Chicago

George and I travelled to Chicago last weekend for his brother Robert's graduation from the police academy. It was so nice to get away to a big city, with good food and entertainment, and good photography options! So, I have to break in here and post a panorama picture of downtown Chicago and Buckingham Fountain. This is my first panorama work (actually a combination of 7 photos and some serious Photoshop skills)....but I'm pretty stoked about the outcome. :) Click on the photo above for a closer look.

Surprisingly, Chicago is not an intimidating city like I first thought. It's easy to navigate, and I felt pretty comfortable there. Our first night there, we headed out towards Navy Pier, which was built on Lake Michigan in 1916 for the Navy, which is now an entertainment district with a great view of the city.

We were also lucky enough to stumble upon a free art show at the East River Art Center, where they even had the artists there discussing their work. It was great to see a REAL art show...I have to give Oklahoma credit for their Paseo Arts District, but they've got ways to go.

The next morning we went to Robert's graduation, I unfortunately forgot the battery for my camera, so I don't have any pictures. We ended up going to the John Hancock Center the next day, and got in some great views of the city at 100 stories tall, and on the 44th story, America's highest swimming pool.

The rest of our visit there was spent exploring the city, and eating great food that wasn't fried! FYI - Oklahoma has a lot of fried food, and not much 'fresh' cuisine per say. Although, I have to admit the famous "Chicago Dog" was well worth the extra calories.

That being said, I'm very much looking forward to our next trip....Hawaii!

Turner Falls, Davis Oklahoma

For the weekend, George and I decided to head down to Turner Falls, about an hour and a half away from OKC in the Arbuckle "Mountains"...FYI they are more like rocky hills. It was a neat place. From the moment we turned off the highway, it seemed like we had entered a different state. Oklahoma is very flat but also very green right now due to the recent thunderstorms. It was a nice getaway for us and the dogs. Turner Falls is a 77 foot waterfall, formed by the natural springs of Honey Creek and has been described as one of the three geological windows from our past, also including the Grand Canyon and the Black Hills of South Dakota. While I can't say it rivals the Grand Canyon, it was a fun place to visit.

We took in the first truly beautiful scenery in Oklahoma so far (besides the sunsets) Frio enjoyed making a splash while Kimo watched from the sidelines being very careful to avoid the water. He eventually made it in for a treat though. Those pupperonis must be worth it.

Frio played almost the whole time in the water, but eventually it was time to dry off and go for a hike.

There a a few caves in the area that were somewhat unimpressive, but overall we were quite happy with the falls! It was a nice getaway from the stereotypical Oklahoma of beer, beef and.... bad scenery.

GUESTBOOK

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