New Season. New City

By Kelly Garcia

Labour Day has come and gone in the US, which means summer is officially over and I have no idea how to feel about it! I am sad that we no longer get to go to the lake as often but I am so excited for less humidity (even though Florida’s humidity will be killing me in about a month). My favourite things about winter in Chicago are the coats, boots, beanies and scarves!

With the season slowing down, we had a little more time off and we decided that a hike was just what we needed! Of course, the day we decide to head out, the temperature soared to 33 degrees (Celsius) and the humidity was crazy. Despite the heat the hike was great - fresh air, waterfalls, a lovely picnic, spiders and an obscene amount of stairs. While this resulted in lots of sweating, it was well worth it. The hiking trail was situated in a ‘ghost town’.  It had one street with old dilapidated buildings and we did not see a single soul - it was straight out of a horror movie.  It was definitely an exhilarating experience.

It is great to see how popular Nando’s has become in Chicago. Last season there was only one branch but there are now four in the city. It does not compare to the one at home, though. , We took some of our American and European colleagues there and made them try the peri-peri sauces.

To top off a great month I went to see Lauren Hill and Train at Ravinia. Train was so much fun and I screamed out “Drops of Jupiter” in the final performance – the perfect ending, in my opinion. Lauren Hill was AMAZING! She was a little late but when she eventually came on, she did not disappoint! The outfit she wore was a bit strange but she rocked it like the queen that she is. What made it even better was that I received two tickets closer to that stage from two women that left earlier.  I could not believe it - I guess I was in the right place at the right time. So our head chef and I ran inside the pavilion and got to see her up close and personal! She even sang “Doo Wop” – one of my favourites.

We only have about a month left in Chicago, the season went by way too fast but it was a great one. I got to be with my friends again and I made some awesome new ones. The rest of the season is going to be super slow so I am going to spend as much time with them as possible before our bitter farewell!