Day 734: London to Detroit to Chicago

After 4 months of working at Bill Gosling we decided to leave and go do some exploring with the money we had earned. We presumed since Bill Gosling has a high turn over that us leaving wouldn’t be a big thing. We were touched how many individuals made an effort to say bye and pass on their email address to keep in touch.Wearing the call centre headsets for the last time!

It was strange leaving Emmalines house after staying there for a while but we were excited to get back on the road. Our last day in London consisted of boring jobs like printing visas and packing but we also had one cinema ticket to use.

On the 1st December we finished packing up our room at Emmalines place. After not being on the move for a while we had lost our touch in bag packing which resulted in cramming items into our bag with the zip nicely strained. It was ever so weird leaving Emmalines house and slightly depressing, good byes are never pleasant. Our last night with Emmaline, a fabulous host!

Emmaline very kindly gave us a lift in her car to the coach station. We then boarded the bus at 10.50am, luckily we were able to sit together. The coach journey was with greyhound, the seats cost approx $23 CAD each. The journey to Detroit was lovely what with it being a sunny day and pretty scenery. The only downside being the smell from the toilet. Nevertheless we crossed the border control without any issues and set off to stay in another air bnb house, our host named Joseph.

Once we were off the coach we searched for a public bus to try and get a fraction nearer to where we were staying. An hour later we managed to get on the bus (costing $1.50 USD each) juggling around our bags as to avoid them swinging into some poor local. Twenty minutes later we were off the bus and 2 miles away from the house. We were told by the US border control security the further from town you stay the tougher the area. With that information in mind we hot footed it to our accommodation.

On arrival at Joseph’s house we discovered nobody was in (perfect luck) so we waited on his door step expectantly. We were there for a good 10 minutes which resulted in us collecting his post for him. A few moments later a lady appeared next door who turned out to be Joseph’s wife. She let us in and gave us a tour of the house, also advising us not to go out after dark. Two girls were also staying in the house with us, the hosts comment understandably made the girls worry about the well being of their car! Our room was pleasant with plenty of room and a comfortable bed. Despite being out of the city the room was $40 USD for one night.

As we didn’t want to go out in the dark and walk aimlessly looking for a supermarket we ordered in. Despite the food being 2 hours late we were happily fed and watered for the night and certainly ready to go to sleep! Later in the evening we managed to meet Joseph himself. He was a nice man who enjoyed talking about his 5 children, his own travel experiences and his views on Donald Trump!

After sleeping soundly for a good 10 hours we woke up fresh and excited for another day ahead. Our next coach wasn’t until 2pm but Joseph had kindly told us we could check out whenever we wanted.

We planned to leave the room at 12pm. Having a lazy morning was all fun and games until John discovered the bus was at 12.15pm. We managed to do a 10 minute walk with one minute to spare with 10kg on our backs and a wheeled suitcase in our hands. Nevertheless we made it in time and managed to get a seat – costing $1.50 USD each.

A few random snaps of Detroit on route to the bus terminal

Our next trip, Detroit to Chicago was with Mega Bus – we preferred Mega bus as they leave on time and have reserved seating. We were seat 3 and 4, little did we know we had front seats – a prime view! The tickets cost about $11 USD including booking and reservation fee.

By 2pm we were on route to Chicago and nicely fed with a sandwich John managed to find for $16 USD total. Although the weather was chilly it was lovely and sunny – a good day to watch the scenery pass us. On the coach on the way to Chicago

By 4.30pm we stopped at a rest station to stretch our legs and use the toilets or ‘washrooms’ as they call it. John spotted a handbag for sale in the shop, which turned out to be a fashionable gun carrier! The label quoted “keep calm and carry weapons” – no thank you!

We arrived in Chicago around 7pm (we dropped a hour, now 5 behind the UK) the city was clean, plenty of people about (not gangsters) and the general feel of the place was great. Despite Chicago also being known for being a little on the rough side we wouldn’t of known whatsoever. We are staying a few blocks from the University so there are plenty of students walking around. Lovely views from the sun setting as we arrived in Chicago

We reached our accommodation, an apartment owned by a man called Juan. We already knew before we arrived that Juan wouldn’t be in the apartment when we got there but we knew where the key was etc prior to arrival. We were greeted by a loveable house cat who seemed to love fuss. The apartment was lovely and clean, our room a little small but we were only planning to sleep in there and be out for the day. A furry friend for the next 5 days

The following day we went exploring. We did a lot of walking but we managed to see a lot. We were very lucky with the weather too as it wasn’t too cold and the sun was shining all day – we even got too hot at one point! Chicago City Centre

By 1pm we managed to stop for some lunch at a convenience store where we got a packed lunch for $9 USD total. By 3.45pm we had walked 11km so we enjoyed a 20 minute flop on the sofa we found in a mall!

After walking around for a little bit longer to see all the Christmas lights lit up in the dark we eventually headed home. As soon as we realised we had walked a total of 20km we understood why our feet were throbbing. We had a fantastic day and Chicago is definitely one of our favourite cities, plenty to do, see and explore.

The ”Bean’ sculpture, full name ‘Cloud Gate’ that was designed to look like liquid mercury! The City by night! & Johns furry friend enjoying a back rub

The following day we bought a one day travel card for unlimited use throughout the day. The card cost $10 USD each. First things first we headed for Chicago’s free zoo. We were a little sceptical to if the zoo was free or not but only one way to find out. We caught the train there and only had to walk for ten minutes or so before we arrived at the zoo.

The zoo was indeed free and also very impressive, they had tigers, snow leopards, monkeys, gorillas, camels, kangaroos and a variety of birds including penguins. Luckily the zoo was quiet as it was a Monday and the animals were all very active. Admittedly we did expect the zoo to be full of sheep and equally not so exciting animals but we were pleasantly surprised.

After a couple of hours at the zoo we then went to visit the theatre and the alley where the famous criminal John Dillinger was shot after being on the run from the police for years after seeing a theatre production.

We then took the train to see one of Chicago’s German markets. We walked around and took in the delicious smell of mulled wine whilst looking at the overpriced stalls and ice rink with Christmas carols playing in a the background. It certainly is beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Our next activity was a comedy show which we had bought tickets for on the previous day. We then went back to the apartment in the hope of having a shower and having a hot meal. When realising it was a 40 min bus journey to get to the show we swapped a shower for a change of clothes and a hot meal for a cereal bar.

We then ran to the bus stop to catch the bus by the skin of our teeth to discover our 24 hour travel pass had cut off after 8 hours meaning the bus ticket was yet another fare out of our pocket. We then ran to the train station to discover the pass was working so we’d lost money for no reason. Perfect.

Two trains later and we arrived at the comedy club. We were seated right at the front, practically on the stage! We treated ourselves to a drink each which came with a pricey bill as well as the tip (?!)

Unsure whether or not our humour varied massively to those in the USA but the show was not one bit funny. Whilst everyone was loudly laughing we were wondering if we’d missed a hidden punch line somewhere?! At one point one of the ‘comedians’ was stood right by John on stage so unfortunately the spot light was on him also. As John was also in the lime light he had to pretend to laugh so that we didn’t look confused/unamused Brits for the night!

Nevertheless it was nice to officially see a show in Chicago and it was good to see everyone in good spirits.

The stage! (And how close we were)The rather forced smiles we painted on our face for the night

The following day we needed to find somewhere to exchange money. Such a simple task you would expect to take 20 mins or so. However unlike in the UK, banks will not exchange money unless you have an account with them. We spent two hours looking for somewhere.

Eventually someone told us of a place called Travelex Currency Service. We discovered Travelex didn’t open till 3pm so we headed for a hot drink in a cafe as the winds were painfully cold on our faces and snow was starting to fall.

The currency rate was shocking at the exchange shop so we ended up withdrawing from an ATM. It was rather amusing as the banker thought we were millionaires when we told her we had bank accounts in England, Canada and Australia! The bank we withdrew from was called BMO Harris, the conversion rate was better than any other we had found.

Later on we braved the cold winds and did some final sight seeing around the town – we even bumped into a girl from London UK!

Ice rink in the town centre The crown fountain that shows a series of moving faces before spitting water out! Luckily the water feature had been turned off but we stayed at a distance just in case!The famous Chicago Art Institute A strange frame made of old tyres?We re visited the Bean to capture the city sky line in the reflectionTaking a picture of anything Christmassy – of course!More Christmas lights to pose with!Our final pictures of Chicago’s impressive city!

Overall we have had a fabulous time in Chicago, we wished we had a few more days there in fact. We have been waking 20km each day and have still not seen all the city! Would certainly recommend the visit and we would defiantly return given the chance. Next stop…Cincinnati!