In December of 2005 I visited Chicago, Illinois, for a business trip that extended into a personal trip. The original purpose of the trip was to demonstrate a product to the government of Chicago. Due to the bureaucracy that is inherent in large cities like this, our demonstration was pushed back from the day after my arrival in Chicago to the end of the same week. This gave me and my co-workers 4 days of free time in the city.

We visited quite a few landmarks in Chicago, but the most notable were Millenium Park, Sears Tower, and the Museum of Science and Industry. I thought the museum was the most awesome place in the city from the places I visited. It was fascinating to see all the scientific and industrial achievements that humans have accomplished over centuries.

My favorite part of the city of Chicago was the weather. I love cold weather, and visiting in December is great. It was a week before Christmas and there was snow everywhere. I have never been to a large city with substantial quantities of snow. Being from Southern California, the only snow I ever see is in the mountains, thousands of feet above sea level. I don't think it was as cold as it usually gets in Chicago, but 14°F is pretty cold for someone like me. The next time I would be in cold weather like this would be 2007 in Flagstaff, AZ.

The view from Sears Tower was spectacular. The land is so flat in all directions, and looking out over a semi-frozen lake Michigan reminded you of how cold it was outside, while inside it was extremely warm. After the visit to Sears Tower, I visited Navy Pier. While it wasn't very exciting to me inside the shops on the pier, once we got to the very end of the pier and looked out over the lake, I was excited again. I am a big fan of water, and Lake Michigan has it in enormous quantities. I will definitely go back to Chicago in the future, maybe in spring or fall, to experience the weather at other times of the year.

Now, onto the pictures!