Chicago, hmmmmm...

Chicago. I don't really know what I expected from the Windy City but I found it (dare I say) a bit boring *gasp*!

Speaking of wind, did you know that Chicago is not called the Windy City because of the actual wind (although it has been blowing a gale here)? No, it's not. It actually got that term back in the late 1800's because the of the politicians here all being full of hot air hahaha. There, see, you learnt something new today!

Anyway, the highlight of Chicago for me was a chance to see the Harpo Studios. Boring as that may be for many of you it was enough for me to just be there and walk around. It didn't hurt that we also caught Lady Gaga as she was leaving that morning's taping! It was a shame that we didn't arrive earlier to maybe score a ticket to the show but, they're so impossibly hard to come by that I have to be content with the fact that I have just been.




I finally made it to Harpo Studios!

 


Lady Gaga - she was super nice, took the time to sign autographs for all who were waiting and even
spoke to one girl's boyfriend on the phone! She spun out when we said we were from Australia
and said she would be back soon.

 
The weekend was filled with us seeing all the major sites including Sears Tower, Millenium Park, Navy Pier and Soldier Field. We walked up and down State Street and the Magnificent Mile (found my credit card again, damn it!) and we even took the time to eat some of the traditional Deep Dish Pizza that Chicago is famous for.

Coming to Chicago both our suitcases were already overweight so we've had to invest in another carry-on suitcase to get our things from city to city as well as handbag for me to carry the essential items! I tell you what, if my suitcase doesn't make it home this time around I will curse to no end, there are six glorious pairs of shoes awaiting the Perth pavement in there!

On a separate note, I guess I can't sign off without at least paying reference to the biggest news item around the world at the moment, Bin Laden's supposed death. I say supposed because there are a lot of sceptics out and about this morning wondering why the news stations haven't shown a picture of his body. They're also wondering why he was supposedly burried at sea just a few hours after being killed.

What makes all that more interesting is that this mission was purposely a "gun battle" and not as simple as just dropping a bomb. The news is saying that was done so that they would minimise civilian death and so that they could be sure that the deceased was in fact Bin Laden. If that is really the case, then someone must have a photo, right? So, why not release the photo and put everyone's mind at rest once and for all? As for the burried at sea part, really? Why?

Last night, as the news broke, the stations were frantic speculating as to how it happened and when. One of the news readers was actually jumping up and down, cheering, clapping and woo-hooing this historic day for the USA.

Obama's speech, I have to say, was perfect. He is so well spoken and, although I'm sure he does not write his own words, he delivers them so well. He spoke about how the mission had been going since August when they received intelligence as to Bin Laden's whereabouts. Then he said that on Friday, before he headed to the tornado ravaged city of Alabama, he signed off on the mission to locate and kill him. That happened on Saturday morning and it was announced here late Sunday night. The President made his speech at just after 11.30pm Eastern Time.

So, I guess it remains to be seen what will come of this development but I have to say that whilst I believe it is a positive that he is no longer a part of this human life, it also begs the question of just when the retaliation attacks will happen, and where.  Let's pray that it's not as disastrous as 9/11.

On that note, there's not really much else to report from the "second city" but tomorrow we're off to Memphis so, in the words of Paul Simon "I'm going to Graceland, Graceland, in Memphis Tennessee"...

Talk soon
Px