After a thoroughly enjoyable weekend in Columbia I was now on my way back to Chicago. When I touched down at O’Hare there was the relatively simple process of escaping the Airport through Terminal 2 and it was then down in the bowels of the airport to get on the “EL” the elevated, electric subway trains Chicago is famous for. Immediately I thought Harrison Ford was going to come crashing through the carriages being chased by the Janitor from Scrubs, or that I was going to pass the cast of ER as I approached the Downtown Loop. But alas no, this was the real world, not the delirium induced state air travel puts me in. My initial plan was to check in and head into town for a look round and dinner. However, by the time I got my bags and myself from O’Hare into the city then back out again to my hotel in Oak Park it was already 3.30pm, the sun was baking down and I was rather tired! So I chilled out in my small but lovely and air conditioned room and then went for a walk in the sunshine.
Oak Park's Green Line EL Station
Oak Park was home to Frank Lloyd Wright between 1889 and 1909 during which time he designed many many stunningly beautiful homes. Wright had the mighty title of “The Greatest American Architect Of All Time” bestowed upon him in 1991 some 32 years after his death. This is no small honour, this man effectively designed the way we move around our houses and modern building construction. He is adored and admired by Architects, designers and engineers alike. Being an architecture fan I loved walking around the high street and the residential areas around looking at the buildings and how they helped define the Arts and Crafts Movement. I was in a designers dreamland.
Oak Park began to thrive after the Great Fire of Chicago in 1871 with residents fleeing their burning city and settling on the outskirts. This created the vast expanse that is the Greater Chicago Area with the city sprawling out over 10 miles from the shores of Lake Michigan. Wright began designing houses, starting with his own in 1889 and soon began developing a wide range of buildings from banks to library as well as residential accommodation. 
As I turned right away from the centre of the town I was greeted by the most stunning arrary of houses I have ever seen. The houses in these three pictures are genuinely side by side along the same road. They are completely different architectural styles and completely magnificent! I was in awe, this was now peak travel time, 5.30pm and it was quiet, 
I could hear myself think, and I could go at my own pace enjoying the sun and my surroundings. I actually thought if I was ever to become that successful designer making a lot of money and had the opportunity to move to the States Oak Park would probably be the dream location. At least outside of winter months that is! You can always tell that the conditions I experienced were not like this all year when you pass signs saying “Snow Route, Do Not Park When Snow Is Above 2 Feet Deep.”
Frank Lloyd Wright's House
As I made my way back round towards my hotel I passed the man’s house itself, I can’t work out whether it is crazy or a masterpiece. But this was Wright’s style functional and mighty yet aesthetically complex. Turning right on the next road you walk past Ernest Hemingway’s birthplace a far more modest affair but perfectly preserved as a museum to the man.
Ernest Hemingway's Birthplace
Hemmingway started out as a reporter then became a celebrated author while serving as an Ambulance Driver in the first world war and foreign correspondent during the Spanish Civil War and the second world war. The things this man must have seen in his life before he took his own life in 1961.
I returned home to change and venture out for dinner. I was looking through reviews of various places to eat near by and felt that as it was Monday night and the NFL’s Monday Night Football was on that I should pop down 8 blocks south of Oak Park Green Line Station to the Avenue Ale House who furnished me with a pint of Green Line IPA brewed in Chicago and a fantastic bacon cheese burger with the biggest lattice fries I have ever seen. I was slightly disappointed not to come away winning the Chicago Bears jersey they were raffling that night but perhaps that was a little much to ask! I plodded home after the first game and prepared for the morning’s trip across the city to McCormick Place where the IMTS exhibition was being held.
One further thing, I put the TV on and stumbled across the Late Late Show. I was usually tucked up in bed by the time this goes out on the East Coast but it is hosted by a Scottish Gentleman by the name of Craig Ferguson… A quick wikipedia search shows that way back in 1989 he played a small role as ‘Confidence’ in an episode of Red Dwarf (That’s right, it’s any excuse to post a Red Dwarf clip time again) He’s causing quite a stir stateside and is touted to replace David Letterman on the Late Show when he eventually calls it a night. Good on you Craig! Expect him to turn up on one of those “10 British Comedians you’ve never heard of” lists on the BBC website at some point soon next to John Oliver of The Daily Show.
