Chicago Recap

I can't believe I've been back in Oklahoma City for a week. The depression is starting to subside, slightly. Rather than boring everyone with a Chicago Trip The Weekend Part 3 post (Saturday night consisted of mainly bar hopping in areas north of downtown), I thought I would just compile a list of impressions and thoughts on the Windy City.

• Old Style beer is hard to find! The only bar I found the cheap Wisconsin beer and the supposed beer of the Chicago Cubs was at a place called Sluggers near Wrigley Field. Everyone gave me a hard time about wanting to drink such a shitty beer but I figured it was something I had to do while in Chicago.
• I was extremely surprised at how clean the city was. Not just in the touristy parts of the city but even in the neighborhoods. I was expecting a little more grime for a city of millions of people. I was never in really bad parts of town so maybe that was the reason for my perception. Next time I'll check out the south side.
• People from Chicago are friendly. Maybe it's the Midwestern attitude but everyone I encountered was very friendly and polite, with the exception of a couple pretentious queens the last night out at Roscoe's. I felt just at home with the people of Chicago as I would with the people of Oklahoma City, as friendliness goes, that's saying a lot.
• Chicago is casual. At least the places I went. I never felt out of place in shorts or jeans no matter where I was at, including the Terrace at Trump. Of course I'm sure there's exceptions to this rule but I went to some pretty fantastic places without having to worry about a dress code. Here a supposedly nice club in Bricktown has a dress code of no sneakers and jeans. Get over yourself OKC!
• My favorite destination in Chicago for drinks was a martini bar called Marty's. The place was very nice and modern, casual, with superb mixologists. Besides, how can you not love a place where the bartender says, "I'd rather be a shooter but drizzling is fine." He was making a chocolate martini at the time.
• I can hear Shiny Toy Guns in Chicago! One of my favorite bands that I hardly ever hear songs from in the clubs in Oklahoma City. I saw the video for "Rocketship" one of our nights out at Sidetrack and I requested anything Shiny Toy Guns at Big Chicks and got "Le Disko." Awesome.

Some shots of the last night out:

Old Style!!

Frozen drinks at Sidetrack after a long trek from Wrigley.

Drinking at Marty's.

At Big Chicks.

So long Chicago, you will be missed! Hopefully I can get back up there soon and see more of what the city has to offer. In the meantime I'll have the memory of great times with new and old friends...