Trip to Chicago

Assalamualaikum and hey there!

Last week I had a wonderful trip in the windy city, Chicago! Chicago had been on my travel list since last year. I saw my seniors posted their photos at The Bean on Instagram and I was intrigued by that! I knew that I actually took a risk once I decided to travel alone in a big city. That was a last minute planned trip. Thank you very much to Kak Syahirah for hosting me throughout my stay in Chicago. Thank you to my parents for trusting me to travel by myself this time. Also, thank you to my roommate, Syahirah for helping me out with my itinerary. I only spent the maximum amount of $200 for this trip. The Greyhound roundtrip bus ticket was $67 and the CTA 3-Day Pass with unlimited rides (buses and trains) was $25. Anyway, here's my itinerary!

Thursday, Oct. 19

• 9.35 pm: Depart from Minneapolis (Greyhound Bus)

Friday, Oct. 20

• 5.30 am: Arrived in Chicago
• 6.30 am: Went to kak Syahirah's apartment.
• 7.00 am: Breakfast
• 9.00 am: The Bean at Millenium Park.
• 11.00 am: Navy Pier and Lake Michigan
• 1.00 pm: Lunch at The Halal Guys
• 3.00 pm: Skydeck Chicago at Willis Tower (admission fee: $23)

Notes: My waiting time to go up to the Skydeck Chicago was only 30 minutes which was considered lucky enough because it was Friday. It can take approximately one to two hours during the weekend.

Saturday, Oct. 21

• 9.00 am: Breakfast at Le Pain Quotidien
• 10.00 am: Navy Pier again (Initial plan was to take an architectural boat tour: $39)
• 11.00 am: Chicago Riverwalk
• 1.00 pm: Luke's Lobster
• 3.00 pm: Epic Burger
• 5.00 pm: 360 Chicago (admission fee: $20 + tilt: $7)
• 7.30 pm: Union Station

Notes: Epic Burger has certified halal beef! I would say that it's a must try. For 360 Chicago, I waited in line for 45 minutes and went up at dawn. Alhamdulillah the timing was just perfect. I got to see the sunset from the top of the 360 Chicago. 

Sunday, Oct. 22

• 10.00 am: Dropped by at The Field Museum, Shedd Aquarium, and Adler Planetarium. 
• 12.00 am: Dropped by at the Art Institute of Chicago
• 1.00 pm: Walked around Millenium Park
• 2.00 pm: Bought some souvenirs at "Bye Bye Chicago" shop.
• 4.00 pm: University of Chicago campus tour
• 9.55 pm: Went back to Minneapolis (Greyhound Bus)

Notes: The Field Museum, Shedd Aquarium, and Adler Planetarium are very close to each other. However, I didn't go into those attractions. But the places around there are very nice to take pictures. 

Day 1 - The Bean 

Day 1 - Skydeck Chicago

      

Day 1 - View from the top of Willis Tower (Level 103)

Day 1 - Navy Pier

Day 2 - Navy Pier

Day 2 - Chicago Riverwalk

Day 2 - Chicago Riverwalk 

Day 2 - Downtown Chicago

                                      

                                                                              Day 2 - 360 Chicago

                                       

                                                                                        Day 2 - 360 Chicago

Day 3

Day 3 - Bought this chocolate at "Bye Bye Chicago" shop

The Halal Guys checked! (Google photo)

Epic Burger! ($8.00)

Lobster roll at Luke's Lobster ($16.50)

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Life update

Assalamualaikum and hello guys

I've been staying in the United States for almost two months and alhamdulillah I enjoy my life here. It is even better than what I expected. I have a few things to share anyway.

• First, I just finished my midterm exams yesterday and alhamdulillah I did pretty okay I guess. 

• Second, I'm working at Boynton Health Service (on-campus clinic) every morning from Monday to Friday. The monthly allowance from Petronas is more than enough but I wanna make more money to travel the world!

• Third, I was selected to be part of NAMSA 17/18 under the Program & Strategies Department. This is really unexpected. At first, I only thought that I wanna join either NAMSA (National Assembly of Malaysian Students in America) or PERSISMA (Persatuan Siswazah Malaysia in Minnesota) during my sophomore year. But since NAMSA was recruiting members, I just sent my resume and eventually get accepted after being interviewed by the Board Members.

• Fourth, I'm the food director (katanya) for the upcoming Malaysian Night event. Delicious Malaysian cuisine guaranteed.

• Fifth, I've found someone to sublease my room during the summer break next year. InsyaAllah I will be going back to Malaysia for three months break.

• Sixth, I'm volunteering at Pratt Community School every Friday as an Art classroom Assistant. They spelled my name eye-za. So cute.

• Seventh, I will be traveling to Chicago on this weekend and Colorado during the winter break!

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