July 21, 2010

Indiana Ocean and Beluga Encounter

It was a dark and stormy night.....no not really...it was a humid and very hot afternoon!  We took off around 11:30 a.m. to start the day with lunch at Trader's Point Creamery.  YUM!
After our bellies were full with a $50+ lunch of very good sandwiches including a $6.50 milkshake, we were ready for the long, rugged road ahead of us.  (and miles to go before I sleep, miles to go before I sleep.)

As we headed up 65 through the cornfields of Indiana...(I think cornfields are beautiful...I don't care what the city folk say.)  The most interesting site was the addition of the windmills.  I couldn't decide if Indiana now resembles California or something off of the old Arnold Schwarzenegger movie, Total Recall.  You decide!  Either way it was kind of weird!

So, after long strenuous hours of driving we made it to northern Indiana and the famed Indiana Ocean...the Indiana Dunes!  We walked along the water's (cold, cold) edge and stuck our feet in the clear water.  Ahhhh!  Ocean!  :-)   I was quite shocked to see the pilfering that was going on along the beach...things have really degraded here!  Someone had left their beach blanket and belongings unattended to and thieves were there to pick off what they could. (See open bag of chips...tasty!) 
The beach looked like I remembered...close your eyes...open them again and you are transported to Florida or better yet California's water edge!  Sigh!

Onward ever! The next morning we took the Southshore train in to Chicago for our Beluga Encounter at Shedd Aquarium. It was awesome! We fed Bella and Peruji and interacted with them for 45 minutes+! Really cool experience.  (Especially being that the water was 55 degrees!)  That's me...head bumping with Bella!


Sunday morning we found a really neat place in Valparaiso, called Tall Tree Arboretum. We spent some time hiking it and checking out the wildlife. They have over 350 acres and lots of trails that wind between lakes, woods, and wildflowers.  If you are ever in the area, I recommend stopping to check it out.

And of course no trip would be complete without...Chocolate!  Pièce de résistance!

YAY!  Happy 19th Anniversary to us!

2 comments:

Deb said...

What an awesome idea to celebrate...belugas! Love it!

Mom said...

How awesome to be able to interact with such amazing creatures!