Chicago 2004
A view of the lakefront as we were leaving the Shedd Aquarium
For my birthday, Mandi surprised me with Chicago Bears tickets, hotel reservations, and two tickets on Amtrak. One thing she forgot to mention, of course, was that the Vikings were in town. The same Vikings that knocked Rex Grossman out for the year earlier in the season with a knee injury. But I would get to see the new Soldier Field, visit downtown Chicago again for the first time in many years, and eat tasty stadium food, so I was ecstatic for the weekend of the game!
Fueling up in St. Louis
We left for Chicago from Jefferson City at about 11am on the 4th of December. Mandi brought Christmas cards to write and a book; I brought homework. The train meandered along the Missouri river to St. Louis, then headed northeast to Chicago. The view across the Missouri was beautiful--bluffs, a bald eagle, a few trailers on stilts, and of course the swirling Missouri river herself. Mandi and I brought soup, crackers, and some drinks for the trip, and I also took advantage of the liquor license the train possessed.
Union Station in Chicago
After a relaxing train ride, we arrived at Union Station at about 8:30pm. We hailed a cab and in five minutes were in the Hyatt on Printers Row, just a few blocks from the lakefront and about 1 and 1/2 miles from Soldier. On the advice of the bellboy, we ate at a casual Italian restaurant a few blocks away, Mandi ordering voluptuous seafood ravioli, and myself a thick, juicy pork chop. Our walk back to the hotel was filled with vivid Christmas lights adorning many of the skyscrapers and trees--a beautiful night.
Sunday morning--full of anticipation we donned our flannel-lined jeans, team apparel (Urlacher jersey for me, Vikings socks for Mandi as she didn't want to be burned at the stake--there was some question as to whether or not I would have supplied the match), and camera and headed for Soldier. The weather was perfect--it would be in the mid-40's by game time, and we even had a little sun early on. The walk to Soldier was beautiful too--the lakefront gardens were clean and still had a hint of green, and the lines of people wearing orange and blue were a sight for these sore eyes.
Grant Park
On the way to Soldier (click to enlarge)
Soldier Field was magnificent. Out in front and back of the stadium stood the original pillars, and the rest of the stadium was the modern steel and cement of a progressive design. Everything was new, clean, and spacious. No line-waiting for a brat and beer--there were concession booths every few feet. And our seats! Right on top of the field--didn't look to be a bad view from any part of the stadium.
Mandi at the back of Soldier Field
Soldier Field
Me at Soldier for the first time--Thanks Mandi! Great seats!
More views of Soldier (click to enlarge)
Announcing the starting lineup...
Warm ups (click to enlarge)
Let the game begin!
Culpepper leading the Viking's offense (click to enlarge)
Hutchinson running the offense, A-Train piling up yards in the red-zone, defense sacking Culpepper. (click to enlarge)
The game was amazing--that's easy for me to say because the Bears were the better team this day (and have had very few opportunities to say that over the last few years). Urlacher started, despite recently having been treated for compartment syndrome of his calf muscles, and Hutchinson threw 3 touchdowns (the first time a Bears quarterback has looked decent all season). Moss had fired some derogatory (and profane) remarks toward the Bears' secondary and their receiving trio during the pregame warm up, so when Peanut stripped Moss of the ball for the 2nd time in two years, the crowd went wild. Moss, as you'll note, finished the game with 31 yards.
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1st Quarter |
MIN | CHI | |||
 |
TD | 10:13 |
DESMOND CLARK 6 YD PASS FROM CHAD HUTCHINSON (PAUL
EDINGER KICK) |
0 | 7 |
 |
TD | 13:41 |
NATE BURLESON 4 YD PASS FROM DAUNTE CULPEPPER (MORTEN
ANDERSEN KICK) |
7 | 7 |
|
2nd Quarter |
MIN | CHI | |||
|
|
FG | 3:38 |
PAUL EDINGER 53 YD |
7 | 10 |
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|
TD | 12:37 |
MARCUS ROBINSON 40 YD PASS FROM DAUNTE CULPEPPER (MORTEN
ANDERSEN KICK) |
14 | 10 |
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|
TD | 14:38 |
DAVID TERRELL 15 YD PASS FROM CHAD HUTCHINSON (PAUL
EDINGER KICK) |
14 | 17 |
|
4th Quarter |
MIN | CHI | |||
|
|
TD | 4:37 |
JASON MCKIE 5 YD PASS FROM CHAD HUTCHINSON (PAUL EDINGER
KICK) |
14 | 24 |
Scoring summary from ESPN.com
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Officials
Referee: Tony Corrente |
Game Info
ATTENDANCE: 62,051 |
Box Score from ESPN.com
An exhausted Urlacher after the win
After the game, Mandi and I visited the Shedd Aquarium, just a stroll away from Soldier. The last time I had been there must have been at least 15 years ago when Grandma Cecil took us boys around for a visit. The huge aquarium right in the center of the building was just as I remembered it, and there were many new exhibits too, including a shark exhibit and numerous rainforest exhibits. We loved seeing all the brightly-colored fish and amphibians, but our favorites were the brightly colored corals and jellyfish. I took some neat videos, as pictures do not show up well and the flash annoys the fish, but as of yet I have not discovered how to include video on this site. Keep looking!
After touring the Shedd, we stepped out into the cool Chicago night air and admired the beautiful cityscape before us. We walked along Lake Michigan and eventually happened upon Millennium Park, which not only housed many magnificent statues flooded in brilliant colored lights, but also housed the skating rink.
Skating in Millennium Park
Chicago at night
We retired to our hotel after watching the skaters for a while--we were too exhausted to join in their fun. That night we had a delicious dinner of Minnesota Sturgeoun and enormously-sticky hot fudge sundaes.
The train left Union Station at about 8:45am Monday, and we were off again for Missouri. We were still exhausted from the day before and took advantage of the blessing of naps. We arrived in Jeff City at about 6:30pm, drove 30 minutes home, and gave Ken some much-needed attention. We can't wait to go back!!!
Wake me when we get there...
