Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago

Following our screening at Columbia College, we spent a few days in Chicago with my cousin, Steve. Rae and I got caught up on work while preparing for the next slate of screenings; seven showings of Autumn Gem in the next six days! Tonight’s screening will be at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Tomorrow morning, we’re flying to Baltimore, Maryland for a screening at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.

On Saturday, we had lunch over at The Bagel. The Mish-Mash Soup was really good and the Reuben sandwich that Jeff and I both ordered was huge! Usually, I can finish my meals, but I had to save half of the sandwich for the bus ride to Champaign on Sunday!

Following lunch, Steve took us to the Lincoln Park Zoo, a free zoo along the waterfront in Chicago. I was pretty cold already, but I felt for the animals who have to brave the cold winters and hot summers of Chicago every year! The tiger pen had a pretty high barrier; I don’t know if that tiger could have jumped the barrier like the one in San Francisco nearly two years ago.

After our trip to the zoo, we went back home to Steve’s place, where I made my famous Ma Po Tofu and butternut squash dish. We bought extra supplies over at the Super H Mart, which is like a Korean 99 Ranch or Marina Foods. The next morning, we took the train into Union Station at Chicago, where we waited for the Megabus to take us to Champaign. The Chicago Marathon was happening at the same time, and we got to see the runners at the Mile 13 marker.

Here are some photos from the past few days in Chicago:

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*Charger fans in Chicago? *Enjoying the Mish-Mash Soup and Reuben Sandwich at The Bagel in Chicago’s Lincoln Park area. *Jeff, Rae and Steve outside The Bagel in Chicago. *Jeff, Rae and Adam outside The Bagel in Chicago. *Rae outside Autumn leaves. *Rae and Adam outside the Lincoln Park Zoo. *Steve and Adam at the entrance to the Lincoln Park Zoo. *Tiger has a bone. *The Tiger probably wants to roam free. *Tiger is like a big, more ferocious version of Finney. *Is the barrier higher than the Tiger barrier in San Francisco Zoo? *Zookeeper notes about this lion. *Who’s the captive, the lions or the humans? *Hanging out watching the humans. *Roaming their outdoor pen. *He doesn’t look very happy. *But at least, the gorillas eat at Whole Foods! *This silver back gorilla was really big. *Polar bears have their own swimming environment. *Sadly, we didn’t see any of his polar bear friends. Who’s to keep him company? *Rae outside of the polar bear pen. *One swipe and you’re gone. *Steel cables to prevent the rhino from escaping. *The Lion House at the Lincoln Park Zoo. *Cooking Ma Po Tofu and butternut squash at Steve’s house. *Cooking Ma Po Tofu and butternut squash at Steve’s house.