When I saw that Chicago had hit my schedule, I was absolutely over the moon! I have had the opportunity to do a fairly large amount of travel over the course of my life (even more now!) and there are just a very few great cities of our country that are still needing checks next their names on my bucket list…..New Orleans, Seattle, Orlando (for obvious reasons) and Chicago. I had been looking forward to visiting the Windy City for some time.

When I got my rooming information, I noticed an interesting addition to the city name….Itasca….what? Where in the world is that!?!? Dang! I was so close! While I am excited to go anywhere and everywhere, Chicago just happened to be a city about which I was really excited….until we actually landed. I had the incredibly rare opportunity to travel with a co-worker on this particular trip and while we were waiting for her luggage, CNN was on every TV in baggage claim showing the riots and protests that were going on downtown due to the NATO conferences that were taking place that weekend. When I saw law enforcement turn the fire hydrants on the crowds, suddenly Itasca didn’t seem so bad after all….

From time to time in my travels, I am lucky enough to receive little perks from the hotels at which we stay. Sometimes it is a fabulous dessert display patiently waiting for me on a desk upon check-in, other times a handwritten note from the hotel staff or perhaps a small gift (with your  little straw cowboy hat, I’m looking at you Dallas). What this particular property had waiting for me was stunning…yes there was a cheese plate and Voss water, but I almost missed it upon entering my 1200 sq ft suite. I am pretty sure that I have never been in a hotel room that big, let alone get to stay in one!

As I explored room by room in this incredible space I was blown away… massive bedroom, two couches, a chaise lounge, massive desk and sitting area, 3 TVs, dining table for 6, wet bar, a bathroom that would make many studio apartments sigh with jealousy but the biggest feature of the corner room was the amazing windows in every direction offering the most incredibly expansive views that left me breathless. Those who have traveled to the mid-west know what I am talking about when I say that there was nothing but green in every direction.  It was AMAZING!

This happened to be a very brief trip and our turn-around time was minimal so we didn’t have a ton of opportunity to do a whole lot of site seeing. We did, however, manage to make it to a Steak House that is fairly well known in that part of the world: Shula’s, yes, as in Coach Don Shula. Aside from delectable cuts of meat that they actually wheel over to your table so that you can see and select your cut of beef, from a presentation stand point, I had never ordered off a football before….the menu was a football…  amazing!

Gorgeous suite, great steaks, green trees in every direction, footballs for menus and not getting hosed down by a fire hydrant in the middle of the Magnificent Mile…..Itasca turned out to be not too bad of a place to hang out…. plus, downtown Chicago is coming….in the very near future 😉