Chicago, Day 4... Terrible Advice

 Day 4

Saturday, August 15, 2026

     Grace and Tom drove down from the northside and picked me up at my hotel.  Since the rain was still holding off, we made our first stop the Chicago Botanical Garden.  

     We simply walked the grounds, taking in all the colors, while also trying not to get in the background of a wedding shoot.  

     In one section of the gardens, is an outside train layout taking model trains through national parks and famous landmarks.

   From the botanical garden, we drove up to Long Grove for lunch.  But first, a brief visit to the Buffalo Creek Covered Bridge.  The first bridge build here was a simple wooden one to connect downtown to the new church across the creek.  

    The town grew, as well as the popularity of cars, so a new bridge was eventually needed.  The bridge deck was replaced and the cover added.  

    By 2019, the bridge had fallen into disrepair.  The town voted to restore it.  Two weeks later a truck that was just a little too tall tried to use the bridge. The damage closed the bridge.  The bridge cover was moved off site for restoration.  It's now wood covering a heavy steel frame.  Numerous collisions later and the bridge remains undamaged.

     We left the bridge and walked around the corner to the Village Tavern for lunch.  The tavern opened in 1847 and bills itself as the longest continually open restaurant in Illinois.  Great food and a nice atmosphere.  

 

    

     Our last stop was in Wilmette at the Baha'i Temple.   To be honest, I had never heard of the Baha'i faith before this. 

     The concept is pretty straightforward.  They believe all the world's faiths are valid as long as they serve God.  They consider Judaism to be divinely revealed from God, with Abraham, Moses and Isiah being authentic messengers. They believe Jesus was a divine messenger, not the literal Son of God.  They also believe both Mohammed and Siddhartha Gautama to be divine messengers.  

     Their services include readings and self reflection.  There are no sermons and no ceremony.  They welcome people of all faiths inside.

     Each temple has nine sides, and is surrounded by nine gardens.  

     Photography is forbidden inside the temple, so I can't show you the delicate designs of the dome above.  CBS's Dana Jacobson did a profile of the temple six years ago.  They were able to record inside.  You can see that here:

      After leaving the temple, Grace and Tom dropped me off at the train station for the ride back into downtown.

    The expected rain hit as I was walking from the train to the hotel.  The good news, it didn't last.  

      So, I was back out to enjoy the city..

     David Laurie was playing an Adele song by the river and taking requests.  I tipped him  $10 and jokingly made a request.  He thought about it, said he wanted to do it justice.  But, if I found him tomorrow, he'd see what he could do.  The song?  In the business, we call this a tease...

    Sign of the day...

      The break in the clouds didn't last.  So, no sunset.  Just night time along the river.

 

       Shortly after taking this shot, I heard music.  It was with this animated short film being shown on the backside of a building.

      It began with an animated woman whistling, surrounded by birds.   At some point, the birds were replaced by waving skeletal hands.  Very strange.

          I would eventually stop here for a few minutes, just taking it all in and watching those clouds.

    Back up to Michigan Avenue...

     Just in time for the Saturday night fireworks!