Now That I'm A True Chicagoan...HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Happy New Year! My days leading up to and day of New Year's were all spent in the "Windy City": CHICAGO! Three friends of mine and I made the trek to see Umphrey's McGee in the Auditorium Theatre for three...yes, that's right kids...THREE nights of outta-control music, don't-stop-'til-ya-drop dancing, and blow-your-mind light shows. And that was just how we spent our evenings! The days were equally as fun...filled with window-shopping, sightseeing, great food, LOTS of walking, and bonding with friends.

Day 1...Monday, December 29th
Our three-day expedition began at literally the crack of dawn---I even got to see an honest-to-God sunrise as we traveled down the winter roads toward Chicago. After a quick and painless 9 or so hours of driving (no thanks to the icy roads, strong winds, or rush-hour traffic) we arrived at our hotel. The Essex was perfect! When we got an unbelievably great deal online for our 3 nights, I was skeptical about the quality we'd see at the hotel, but I am happy to say that we were pleasantly surprised. After we each claimed our territories within the room (literally), we all hit the streets to explore awhile before that evening's show.

Nearly right away, we located a "quaint" little place a few blocks from our hotel called "The Corner Bakery" and grabbed some dinner. We then headed back to the hotel, threw on some concert clothes, and walked a short 4 blocks to the venue.

The Auditorium Theatre, where we were to enjoy 3 nights of Umphrey's McGee, is generally more geared toward plays or operas, so one can imagine it was GORGEOUS. Although I would not have labeled it the sterotypical "jam band concert venue", once we got there, it gave off a great vibe and was, in my humble opinion, a great location choice.

To sum up the next 3 hours of madness, Night 1 Umphrey's McGee= amaaaaazing! And having 7th row dead center didn't hurt... especially Plunger>Bottom Half w/Triple Wide teases...made my night!!

Day 2...Tuesday, December 30th

As expected, we were all exhausted the next morning, but I decided to wake up semi-early to begin my day with a quick workout in the hotel gym followed by a short swim and relaxing sit in the sauna. After we all showered and got ready, we again set out to the streets of Chicago where we visited "The Bean" (per my redundant requests....just as cool as I had hoped! :] ).We then continued our touristy walk down Michigan Ave, heading toward our eventual destination of "Fogo de Chao", a Brazilian Steakhouse that will feed you until you theoretically die. Lliterally, we were all ready to ROLL back to our hotel rather than WALK due to the extreme eating that went on while we were there. All in all, however, totally worth it!

We did end up making it back to the hotel despite our ridiculous food-intake and some of us napped while others of us just relaxed and watched some TV to pass the 2 hours until concert time (aka : I napped). After Night 1, we were all stoked to see what Umphrey's had up their sleeves for Night 2.

As anticipated, Umph's dealed out another nasty set. I even got my Bright Lights (w/Stanley Jordan on guitar...mad man!) Although I did suffer from a lame headache through most of the show, I managed to get some great pictures of the band, lights, and my crazy friends gettin' down...

Day 3...Wednesday, December 31st...NEW YEAR'S EVE!
Night 2 was an early show, but we ended up sleeping in QUITE late on the morning of Day 3...mostly in preparation for what we foresaw to be one fiiiiiine night of ringing in the New Year.

Once we all finally rolled out of bed and got ready, we decided to seek out a few stores each of us had in mind. And when most of those ideas were a bust, we simply high-tailed it to the nearest Chipotle (of course) and enjoyed a quick sit-down. After eating, we decided that the hotel sauna sounded heavenly in contrast to the bone-chilling Chicago weather so we jaywalked back (because we are true Chicagoans) and enjoyed some relaxing pool and sauna time.

Before we knew it, concert time was drawing near...and next thing I knew, we were enthusiastically walking down the street toward what would hopefully be the best night yet.

I can say, without hesitation, that I thought Night 3 was theeee best of the three night run. Guests were blues singer Koko Taylor and Japanese guitarist Shun Kikuta followed by the Chicago Mass Choir (amaaaaaaazing!)....definitely a goosebump moment when the Chicago Mass Choir joined in with Umphrey's already amazing playing.

Chicago was an awesome trip. Great company, great hotel, great surroundings, great outings, and of course, great concerts. Everything went so smoothly and I couldn't have asked for a better 3 days or a better way to start 2009! In closing: Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful....tradition :]

Happy 2009!!!