Oh my God what aches and pains. Age creeps up and does not pardon sleeping rough anymore, though it does allow vast amounts of ‘Corona’ and whatever local brews we had last night. After some limbering exercises (involving the Gents toilet in Newark, not to be recommended) we finally got through the gate and onto our commuter flight to Chicago full of business people tapping on their laptops or poking their Blackberrys, the guy beside me was preparing some presentation and was using the most unintelligible managementspeak gobbledygook that I’ve seen in a while, I was tempted to whip out my laptop and show him photos of last night. We got to the car–rental desk and this is where we experienced another American phenomena – the willingness to help. We had problems trying to pay for the car, the world of credit cards, technology and so forth but the woman behind the desk (Alicia at National Car rental, Chicago O’Hare) took time and patience and made the effort to make sure we left with car (+GPS) after about an hour of toing and froing. We set off to find the hotel using ‘Betty’ – the GPS and car. But I put in the wrong address and we lost about half an hour. We found the hotel, (as recommended by Jim Dowd) and got set up. Willy was wrecked and crashed out, I’m still psyched so I headed out for a stroll and found a sports bar (Time Out on LeGrange, Countryside, Chicago) and chugged a few quick pints of Miller genuine, it was quiet, lunchtime and the mechanics from the garage across the road were having lunch, t.v. screens everywhere, great music and a charming barmaid.
We drove into LeGrange and took a curios two deck commuter train into Chicago, the ticket inspector didn’t ask us for tickets even though he knew we got on without them (the ticket office being closed) – do we look so foreign? are they being nice again? So we strolled around Chicago for a few hours, great big buildings, people finishing work, the overhead tram system, the swing bridges. We met two young Irish girls who were trying to sign people up to sponsor a child in Africa, I pointed out that we were the people who needed sponsoring. Willy called the first bar so we ended up in ‘Stocks and Blonds’ a great after work place buzzing with chat along the bar and at the high tables. We ordered some burgers (wonderful) and a few pints of ‘Great Lakes’ a type of local ale with a good punch. Some more walking around and a few more bars ‘The Monk’ to try ‘Honkers’ another potent ale. It was time to head back out to the hotel, about a half an hour train ride (speakin’ ‘American already’). We had decided to go bowling as there was a place right beside the hotel and so we ended up in ‘Laners’, the Thursday league was just ending so we got a lane far from the prying eyes of the locals, who seem to have been born bowling. We got talking to the woman behind the counter so she was very curious as to the European standard of bowling, especially eying the two freaks in front of her. Pitchers of beer were acquired, a very civilized practice I must admit and bowling commenced. Suffice to say, we will not make the Olympic team but it was a great nights entertainment and as usual we had a chance to exchange pleasantries with the locals. As the evening wore on more and more young people turned up to bowl and they had some very unorthodox styles but they worked. The people beside us would not have looked out place in ‘Bowling for Colombine’.
We drove into LeGrange and took a curios two deck commuter train into Chicago, the ticket inspector didn’t ask us for tickets even though he knew we got on without them (the ticket office being closed) – do we look so foreign? are they being nice again? So we strolled around Chicago for a few hours, great big buildings, people finishing work, the overhead tram system, the swing bridges. We met two young Irish girls who were trying to sign people up to sponsor a child in Africa, I pointed out that we were the people who needed sponsoring. Willy called the first bar so we ended up in ‘Stocks and Blonds’ a great after work place buzzing with chat along the bar and at the high tables. We ordered some burgers (wonderful) and a few pints of ‘Great Lakes’ a type of local ale with a good punch. Some more walking around and a few more bars ‘The Monk’ to try ‘Honkers’ another potent ale. It was time to head back out to the hotel, about a half an hour train ride (speakin’ ‘American already’). We had decided to go bowling as there was a place right beside the hotel and so we ended up in ‘Laners’, the Thursday league was just ending so we got a lane far from the prying eyes of the locals, who seem to have been born bowling. We got talking to the woman behind the counter so she was very curious as to the European standard of bowling, especially eying the two freaks in front of her. Pitchers of beer were acquired, a very civilized practice I must admit and bowling commenced. Suffice to say, we will not make the Olympic team but it was a great nights entertainment and as usual we had a chance to exchange pleasantries with the locals. As the evening wore on more and more young people turned up to bowl and they had some very unorthodox styles but they worked. The people beside us would not have looked out place in ‘Bowling for Colombine’.
1 comentario:
Well Jump´n JESUS! Hell of a blogspot. Remarkable, hence my remark.
Enjoy, Boyz.
Trigger
Publicar un comentario