Thanksgiving and Chicago!

Three bento lunches ... for the three bears? Kind of ... ha ha ... for Papa and Mama bears, and the two little bears! All going to Chicago on Thanksgiving day!

We left the woods after breakfast.

The drive there took us about three hours. Weather was good. No snow.

Hotel check-in was at three o'clock.

Hence, we thought we should just drive to the Field Museum, made good use of the day since the day darkened around five.

It was a big museum. Bigger than I had imagined. And so many exhibits to see.

Some exhibits viewing were included in the admission fee to the museum, while some required you to purchase tickets to enter.

"Mummy, mummy, look! There's a person lying down here!" Shouted my two boys as they peered down through a glass panel on the ground.

They were looking at a "Mummy" ... no, not their mummy. A Mummy found in pyramids.

It was fun exploring the Great Pyramid.

Meet Sue, the dinosaur!

The head is 270kg, and is too heavy to be mounted.

So what you see in the photo is just a replica. The real thing was framed in a box in the second level.

Wanna feel how it is like to be a fly, with complex eyes?

Wanna experience how it is like to be inside a tornado?

Wanna know more about earthquakes and tsunami?

What elements affect the shape of a volcano?

Welcome to the underground world of the creepy crawlies!

Honey, I shrunk the kids! And they are now smaller than an earthworm!

Really, there was so much to do and to see. We spent so much time viewing the exhibits, we missed the Crown PlayLab, where the kids get to do all sorts of hands-on activities.

The kids enjoyed themselves, and so did we! So off to the hotel we went! We were so tired we went to bed at 8pm!

The next day, it's to Chinatown for brunch, before heading to the Alder Planetarium.

We thought we would spend more time here, since darling son KW was learning about the Solar System and kept asking us questions like "What happen when an asteroid hit a planet?".

We decided to bring him to the Moon ... to watch a 3D show. The second show, Timespace, showed us the Big Bang, comets, etc, had great effects.

The exhibits were not as fantastic and fun as the ones at the Field Museum. I guess the older boys would appreciate them more, since they would be able to read better than a six-year old? I didn't enjoy the Planetarium as much as I enjoyed the Field Museum.

So the visit to the Planetarium ended earlier than we planned. We could do with an early dinner outside, and then find our way back to the hotel, since it was still early. Oh dear, but the traffic was terrible! It was just like Orchard Road back home! See the bride and groom dashing across the busy road? They were on a photo-shoot... erhh... on a day when the temperature was like 5C? I had a good laugh looking at them while holding my down jacket.

We had to end our trip on Saturday morning. Plans for more site seeing and other activities were shelved. Why? I had a terrible throat inflammation, and my temperature had been on the rise since we reached Chicago. Had to drive back immediately after breakfast, so that I could see the doctor at the urgent care clinic. By the time I reached the clinic, my temperature had risen to mid 38C.

The kids had a good time though. If we were to visit again, we would definitely go the Field Museum again. And the Farmer's Market too! And walk instead of drive through the Magnificent Mile.