My Weekend NORTH of the Border!

I know this is my blog about my Fulbright south of the border, but this weekend I was north of the border! Bruno signed up to run a half marathon (crazy, I know) in Chicago so I decided to join him (on the trip…..not running) and surprise my parentals. And we even got to spend an extra night because of the three-day weekend in Mexico!

We flew in Friday afternoon and I surprised my mom at the airport. She knew that Bruno was coming because she went to pick him up at the airport but little did she know that I was there, too. I followed them from a distance to the car and I started loading my suitcase and when she saw me she kept saying "oh my God!". We were starved so we went to downtown La Grange to hit up Palmer's Place. Bruno was surprised how big the portions were, which I definitely warned him about. We drove through McDonald's on the way home so he could try a shamrock shake. He approved. They have McDonald's in Mexico but unfortunately, no shamrock shakes. Later we went out to dinner with Jay and her boyfriend. You should have seen the waiter’s face when I asked for my food to go….in Spanish.

We woke up with the sun on Saturday to drive to the city for Bruno’s “Get Lucky” half marathon. It was fun explaining what “get lucky” means to Bruno. Mom, Dad, and I dropped Bruno off and went to Lou Mitchell’s for breakfast. They were just about to dye the river green and start getting ready for the parade. When we were driving back to Soldier Field to pick up Bruno from the race we saw him running along the lake. What are the odds? He finished in just under 2 hours! As his reward for finishing without injuries, he got a massage.

Bruno and I always go to the movie theater in Mexico so I wanted to take him to one in the states. The theaters in Mexico are always attached to a mall. I’ve actually never seen a free-standing one. And that’s not he case in the states so we took him to a Marcus theater. For those of you who don’t know that company, the movie seats are recliners. With a foot rest. You can basically lie down. I’m not sure how I didn’t fall asleep. We saw Kingsman: The Secret Service and got popcorn with a boatload of butter (Anne Szymczak style). The condiments in Mexico are mostly hot sauces so Bruno was struggling without those.

At night, I took Bruno to Wrigleyville to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. When we were walking to the first bar, he commented about how many drunk people there were in the street. When we got to Sports Corner we obviously ordered green beer because it’s a vital St. Patrick’s Day necessity. We met up with Nina and Stacy at the bar and then went to Taco Bell. Bruno wanted to try it and he actually liked it but Stacy and Nina kept apologizing on behalf of the country for its poor tacos compared to Mexico. After the satisfying tacos, we headed to Lincoln Park to meet up with ISU people. I was so good seeing everyone! We had some more green beer and I caught up with everyone. Good way to end the night!

We started Sunday off with some of Anne’s German pancakes - delicious- then to headed over to the Lord’s house. Bruno thought St. Louise Church was very modern. I had never thought of that before but compared to the old cathedrals I Mexico, I guess it is. It’s very simple put side to side with Mexican churches. After church we started the big Chicago sightseeing day! Mi hermano came home from ISU for the weekend which was a pleasant surprise so he came downtown with us. We started the tour off at the Museum and Science and Industry because it was on Bruno’s Chicago bucket list. I hadn’t been there in years but it’s so cool! They even have an exhibit, which I had never visited until Sunday, that you can watch a toy being made and even personalize it and buy it. So clever. After the museum, we went to the Bean, or should I say it’s real name: Could Gate. We took lots of pictures. It was uncharacteristically warm out so it was great being outside. It was even warmer than Mexico! Bruno chose a good weekend to go to the Chi. Next and final stop was the United Center to see the Michael Jordan statue. On the way home we picked up Giordano’s deep dish pizza because it’s a Chicago must. Nina and Stacy joined us for dinner because who could pass that up?

Monday was a packing-filled morning. I took Bruno to Target and we got food to bring back for our fellow Mexicans. Our flight left in the afternoon and we got to Mexico City at night. Thankfully there are buses from the airport to Toluca. I would say it was a very successful trip! It was hard leaving home but I’ll be back for good in early June. Time to take advantage of the last few months in Mexico!