Exploring Chicago's Chinatown

This past weekend, Ellette and I began our monthly excursions into Chicago

We had a couple of friends with us, one for Ellette and one for me.  It made the hour long train ride bearable.

And then we arrived in Chinatown, and everyone was excited.

The Chinese New Year just passed, and Sunday was their festival and parade.  The neighborhood was packed but the general feeling of excitment and aniticipation was infectious.

It was difficult to get really good pictures of the parade.  And it was cold, so standing around with my mittens off to take pictures was not ideal.  I did the best I could given the circumstances.

My favorite was the dragons.  I didn’t get a photo in time, but following the big dragons with the adults working them, there were three little kids in a tiny dragon outfit.  It was the most heart-wrenching thing ever and you could hear the collective sigh and “AWE” from the crowd as they passed.

The streets were so packed, and by the end of the parade we were all starving, it was difficult to find a restuarant without a long wait.  I eventually turned down a street that looked like it had been forgotten by the tourists and found a quiet little place – the Shanghai Bistro – and we ended up being seated right away.  We were sharing our large round table with 6 French tourists, which was interesting and kind of fun

And then the day was over and it was time to go home.  The kids continued to bounce off the wall, energized by excitement and cream cake.  The moms were trying not to fall asleep on the train.  It was a lovely day, and I can’t wait for our next excursion!  Any recommendations?

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