is grateful!

But I fell into bed at 2am and on the bus this morning, I somehow calculated that I have had 9 hours sleep in 2 days. How I have typed any of this blog post in complete sentences is beyond me. All that said, I would not have had this week any other way. It has been such a joy to see the girls again and to show them this beautiful City. And fortunately I've also seen some new things that I can share with the next lot of house guests...whoever they might be.