{"id":16005,"date":"2026-10-07T14:51:01","date_gmt":"2026-10-07T19:51:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.debslunch.com\/blog\/?p=16005"},"modified":"2026-10-09T12:45:17","modified_gmt":"2026-10-09T17:45:17","slug":"vacationing-in-chicago-london","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.debslunch.com\/blog\/2026\/10\/07\/vacationing-in-chicago-london\/","title":{"rendered":"Vacationing in Chicago & London"},"content":{"rendered":"

I’m writing this at the George and Dragon<\/a> in Dent, Sedbergh, UK. We are feeling pretty accomplished because we bailed from the muddy footpath and took the road, really a country lane, to our destination and arrived there before 3:00pm\/15:00. Actually 2:55. Compared to yesterday, when we were slogging through the rain and bogs for close to eight hours. But I’m going to tell you a lot more about the walking trip presently (in the Brit meaning which is shortly). And this post is going to start in Chicago and end up in London.<\/p>\n

On Mark’s birthday, we went to Chicago for a Chicago Symphony concert, followed by Michael Shannon, Jason Narducy, and Friends<\/a> performing R.E.M.’s Life’s Rich Pageant at the Riviera Theatre. From Orchestra Hall on Michigan Ave. to the faded glory of the Riviera, one of Chicago’s old Rapp & Rapp theaters<\/a>. Definitely not a place you’d want to be in if it caught fire because all the exits are on one side. But I guess Orchestra Hall might not be much better if you got caught behind all the slow moving oldsters we see at the Friday matin\u00e9es. Anyways, each of the shows was really good in its own ways. CSO was conducted by the new music director, Klaus M\u00e4kel\u00e4, Sibelius and Shostakovich. And the later show was pretty perfect by my lights; the Riviera is appropriately run down and really mushy way too loud sound. Actor Michael Shannon plays Michael Stipe. The guitar player was Dag Juhlin from Poi Dog Pondering, the drummer was John Wuerster from Mountain Goats, and the bass player was John Stirrat from Wilco. They also had a keyboard player; don’t know much about him, and of course Jason Narducy who I always think of as associated with the Twin Cities,  but I guess that’s just because he plays with Bob Mould – he’s really from IL.<\/p>\n

In between, we got Mark a birthday dinner at Bar Roma, a pretty standard Chicago-style Italian place.<\/p>\n

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Bread & olive oil with a pile of Parmesan thrown in – I’d never eaten that until I lived in Chicago in the ’90s<\/p><\/div>\n

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The remains of the peach, arugula, and goat cheese salad<\/p><\/div>\n

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Cacio e pepe with some sausage crumbles added<\/p><\/div>\n

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The other pasta had red sauce<\/p><\/div>\n

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Waking up in Chicago on Saturday morning<\/p><\/div>\n

We came back to Madison and had a pretty normal Saturday and Sunday and Monday. Saturday night we had leftover pizza and homemade pizza on a sourdough crust that I froze at the dough ball phase, instead of a cooked crust. It didn’t rise very well. I topped it with some roasted tomato sauce that had celery in it – trying to use up stuff before leaving; roasted all the fresh tomatoes we had – and goat cheese and fresh mozzarella. Sunday we had a cheese omelette with the same tomato sauce, optional. I think only I ate some, then I stuck what was left in the freezer. And toast on all the breads in the fridge; a walnut raisin sourdough from back when my started was working, and a loaf from Madison sourdough. For our Sunday dessert I made an apple cake. Trying to remember what we had Monday, could that have been the pizza?<\/p>\n

Tuesday we didn’t have to get the bus to O’Hare till noon, so I spent the morning packing. Mark was better organized than me, and got out for a walk as well as packing. I was trying to get the house ready for leaving as well as packing, and not forget my passport or anything else vital.<\/p>\n

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O’Hare was O’Hare, lunch at Publican’s airport venue, where the floor was filthy but the food was OK. We watched a small brown cockroach run around on that filthy floor. I think the excuse is Publican is not in its regular spot due to construction.  A walk through the lighted tunnel and the flight was about as easy as could be wished. We paid for upgraded seats and had 2 together, no third seat in our row, and actually some extra legroom.<\/p>\n

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Beet salad at Publican at O’Hare. Mark had a turkey sandwich and fries. I tried one of the fries and it tasted like it was fried in the same fryer too close to the fish<\/p><\/div>\n

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O’Hare between terminals 1 and 2, United land<\/p><\/div>\n

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Tall pumpkin spice latte while waiting to board<\/p><\/div>\n

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Watching Wicked for Good and drinking a Bell’s two hearted on the plane<\/p><\/div>\n

When we arrived in London we had to trek through endless overheated hallways in Heathrow, but customs was really pretty much automated and easy. We took the train and the tube to Victoria Station, then had an easy walk to our B&B, where we stashed our bags. <\/p>\n

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We had a cheese toastie and a yogurt bowl at the fancy coffee place on the same street across from the (nicer) hotel where we stayed the last time<\/p><\/div>\n

We walked around until it was time to check in.<\/p>\n

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Outside Buckingham Palace<\/p><\/div>\n

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We stopped for gelato at a food court near Victoria. It was cleaner and had much nicer bathrooms than O’Hare.<\/p>\n

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We finally got checked in to the room, then we went to see Much Ado About Nothing in modern dress, but at Shakespeare’s Globe Theater. It was great fun, and reminded me of this Joss Whedon version<\/a> that we saw I think at TIFF? It would’ve had to have been the very first time we went, though, 2012. Looks like it was<\/a>. On the way back we stopped at the mini Marks & Spencer and got a cheese & pickle on brown bread for me and a BLT for Mark and a bag of crisps\/potatoe chips and ate them back at the hotel. <\/p>\n

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The next day we had a full day of tourist-ing in London, and I think that day’s getting its own post.<\/p>\n

<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I’m writing this at the George and Dragon in Dent, Sedbergh, UK. We are feeling pretty accomplished because we bailed from the muddy footpath and took the road, really a country lane, to our destination and arrived there before 3:00pm\/15:00. Actually 2:55. Compared to yesterday, when we were slogging through the rain and bogs for … [Read more…]<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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