Chicago: the land of the Cubs, deep-dish pizza, and lots of butterfly tattoos. Seriously, I’ve never seen so many butterfly tattoos in my life. Oh but I love you! This was my first time in Chicago and I enjoyed every second of my visit. It was a perfect storm (pun intended) of amazing weather, delicious food, great company, and FUN. Don’t you just love when that happens?

We spent 3 full days in the city: 2 days exploring and 1 at Lollapalooza (Saturday). I’ll share our Lolla adventure in another post, but our days exploring were PACKED with activities that really gave us a taste of the city. We wandered through Wicker Park, went to a Cubs game at Wrigley Field (magical, I tell you), watched a show at Second City comedy club (SO FUNNY), did the architecture boat tour on the river that flows through downtown (I couldn’t recommend this more!!), took photos at the infamous Bean, and ate deep-dish pizza not once BUT TWICE.

^^The Architecture Boat Tour is a great way to learn about the city and it’s history. I can’t remember the last time I learned so much?

^^Two of my travel companions included my brother, Jake (left), and cousin, Spencer (right). Ladies, they’re single! Hit em up.

^^Wicker Park was such a beautiful neighborhood with the most quaint and well-manicured housing. Can I move in?

^^We randomly came across Fish Bar for a late afternoon snack and it ended up being one of our favorite meals. Salmon tartare, shrimp tacos, chowder, and tater tots. Give me all of that again.

^^Of course my main boo was there too.

^^We loved Heritage General Store, a coffee and bike shop with a whole lotta character. Marcus Mumford rented a few bikes from there just before we walked in. UGHS.

^^Obligatory selfies at the Bean in Millenium Park!

^^Obligatory Bud Light at Wrigley Field for the Cubs vs Dodgers game? We almost caught a few foul balls and it was so funny hearing the Chicago fans taunt the opposing players on the field. So much shit-talking happened and I loved every minute of it.

^^We had the Doughnut Vault for breakfast one morning and if I didn’t say they were mouthwatering bites of heaven, I’d be lying. Not proud of this moment.

^^Chicago has a great (and cheap!) bike loan system in downtown that makes it real easy to get around the city.

^^View from the Architecture Tour. Told you it was fantastic.

^^And a blurry pic of deep-dish pizza from Lou Malnati’s because seriously, who takes a clear pic of deep-dish when it’s been cooking for an hour and comes out to your table like a ray of sunshine from the heavens and smelling like pure butter and cheese? I sure as heck don’t.

Now, a few places we visited and loved:
Birchwood Kitchen for breakfast/lunch (I had an amazing greek yogurt parfait and the boys had sandwiches they raved about)
Wormhole Coffee for nostalgic decor and delicious iced chai
Penelope’s, a great men’s and women’s store, with an array of awesome brands like Ace & Jig and APC
Heritage General Store for pour-over coffee and tea, plus an awesome selection of bike gear
Fish Bar for yummy shrimp tacos, oysters, and fresh fish
Crosbys Kitchen for delicious pre-Cubs game fare
Doughnut Vault for heart attacks and the like
Rooftop at The Wit Hotel for afternoon snacks and drinks
Lou Malnati’s and Pizzeria Uno for deep-dish pizza
RPM for late-night Italian and some amazing cannolis