I Would Hate to be Luggage

One of the most gorgeous cities ever!

Walking down the streets of a bustling city like Chicago is a just an awesome feeling. People on their phones walking to work. Tourists taking pictures of the beautiful buildings. Little girls holding their American Girl dolls. It's just a fantastic feeling to stop and look around at the varied lives each citizen has.

With that said, we woke up ready to walk around downtown and shop. If you have read my Blogger Introduction (all you have to do is click on my name in the contributors list of this blog), you'll find that shopping is one of my interests. For my parents who are reading this now, don't worry! I'm a careful shopper, just trust me. If you love to shop, then downtown Chicago is your destination. I picked up some gifts and souvenirs and we soon headed for lunch.

How can we leave Chicago with eating Chicago style pizza? The last time I checked, that's a sin, right? Jokes apart, this four cheese deep dish pizza was a heaven of deliciousness and calories. Perfectly crafted with a flaky crust that just melts when it hits the mouth, a layer of marinara holding everything in place, and four different layers of cheese providing the richness that pizzas exhibit. In order to enjoy this to the fullest, I put the guilt aside and went right to work. The taste of this pizza lingered in my mouth for the longest time, and I've been told that if a food's taste lingers around for a while, it's a masterpiece. Need I say any more about this pizza?

Best tasting pizza

After rushing to The Drake Hotel to pick up our luggage, it was time to say good bye to Chicago. Clearly, Chicago is one of the best places I've been, hands down. The reliance on transportation and resources that are available at your fingertip makes this city all the more easier to navigate through. One slight drawback though is that taxi drivers often don't wait for pedestrians. Many times, we would be crossing the street only to find a cab two inches away.

We entered the airport in a hurry as we were unexpectedly stuck in traffic. Today, I found out something I would never want to be. A luggage. Yes. Airport officials handle these poor things so harshly that I can almost here these suitcases yell, "handle me more gently, please!"

After eating a burrito for dinner at the Philadelphia airport, we headed for our flight to Ithaca. For the first time I was able to board a flight on the runway. How cool is that?!

Tiniest plane I've ever been on

Once we entered Cornell, I had to check into my room which I'll be sharing with a roommate tomorrow. Unlike the other members of my cohort, I was the only one assigned to Risley Hall. The others of my cohort stayed in either Mary Donlon Hall or North Balch Hall. Though I was very scared and nervous to be in a residence hall all by myself (all other summer program students check in only Saturday morning), I realized this was yet another step in becoming independent. I was literally on my own. And tomorrow I'll be sharing this building with plenty of students I did not know rather than with my own familiar cohort. As I always do, I looked at the positive side of my situation and accepted it for how it was. If I am in my own hall by myself, I shall make the best out of it and accept that this is one of the experiences that will help me become all the more mature and independent.

My dorm room. More spacious than expected.

My organization skills came to the rescue.