The second Destination City on a dream Amtrak train trip covering 25 states on 6 Amtrak Long Distance Trains on 7,638 rail miles by a 74 year old dad, Carl Morrison, and 42 year old son, Matthew Morrison.

The first "L", the Chicago and South Side Rapid Transit Railroad, began revenue service on June 6, 1892, when a steam locomotive pulling four wooden coaches carrying over a couple of dozen people departed the 39th Street station and arrived at the Congress Street Terminal 14 minutes later, over tracks that are still in use by the Green Line.

The Chicago "L" (short for "elevated") is the rapid transit system serving the city of Chicago and some of its surrounding suburbs in the U.S. state of Illinois. It is operated by the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA). It is the fourth largest rapid transit system in the United States in terms of total route length, at 102.8 miles long.

The "L" consists of eight rapid transit lines laid out in a spoke–hub distribution paradigm focusing transit towards the Loop. Although the "L" gained its name because large parts of the system are elevated, portions of the network are also in subway tunnels, at grade level, or open cut.

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California Zephyr, Capitol Limited, Cardinal, City of New Orleans, Empire Builder, Hiawatha, Hoosier State, Illinois Service, Lake Shore Limited, Michigan Services, Missouri River Runner, Southwest Chief, and Texas Eagle.

Divvy is a bicycle sharing system located in the City of Chicago operated by Motivate for the Chicago Department of Transportation. It operates with 5837 bicycles at 576 stations in an area bounded by 75th Street on the south, Touhy Avenue on the north, Lake Michigan on the east, and Pulaski Road on the west. 

The name Divvy is a playful reference to sharing (“divvy it up”). Divvy’s light-blue color palette and six-pointed stars evoke the Chicago flag. The double Vs in the Divvy logo refer to the shared-lane markers painted on bike lanes throughout the city, and are a nod to how the city prioritizes bike safety, paving the way for new riders

The bicycles are utility bicycles with a unisex step-through frame that provides a lower center of gravity and ease of access to a wide range of heights. All bikes are painted "Chicago blue", with the exception of one "unicorn bike": a bright red bike, dubbed #Divvyred.  Divvy bikes have three speeds, a bell, and a front rack.

This 568-foot tall skyscraper is the tallest church building in the world. It serves as a Neo-Gothic monument to the Methodists’ commitment to the Loop at a time when pressure was great to move to the suburbs. It is home to the First United Methodist Church of Chicago, the oldest congregation in the city. The tower houses the "Sky Chapel" at its highest level, a sanctuary on the ground floor and office space on the floors in between.

The building houses three sanctuaries:

    Sanctuary 1 is four stories tall on the ground floor with seating available for 1,000 people.
    Sanctuary 2 is also known as the "Dixon Chapel" and is on the second floor.
    Sanctuary 3 also known as the "Sky Chapel" is the smallest sanctuary and is situated at the base of the steeple with seating for 30 people.

The congregation was founded in 1831 and built a log cabin on the north bank of the Chicago River in 1834. In 1838, it moved the cabin across the river to the corner of Washington and Clark Streets. (depicted in a satined glass window above) The current structure was completed after a debate within the congregation whether the church should remain in central Chicago or sell its valuable property and relocate to the growing suburban areas.

Bob knew of a tour to the chapel after Sunday service which we enjoyed immensely.



Luke 42:19 is the basis of the altar artwork.






All stained glass windows are florescent lights and white box behind them, none have outside light behind them.



They have a PC Code on all the windows with the history of the Bible or of the Church as the basis.



Some artwork on the windows are of life in the 50s.





Bob thought the lady with a scarf looked like his mom in the 50s.  We both noted the absence of cars was not characteristic of the 50s.





Some things you never forget how to do.  Some non-farmers think that if it has horns it is a bull, but trust me this is a cow and has the plumbing to prove it.



I noticed that the pupil of the cow's eye was the Picasso sculpture.



Cloud Gate but many call it The Bean



Bob took a photo of Matt and me starting our photo shoot of The Bean.  Hopefully my decades-old suede and leather JanSport backpack does not look like it contains valuables.



Everyone wants a self-portrait in or of the Bean.























Chicago's Theater District

As it turned out, Bob had us board the "L" within the "Loop" so we need not change trains to get a nice sampling of the train system.  Additionally, it was perfect for photos because it involved 90 degree turns where I could photograph the front of our own train as well as other approaching trains.  Of course, Bob said, "I planned it this way!"