US Cross Country - Day2 Chicago, Illinois

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Distance: 475 miles Time: 10 hrs

I woke up around 7:30 although my alarm was set for 8:30 :( It was very foggy and a bit chilly too. Had breakfast, waited for the sun to show up and off I was at about 10 am towards Chicago. It was a beautiful day to ride. I could see some differences in Ohio and PA. Ohio is just plain flat. Lot of trucking companies. I 80W (Ohio Turnpike) is a toll road in Ohio when it isn't in PA. The road condition isn't all that gr8 though compared to PA's.

I was at a rest area when a friend of mine, Devdutt, asked me to come to Ann Arbor. This would mean a diversion of about 70 miles. Not a big deal you may think. Well, when your ass is burning sitting on a motorcycle, 75 miles can make a difference. I thought of checking out Ann Arbor. It was game day; the 1st game of the college football season. I was surprised to see people offering their driveways, lawn for parking (10$, 15$ etc.) Apparently, locals make a lot of money through parking. Some houses were surrounded by almost 20 cars.


After lunch at an extremely good BBQ place, I headed towards my originally planned destination, Chicago. Left Ann Arbor at around 4 pm.

I could see the difference when I got closer to Chicago. Rail roads, factories and most obvious of all, toll, 3 times within 25 miles. I knew a big city was coming. I checked into my hotel at around 8 pm. I was lucky to get 1 hour extra due to the time difference. My hotel in downtown didn't allow me to park my motorcycle. I paid the doorman a premium and he let me park it in a parking lot next to the hotel :) (Even it doesn't "officially" allow motorcycles). Money talks.

Went out to see the magnificent mile at night. Had no plans as such. I walked by the Chicago Tribune head quarters and decided to check it out. This place is so inspirational. Quotes from the stalwarts of democracy and freedom about the press. Simply amazing.


I was walking back to my hotel looking for a place to eat. Happened to ask to Indian guys for a suggestion. Ended up having dinner with them at a pretty good Indian restaurant. We went to a bar after dinner. The bar owner was so friendly; we ended up spending a lot of time here. Chatted for a long time.

I am back to my hotel room and it's 1 am (Chicago time). I better get some sleep. Another long but wonderful day is over.