Things to do in Chicago, and how to get around... - Tiki Travel

M mikehooker Grand Member (3 years) Austin Joined: Jul 17, 2014 Posts: 1211	M mikehooker Posted posted on Sat, Apr 20, 2019 3:44 PM NOTE: I don't think I took a single picture here on out, so all visuals are stolen from my wife, Antiki, and Princess Pupule without permission. Day 5: Everyone gathered in the hotel lobby bright and early to start our CATT adventure. Unfortunately the two buses that were to take us to our destinations showed up considerably late, so our time at our first stop, Chef Shangri-La, was limited. Upon entering the bus we were given our first swag bag with gifts and snacks that all had Chicago origin. On the way to Chef, we were given sample sized cocktails, and MC Jet Sterling provided trivia and raffled off some fun items from the sponsors. We got to Chef and everyone anxiously piled in. They have some great Witco pieces, some cool Orchids lamps, private booths, thatching, matting, carvings, all the hallmarks of a great tiki bar, but something was just lacking during our visit. Perhaps it was because we were there so early (I believe we arrived before noon), but it was so damn bright in there. None of the lights were dimmed or diffused in any way and the white ceiling tiles were an eye soar. I've seen photos where the mood lighting seems way more appropriate than what we got. Also, they didn't have any music on. So it's a shame we didn't get the full experience. I ordered a round of Doctor Fong's, which for 8 bucks a pop were not as disastrous as I anticipated. There's a lot of cheap rum, some spice, and we believe the "secret ingredient" is lemon-lime Gatorade. Shhh. We also got food which was pretty decent. We quickly stuffed potstickers and crab rangoon in our faces before being called outside. Everyone gathered for a great group photo before loading back on the bus with another bag of goodies and the second bus drink. Next stop was our old haunt, Three Dots! We were greeted with a complimentary Mai Tai in a commemorative double old fashioned glass. Our group claimed a booth in the corner while the hoards lined up for the free lunch buffet. Good thing we had already put a little sustenance in our bellies cuz none of us were too inclined to spend half our time standing in a line. Instead we commenced the drinking. After my Mai Tai I had a Corn 'n Oil, which was not at all traditional, but really damn good! Then we ordered the Bali Bali bowl to share. Sadly we had to suck that one down and be on our way. But on the bright side, Lost Lake was our next destination. Back on the bus we piled. Some of our crew tapped out for a bit while I made sure to hydrate. We were halfway through the festivities now and had to exercise restraint and pace ourselves, so no bus drink for me. Upon entry at Lost Lake we were handed Tic Tac Taxis. In due time I claimed a spot at the little bar off to the right when you first walk in where I had Paul McGee whip me up a Ti Punch, which was lovely. Evidently I was the happiest person to ever walk the planet at this moment! I nerded out over some of the vintage and rare rums on the back bar and Paul didn't bat an eye at handing over a 1940s-era bottle of Red Heart Jamaican rum that I was ogling. All the while he very cool and calmly mixed together orders for the thirsty masses. For my next round I asked him for something potent and spicy, in the Zombie/Jet Pilot family and he definitely answered the call with a delicious, complex concoction. This is the approximate moment I got drunk. But we still had one more stop to go! Tiki Terrace is an unassuming space in a strip plaza in what seemed like Anytown, USA. I assume we were in a suburb outside of Chicago but lost my bearings somewhere along the way. Perhaps I took a quick catt nap whilst on the bus cuz I don't remember much of the ride. For some reason I didn't really explore the interior of this spot or take in much of the decor. I guess I was wearing down and just wanted to settle at a table and eat. We got good seats in front of the stage that featured two giant Moai, a thatched A-Frame and some cool tapa patterns on the ceiling tiles. They had a multi-course dinner and floor show prepared for us. Now if you've been to the Mai Kai or seen a proper Polynesian show, this isn't one you'd necessarily write home about, but it was still fun and entertaining, and vastly elevated by the fact a crew of 125 tiki misfits had free rein of the place. I don't recall what instigated it, but at some point the group next to us had a bowl drink and everyone around collectively decided to connect as many straws as possible to one another to make the worlds longest distance from drinker to drinkee. It was quite impressive and I'm certain video evidence of this exists. Following the show, the Austin Ohana got together for a group shot with the performers. We all appear to be in a pretty good state considering we'd just endured about 12 hours of pretty consecutive drinking on the day. On the final bus ride home we were told the fire alarm had gone off at our hotel and they had to evacuate everyone. Luckily, when we arrived it was only a short wait before they let us go in and the inconvenience did nothing to diminish our spirits. We crashed shortly after sorting through all our swag from the day. We found out later there was at least one room party, but it's probably for the best we didn't partake. I probably passed out a little after 11. The thing about me when I consume an exorbitant amount of alcohol is that I very rarely hang over or get sick, which is wonderful, but often times my body is restless. In this case, I woke at 3:30 AM and after 30 minutes of tossing and realizing sleep was not in the cards for me, I decided to get up and go down to the gym. They had a fancy elliptical machine where you can pick a course to hike and it gives you a virtual exploration that changes resistance along the trail. I chose to jog through mountains in New Zealand and national parks in Utah. Clocked 6 miles and over 5000 feet of elevation before deciding to go back to the room, shower, and hope for rest. It took a while but eventually I got a little shut eye. When I awoke... SNOW! I was hoping to conclude our trip in this post but we've still got one more CATT event left, the farewell party at Hala Kahiki. Will finish up soon... [ Edited by: mikehooker 2019-04-20 15:45 ]

NOTE: I don't think I took a single picture here on out, so all visuals are stolen from my wife, Antiki, and Princess Pupule without permission.

Day 5:
Everyone gathered in the hotel lobby bright and early to start our CATT adventure. Unfortunately the two buses that were to take us to our destinations showed up considerably late, so our time at our first stop, Chef Shangri-La, was limited. Upon entering the bus we were given our first swag bag with gifts and snacks that all had Chicago origin. On the way to Chef, we were given sample sized cocktails, and MC Jet Sterling provided trivia and raffled off some fun items from the sponsors.

We got to Chef and everyone anxiously piled in. They have some great Witco pieces, some cool Orchids lamps, private booths, thatching, matting, carvings, all the hallmarks of a great tiki bar, but something was just lacking during our visit. Perhaps it was because we were there so early (I believe we arrived before noon), but it was so damn bright in there. None of the lights were dimmed or diffused in any way and the white ceiling tiles were an eye soar. I've seen photos where the mood lighting seems way more appropriate than what we got. Also, they didn't have any music on. So it's a shame we didn't get the full experience. I ordered a round of Doctor Fong's, which for 8 bucks a pop were not as disastrous as I anticipated. There's a lot of cheap rum, some spice, and we believe the "secret ingredient" is lemon-lime Gatorade. Shhh. We also got food which was pretty decent. We quickly stuffed potstickers and crab rangoon in our faces before being called outside. Everyone gathered for a great group photo before loading back on the bus with another bag of goodies and the second bus drink.

Next stop was our old haunt, Three Dots! We were greeted with a complimentary Mai Tai in a commemorative double old fashioned glass. Our group claimed a booth in the corner while the hoards lined up for the free lunch buffet. Good thing we had already put a little sustenance in our bellies cuz none of us were too inclined to spend half our time standing in a line. Instead we commenced the drinking. After my Mai Tai I had a Corn 'n Oil, which was not at all traditional, but really damn good! Then we ordered the Bali Bali bowl to share.

Sadly we had to suck that one down and be on our way. But on the bright side, Lost Lake was our next destination. Back on the bus we piled. Some of our crew tapped out for a bit while I made sure to hydrate. We were halfway through the festivities now and had to exercise restraint and pace ourselves, so no bus drink for me. Upon entry at Lost Lake we were handed Tic Tac Taxis. In due time I claimed a spot at the little bar off to the right when you first walk in where I had Paul McGee whip me up a Ti Punch, which was lovely. Evidently I was the happiest person to ever walk the planet at this moment!

I nerded out over some of the vintage and rare rums on the back bar and Paul didn't bat an eye at handing over a 1940s-era bottle of Red Heart Jamaican rum that I was ogling. All the while he very cool and calmly mixed together orders for the thirsty masses. For my next round I asked him for something potent and spicy, in the Zombie/Jet Pilot family and he definitely answered the call with a delicious, complex concoction. This is the approximate moment I got drunk.

But we still had one more stop to go! Tiki Terrace is an unassuming space in a strip plaza in what seemed like Anytown, USA. I assume we were in a suburb outside of Chicago but lost my bearings somewhere along the way. Perhaps I took a quick catt nap whilst on the bus cuz I don't remember much of the ride. For some reason I didn't really explore the interior of this spot or take in much of the decor. I guess I was wearing down and just wanted to settle at a table and eat. We got good seats in front of the stage that featured two giant Moai, a thatched A-Frame and some cool tapa patterns on the ceiling tiles.

They had a multi-course dinner and floor show prepared for us. Now if you've been to the Mai Kai or seen a proper Polynesian show, this isn't one you'd necessarily write home about, but it was still fun and entertaining, and vastly elevated by the fact a crew of 125 tiki misfits had free rein of the place. I don't recall what instigated it, but at some point the group next to us had a bowl drink and everyone around collectively decided to connect as many straws as possible to one another to make the worlds longest distance from drinker to drinkee. It was quite impressive and I'm certain video evidence of this exists. Following the show, the Austin Ohana got together for a group shot with the performers. We all appear to be in a pretty good state considering we'd just endured about 12 hours of pretty consecutive drinking on the day.

On the final bus ride home we were told the fire alarm had gone off at our hotel and they had to evacuate everyone. Luckily, when we arrived it was only a short wait before they let us go in and the inconvenience did nothing to diminish our spirits.

We crashed shortly after sorting through all our swag from the day. We found out later there was at least one room party, but it's probably for the best we didn't partake. I probably passed out a little after 11. The thing about me when I consume an exorbitant amount of alcohol is that I very rarely hang over or get sick, which is wonderful, but often times my body is restless. In this case, I woke at 3:30 AM and after 30 minutes of tossing and realizing sleep was not in the cards for me, I decided to get up and go down to the gym. They had a fancy elliptical machine where you can pick a course to hike and it gives you a virtual exploration that changes resistance along the trail. I chose to jog through mountains in New Zealand and national parks in Utah. Clocked 6 miles and over 5000 feet of elevation before deciding to go back to the room, shower, and hope for rest. It took a while but eventually I got a little shut eye.

When I awoke... SNOW!

I was hoping to conclude our trip in this post but we've still got one more CATT event left, the farewell party at Hala Kahiki. Will finish up soon...

[ Edited by: mikehooker 2019-04-20 15:45 ]

Post #794621 by mikehooker on Sat, Apr 20, 2019 3:44 PM