So in a nut shell so far I had a pretty good skeleton of an itinerary and was very excited about discovering what adventures and experiences would create the rest of the body. There was still a little bit of planning required for the little stops in between the three star attractions of the trip. Laura used her extensive personal travel experience and sorted out my accommodation in Miami and Los Angeles at the Crown International. These three nights would be the fanciest comfort I would experience in my five weeks of travel. Can I just say that I would highly recommend these hotels to anyone. Their service and facilities were exceptional for the price; however the nicest hotel of the two was by far Los Angeles.
After splurging on these hotels and conscious of my budget, I decided that I would look for some kind of alternative to a hotel when staying in Chicago. After some research I discovered a brilliant website www.airbnb.com and here I found all kinds of accommodation in pretty much every corner of the globe. This site is where people can advertise a room for rent by the night usually in their own home. These can range from sleeping on someone’s couch for $10 a night or a hotel room for $375 a night, something for every budget.
I found a lovely double room sharing a two bedroom apartment with a young aspiring artist and I suspect entrepreneur in the making. The room looked very cute and comfortable; it was close to the train line and apparently located in the 20th precinct of Chicago, supposedly the safest. It also backed onto the very trendy and lively Clark Street. The room was only $55 per night so I was more than happy to risk the potential of a little discomfort for that price so I booked it. I would highly recommend this site to anyone working on a budget and wanting to get a more personal glimpse into the lives of the locals.
Next was what to do when I got to Chicago. I decided not to book any tours until I arrived there but to be aware of what the times and locations were. One tour in particular was definitely on my list and that was the architecture river tour. This is a 90 minute boat cruise which was supposed to be excellent and only $35 (http://www.architecture.org). One of my associates at work had talked highly about it and strongly recommended that I do it. There were a few other tours I was interested in as well but didn’t know what to expect when I got there so I just made a few mental notes.
Chicago is also renowned for its live Broadway shows and entertainment, so of course I looked into this only to discover that there wasn’t anything I wanted to see on those dates. Unperturbed I then turned to the Arts which again Chicago is renowned for. I discovered that they had The Art Institute of Chicago Museum (http://www.artic.edu) for just $18 per person this was also set to be a sure favourite on my to do list in Chicago.
Finally I felt pretty confident that I had covered more than enough to ensure a smooth and easy journey over the course of my five weeks away. There really is something very special about knowing everything is in order and going to work out just fine.
Until Next time,
Janie xo
