Well we were conned. Woke up and looked out the window to see clear and blue skies. Perfect for a ball game or so we thought. Headed outside and it was cold. It was 11C so I guess the cubs t-shirts we bought were going to cut it. So pack the jumpers, coats and gloves.
As we drove closer to Wrigley Park and closer to Lake Michigan, the temperature on the dash was getting lower. It was now 9C. Not sure where we were going to park. There was plenty of people offering parking on their properties from $30 to $45. I am sure there is something cheaper, so we headed out to where Bradley will be working and there was a one park left out the front – and it was free.
Free parking comes with a price but the 1.75 km walk at least kept us warm.
On the grass outside the field, Budweiser had set up some bars and an electronic batting game. Jenny and I both gave it a go. You had a practice swing then 3 game swings. Of course I hit a home run on the practice swing and bombed out on the game swings and Jenny got a couple of taps in the game swings.
Clark the Chicago Cubs mascot was there so we had our photo with him and also got to see the 2016 World Series trophy. Time to put on the oxygen and head up to our seats. I had chosen these seats as they were undercover however with no rain on the radar, it would have been better to have been in the sun.
The view from the seats was good, able to see the whole field and even still make out the ball. There were plenty of screens, both large and small to keep up with what is going on and the place was nearly packed to capacity. I guess there were still some people working in Chicago today.
What was really interesting was the grandstands on the roofs of all the buildings on the other side of the road in the east and north. Even though they miss out on the big screens, they would have enjoyed the sunshine. The wind coming off Lake Michigan was brutal and the wind chill would have put the temperature somewhere around 3-4C. Having thin blood doesn’t help as I lost feeling in my fingers by the end of the game. I guess my gloves weren’t thick enough.
It was a close game with it looking like the Cubs were going to take it out 2-0 but a 3 run Home Run hit by the Yankees late in the game took the win away. The Cubs seemed to have lost hope and never recovered. It was still a good game despite the loss.
The walk back to the car started the blood circulating and by the time we got back to the hotel, I had feeling back in my hands.
The Illinois Foodfest has 2 more days to run and tonight we headed to Red Lobster for some seafood. Of course we have enough leftovers for tomorrow nights dinner. It will be good to get back to Oz and some reasonable sized meals.
