Welcome to part two of my Chicago trip recap! PLEASE read part 1 of the trip HERE before continuing so you get the whole trip lowdown! PART 2:
Saturday:
Today was the day that my friend Emily and I didn’t eat “real” (healthy) food for 24 hours. Because we’re almost adults and we can eat what we want! I woke up and worked out in the hotel gym, then Emily and I sauntered over to Do-Rite Donuts. I got their only vegan donut, lemon, and it was better than I expected! It was a baked donut, so it tasted like lemon cake.
We worked off our donuts afterwards by walking to the Maggie Daley Children’s Park, where we climbed up towers and slid down slides like the five year olds we are at heart.
After that excursion, we ambled along the shoreline to Navy Pier, where we people-watched and enjoyed Ben & Jerry’s from the scoop shop. I got their VEGAN flavor, Peanut Butter & Cookies! It was to-die-for.
After that excursion, we walked back to Millenium Park and Emily saw “the bean” for the first time, a Chicago landmark and mirrored statue in the shape of a bean. After we finished being touristy, we decided to shop some more and get a snack. I tried matcha iced tea for the first time at Argo Tea, which was quite refreshing.
Then we found dinner at a pizza place called Bar Toma that Emily heard was good. I asked if they had vegan options, and they said they could make their pizzas vegan by omitting the cheese on top. We split a small spinach & garlic pizza, but got half of it with cooked brussels sprout shavings instead of cheese for me.
The pizza was basically crust, a lemon zest/ garlic/ oil sauce, spinach, and brussels sprouts/ cheese. It was okay- it needed a lot more sauce. It was just what I needed at the time though, since before dinner I’d only eaten sweets the entire day. I literally hadn’t eaten a “healthy” meal since dinner the night before, which is a record for me!
After dinner, we walked back to our hotel and collapsed into bed. We walked a lot throughout the day- like 12 or more miles!
One of the attractions we walked past was the beautiful Chicago river!
Sunday:
Sunday was the day I was most looking forward to throughout the trip, and it did not disappoint. I started the day with a workout, and then we walked over to Meli Café for brunch. I chose Meli because it had a full-page vegan menu, as well as many non-vegan items for Emily. I decided on the carrot coconut pancakes, which turned out to be fluffy, fresh, and cinnamon-y cakes of delight.
After breakfast we went to the hotel, packed up our stuff, and went to Lolla. As soon as we got into the festival on Sunday, we high-tailed it to see all the bands below…
- Låpsley– highlights were “Operator” and “Hurt Me.” She was okay live- there was a lot of technology involved in her performance (like a voice changer) which I didn’t like. Em and I were in the third row for this show which was cool.
- Oh Wonder (OW), aka the most WONDERful band ever (see what I did there?)- highlights were “Dazzle,” “Without You,” “Landslide,” and “Technicolour Beat…” but I love all of their songs! Can you tell OW is my favorite band? This was my second time seeing them live. While they were amazing as always, I liked the first time I saw them better just because I was closer (third row!) and there was a talkback after the concert. Give them a listen because I love them- plus they are such cute and nice people.
After this we got food. Em got a lot of ice cream and I got a popsicle for lunch. When in Chicago, right?
- We stumbled upon the tail end of Marian Hill and I immediately liked them. So good, so soulful, and so much saxophone. 😉 Highlight was “I Want You.” I recommend listening to the duo when you’re feeling funky.
- Years & Years– another band we stumbled upon that I fell in love with. SUCH a fun concert with such great, soulful, poppy music! I recommend listening to “Desire” if you’re feeling upbeat or “Eyes Shut” if you want a slower song.
- Halsey– I love Halsey’s music, so I loved this concert! She was fabulous live. Highlights include “Castle,” “Hold Me Down,” and “Blue.”
- AURORA– I first discovered AURORA this winter, and have loved her ethereal, upbeat music ever since. I was so excited that I got to see her live since she lives in Norway. Song highlights include “Running with the Wolves” and “Conquerer.”
Dinner time! Emily got deep dish pizza and I got a SPICY black bean tamale and an apple.
- Flume (a famous DJ)- this concert was okay- I wouldn’t call it a true concert though because he (Flume) wasn’t singing! He was just DJ-ing with his computer. I like live music with actual singers much better. The music was fun to dance to, though.
- Ellie Goulding– aka possibly my favorite concert I went to at Lolla. She was AMAZING LIVE- OMG. I liked her before seeing her thanks to hearing some of her more famous songs on the radio, but now I know more of her songs and LOVE her music and and her (did you know she’s vegan?)! I am proud to share my name with her. 😉 Song highlights for Ellie’s concert were “Army,” “Don’t Panic,” and “Aftertaste.”
After Lolla, we walked back to the hotel, ate some food, and went to bed. An overall good day.
Monday:
I got the only vegan donut from Stan’s Donuts and it was SO DANG GOOD. It was a yeast-raised ring topped with granulated sugar and it tasted like a Krsipy Kreme Donut.
Monday morning I worked out (surprise), we packed up, ate donuts from Stan’s Donuts, and drove back up north with Emily’s mom.
xx Ellie
Peanut Butter & Ellie 