Where Would I go?

The decision was insignificant; I just needed to leave home. It was necessary to shatter my naive view of the world in order to grow. That's why I left the decision up to my study abroad advisor. He recommended I visit his home country of Macedonia. My journey was full of adventure, fear, growth and so much more! So lets dive into my story with a few travel tips thrown in!

I took advantage of every single cent that I earned from my scholarship. I could have flown straight to my destination, but where was the fun in that. With some crude planning and purchasing my trip was ready!

The beginning of my journey took a turn for the worse right away. I had nothing packed and I departed for the train station in 30 minutes. With just minutes to spare, I was boarding my train to Chicago! I spent the entire day exploring every nook and cranny of the city. However, I kept finding myself sitting at the edge of Navy Pier staring off into the distance. Eventually, I had to make my way to the airport, deep dish pizza in hand. I had an early morning flight so I found a "comfy" bench and went to sleep

Chicago Tips and Recommendations:

1. Choose your accommodations wisely. I like staying near the blue line subway for ease when traveling to and from the airport. The surrounding areas can be very dangerous as well, so do your research!

2. Use the rental bikes or bring your walking shoes. A lot of the must see attractions are not close together. Ubers and taxis can get expensive charging at least $20 per ride! You will also get to see a lot of the hole in the wall restaurants and shops while wandering the city. Once again I highly recommend doing your research so you don't walk into a bad part of town!

3. I highly recommend visiting the Navy Pier at open and close so you can watch the sunrise and sunset over the water. It is completely free to visit! The Chicago Science Museum has some of the most amazing exhibits I have ever seen and it is definitely worth the $25 ticket. Finally, the canal street is a beautiful walkway full of restaurants and completely free to visit!

4. Chicago is home to many delicious foods like the deep dish pizza, the Chicago dog and the Italian beef sandwich. However, Chicago is also home to some amazing and quick Asian cuisine, like wow bao (easy to eat while walking). So be sure to walk around, you never know what delicious restaurant you may find!

Downtown Chicago from Navy Pier