What is there to see in Chicago?
Anderson Japanese Gardens
These gardens are actually an hour out of Chicago in Rockford Illinois. We spent the early afternoon rained in under an Anderson Japanese Gardens gazebo. Talk about a beautiful place to be rained in at. This is a very peaceful location with meandering paths and lots of water.
The parking is on site and free. They also have a delicious looking restaurant in the Visitor Center with a nice green view. We purchased our tickets ahead of time. Check in is at the Visitor Center. There weren’t many people visiting when we went, which was nice.
This place is a great example of how things look grander in pictures. It’s beautiful, but small, we walked through the whole thing in about 15 minutes. It looks like a great place for events, and eating at the restaurant I mentioned earlier, but I would not drive out of my way to visit it…again…
Baha’i temple
We headed back to Chicago to see the Baha’i temple. There is a fantastic Visitor Center there with a video about the history and the mission of the Baha’i faith; which is to bring unity to the world.
The temple exterior is very complex and took many years to complete. In 1943 the exterior was finished, in 1952 the whole temple was finished and it all was dedicated in 1953. Everyone is able to enter the temple during visiting hours and the grounds are open to all.
Michigan Beach
Michigan Beach is just a five minute walk from the temple!
Tango Sur
We went to Tango Sur for dinner but we weren’t that hungry, so I don’t have a very detailed review…but the sweet empanadas were delicious and the flan was the best I’ve ever tasted.
Navy Pier
The last event of the day was Navy Pier. We parked right before the Pier in a parking garage…it was expensive! There are quite a few parking garages on the actual Pier as well. We walked down the north side of the Pier to the end and around a bit to the south side and found a spot to watch the fireworks! The shows are just a few days of the week, so make sure to check the schedule. This was a fantastic introduction day to Chicago.
