The Loop through Wisconsin and Michigan – Day 1

Last week we went on a family vacation through Wisconsin and Michigan. We got this idea in December when we went to Dottie and Adam’s wedding in Milwaukee. Realizing Wisconsin is now only 8 hours from us we decided it would be fun to explore a little more around the Great Lakes this summer. And so the adventure began.

We met Adam and Dottie in Chicago on Saturday. We started at the Lincoln Park Zoo (not to be confused with Linkin Park).  The great thing about this neighborhood zoo is that it’s absolutely FREE!!  Can’t get more family friendly than that. You can pay for parking at the zoo, or you can park a few blocks away in the residential area for free. Guess which one we did.

Here are the kids posing at the opening sculpture. It’s aptly named “Siblings”. The kids had fun looking at the different animals. It was a bit chilly for July (in the 60s) so I’m glad I brought sweatshirts.

I’ve never been this close to a lion. She was literally sleeping by the window of their enclosure. So cool to actually see her nostrils flare as she breathed.

The kids loved the seal exhibit. You could go underneath the ground and look through their tank to see them swimming. It was soooo much cooler than just looking from above.

After the zoo, we headed over to Millennium Park – a large green space in Chicago and home of the famous Cloud Gate sculpture, better known as The Bean. We have a family picture somewhere – must be on Henry’s phone since I can’t find one on mine. That’s Ryan and Uncle Adam walking up to it.

We also took a water taxi to Navy Pier. The kids loved the ride, even more so because they got to sit with Aunt Dottie!

Here is what I’ll say about Navy Pier. It’s commercialized. It’s not as good as Pier 39 in San Fran. However, it is an icon in Chicago and probably should be viewed at one time or another.

We ended up taking a free trolley back to (close to) Millennium Park to pick up our cars. We serendipitously happened upon a concert at the park’s amphitheater on our walk and stopped to listen to an orchestra for a few minutes.

Our adaptable kids didn’t complain about all the walking or the sitting under the starts listening to classical music. Or the almost 2 hour drive to Milwaukee to sleep. It was a great way to start our trip.