Naperville, Illinois. A city found 30 minutes west of Chicago. Once voted as the second best place to live in the United States. It has one of the best public libraries in the nation and Naperville is where you’ll find the majestic Moser Tower and Millenium Carillon.
We never saw any of these. Instead, we hit the shopping areas and restaurants.
We visited our curly haired friend CheChe who works near Naperville. Jaye and I took the train from Chicago to Naperville then from there, CheChe picked us up with her Nissan Sentra. Since this was the first time I left Chicago since I arrived in the US, I immediately felt the difference between being in downtown and being in the suburbs. There were less people on the road. There were no taxis, no buses. There were just a few tall buildings and between them are wide open spaces. There are big ponds with geese munching on… whatever they usually munched on. No subway noises. No trains. No ambulance sirens. Just the noise of the tires against the pavement and the chattering of your curly haired friend. Our first stop was Cracker Barrel. I had no idea what it was.
Waiting for the train to Naperville
Ok, turns out it was a restaurant. It has a nostalgic aura which again is a welcome change from where we usually eat. We all ordered the usual all-American meal consisting of sausages, hash, grits, biscuits, jam, gravy and coffee. Food was better than we expected. Expensive, but good. We’re never eating there again anymore though... I forgot to tip the waitress.
Our curly haired friend
Jaye and me at Cracker Barrel
Jaye and CheChe outside Cracker Barrel
Our next stop was the Chicago Premium Outlets. Yep, it’s the same outlet mall as before. Unlike before though, their stock was not impressive and their “sales” were fake so we ended up buying virtually nothing. Check this winter cap I saw at Reebok:
Walking along the Chicago Premium Outlet
We left Aurora, went back to Naperville and had lunch at Olive Garden. I loved the stuffed mushrooms. I loved it so much that the next day, I went to Jewel and bought a pack of fresh mushrooms and replicated the recipe. Jaye says it tasted the same but mine cost a couple of dollars cheaper. Take THAT Olive Garden!
Outside Olive Garden. Jaye's all bundled up while I have a spring jacket on. :P
We next went to Burlington Coat Factory (where I bought a cheap running jacket), Old Navy (where I bought cheap gloves and Jaye bought a cheap jacket) and Walmart (where one section smelled like dog pee). After doing all our shopping, CheChe drove us back to the train station where we had 10 minutes before our train leaves for Chicago.
We had lots of time but while driving there, Jaye and I can’t shake the feeling that we might miss the train. What if the train left early? What if the car’s clock was late? What if CheChe got lost along the way? (which almost happened)
When we got off the car, we had a quick hug with CheChe then it was a 5 minute walk to the other side of the rail. The train hasn't arrived yet but Jaye suddenly ran because she said she didn’t want to get left behind. I ran behind because well, that’s what good hubbies do. Little did we know that there were a few people behind us that were also catching the train and when they saw us burst into a sprint, they sprinted too causing a mini panic at the train station.
The train arrived 20 minutes later. :P
We never saw any of these. Instead, we hit the shopping areas and restaurants.
We visited our curly haired friend CheChe who works near Naperville. Jaye and I took the train from Chicago to Naperville then from there, CheChe picked us up with her Nissan Sentra. Since this was the first time I left Chicago since I arrived in the US, I immediately felt the difference between being in downtown and being in the suburbs. There were less people on the road. There were no taxis, no buses. There were just a few tall buildings and between them are wide open spaces. There are big ponds with geese munching on… whatever they usually munched on. No subway noises. No trains. No ambulance sirens. Just the noise of the tires against the pavement and the chattering of your curly haired friend. Our first stop was Cracker Barrel. I had no idea what it was.
Waiting for the train to Naperville
Ok, turns out it was a restaurant. It has a nostalgic aura which again is a welcome change from where we usually eat. We all ordered the usual all-American meal consisting of sausages, hash, grits, biscuits, jam, gravy and coffee. Food was better than we expected. Expensive, but good. We’re never eating there again anymore though... I forgot to tip the waitress.
Our curly haired friend
Jaye and me at Cracker Barrel
Jaye and CheChe outside Cracker Barrel
Our next stop was the Chicago Premium Outlets. Yep, it’s the same outlet mall as before. Unlike before though, their stock was not impressive and their “sales” were fake so we ended up buying virtually nothing. Check this winter cap I saw at Reebok:
Walking along the Chicago Premium Outlet
We left Aurora, went back to Naperville and had lunch at Olive Garden. I loved the stuffed mushrooms. I loved it so much that the next day, I went to Jewel and bought a pack of fresh mushrooms and replicated the recipe. Jaye says it tasted the same but mine cost a couple of dollars cheaper. Take THAT Olive Garden!
Outside Olive Garden. Jaye's all bundled up while I have a spring jacket on. :P
We next went to Burlington Coat Factory (where I bought a cheap running jacket), Old Navy (where I bought cheap gloves and Jaye bought a cheap jacket) and Walmart (where one section smelled like dog pee). After doing all our shopping, CheChe drove us back to the train station where we had 10 minutes before our train leaves for Chicago.
We had lots of time but while driving there, Jaye and I can’t shake the feeling that we might miss the train. What if the train left early? What if the car’s clock was late? What if CheChe got lost along the way? (which almost happened)
When we got off the car, we had a quick hug with CheChe then it was a 5 minute walk to the other side of the rail. The train hasn't arrived yet but Jaye suddenly ran because she said she didn’t want to get left behind. I ran behind because well, that’s what good hubbies do. Little did we know that there were a few people behind us that were also catching the train and when they saw us burst into a sprint, they sprinted too causing a mini panic at the train station.
The train arrived 20 minutes later. :P
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