windy city - ilivetotravel's travel log

Getting to High Places in Chicago

In the first tweetup, the one in Austin, I found myself flight-delayed for the Friday night events AND also quite sick. While I greatly enjoyed the Saturday outings, I felt I had not gotten all that I had expected out of that tweetup. So the Windy City Tweetup was redemption for fate…

Getting There

The journey to Chicago started, as many journeys lately for me, with Atlanta’s Hartsfield airport. Having just flown in to Atlanta the night before, I was less than excited to be doing the routine in reverse within 24 hours of landing in Atlanta… But, and it is a big but, this was for much more fun than a work trip. It was time for the long-awaited Windy City Tweetup.

Delta nicely was able to complimentarily upgrade me (both ways!) days ahead of the flights so I would avoid wondering at the gate “Will I make it?”. Thanks!

Three of us flying in were planning to meet upon arrival at ORD so I was hoping we would all be on time. Being the one to land first (by schedule, anyway), I was to make my way to the last person’s baggage claim area (of course, we ALL were flying different airlines to make it more complicated…) and also call up the car we had booked for a nice ride into town. Miraculously – the Tweetup gods must have been smiling upon us – we all landed within minutes of each other.

Our destination, the Sofitel Water Tower Hotel in Chicago we had booked a few months in advance. Sofitels are clearly nice hotels and it had been a while since I had stayed in one so I was thrilled to experience their service after a few years of experiencing others’ service.

Home Base in Chicago’s Water Tower District: My High Place

Even before the tweetup, the Sofitel Water Tower engaged with us via Twitter (@SofitelChicago). Two things: one, if you are a business and you will have a Twitter presence, it can’t be a one-way push of information. That is so 1999 web. You HAVE to engage. The Sofitel clearly knew this. That was a good sign for us that we had made a great choice.

I found out I had been placed at the 30th floor which gave me a nice view of the Hancock Tower straight ahead and Lake Michigan behind it. The room was very comfortable and inviting. A very nice spot in a high place in Chicago indeed!

Hancock Tower in Chicago from the Sofitel Water Tower

The view from my high perch in Chicago – the Hancock Tower

Also, a nice treat awaited in the room: macarons! Check out the story about macaron envy…

Macarons served to me at the Sofitel Water Tower in Chicago

My macaron-based welcome made me feel like a high-flyer!

We also had made plans to gather at the hotel’s bar “Le Bar“, where the hotel, once again, offered us a sampling of their appetizers of which the mini-burgers and the artichoke croquettes were my favorite. I also got to be the first customer to try their new signature drink named “Wrigleyville” which had peanut butter fluff & vodka and was served with a side dish of Cracker Jacks. I was not sure about a peanut butter flavored drink but it was actually outstanding. Kudos to the bar for the clever design!

Signature drink at the Sofitel Water Tower in Chicago: the Wrigleyville

The Wrigleyville drink and Cracker Jacks

After meeting up at the Sofitel with one of our local tweeps, we headed for The Pump Room at the Public Hotel Chicago. Though ground-level cleary a high place in terms of history, ambience and scene. A famous locale throughout the decades, I admit to only having discovered it as the tweetup was being planned. We enjoyed drinks and dinner there enjoyed the well-designed space. The bar areas were hopping with a great crowd – clearly a place to come and meet with friends in the Windy City.

The Pump Room at Public Hotel Chicago

So ended our first few hours in the Windy City Tweetup. It was a great start to the weekend and many thanks to the Sofitel Water Tower and The Pump Room for setting the right tone!

Windy City Tweetup – Chicago Here We Come!

Tweetup, what is that?

Since it is the first time I write in my blog about a “tweetup“, I feel I should have an intro section here on what they are! Tweetups are gathering of tweeps (people who have connected via Twitter) who share a common interest, say travel, photography, etc. It does seem a little odd to go to one to meet people one has only met online. However, if the tweetup doesn’t happen, it stays only online, doesn’t it?

After almost a year of participating in travel talks on Twitter, a few of us decided it was time to meet in person these other folks we so enjoyed exchanging travel ideas and experiences with in Twitter. We held our first tweetup in Austin, Texas.

Windy City

We realized this is something we needed to do again and, sort of on its own, one day, we were chatting in Twitter when someone just said we should all meet in Chicago. And, that was it. Chicago in May it was. Chicago had many pluses but definitely meeting local tweeps was a key driver.

So What Happens – Where Do We Stay?

Those of us traveling, while we don’t have big budgets, want a memorable experience all around. And that starts with our accommodations.

We found out that the Hotel Sofitel Chicago Water Tower not only had a great deal at hand but a great location, sleek designs for the rooms, and an incredible-looking lobby with tons of ambience. We look forward to the phenomenal service levels typical of the Sofitels! Check them out here -> http://www.sofitel.com/gb/hotel-2993-sofitel-chicago-water-tower/index.shtml. We will let you know how it goes!

So What Happens – Where Do We Eat? Where Do We Have Cocktails?

Well, this is very much a problem in a town like Chicago since the options for good food are so many. Here is where our local tweeps and some research on the travelers’ part comes into play.

We certainly wish we were able to engage with some of the local establishments pre-tweetup so we could perhaps better understand what was possible to create the right environment for a groups of folks that want to get each other better while enjoying some food and/or some drinks.

Of course, being a travel tweetup, this group will be “broadcasting” in Twitter and via their blogs about the experience so we sure hope we have great things to say and great tips to provide fellow travelers so their future visit to the Windy City benefits from our insights!! That is what we travel bloggers love to do most – help point others to the best travel experiences!

So far, we have identified The Pump Room (http://www.pumproom.com/) at Public Chicago as a place we definitely will spend time at. The Pump Room evokes the vibe of the 1930s/40s yet caters to a modern-day crowd. It has been celebrated by Travel + Leisure, The Today Show, The New York Times, Chicago Live, etc. This place has catered to just about every big star over the decades. And now it will cater to this tweetup crew!

So What Happens – What Do We Do?

We have not planned out the day time hours but we have decided to do a river architecture boat tour with Wendella Boat Tours (http://www.wendellaboats.com/). We got a great deal via Groupon and we liked the fact they would serve us a drink during the tour – this crew enjoys nice beverages so we sure hope that is what will be served! We will tell you about the tour during our ride!

We are certainly open to ideas so feel free to share any you have. And if you are in the Chicago area and like travel, feel free to connect with us so you can meet us during the weekend events on May 11-12, 2012!!!

Chicago, here we come!