Well, the night finally arrived. I won’t lie, I spent the day worried that the night would be a fail with the torrential downpour we had. At 4 p.m., my ride arrived: a car fully loaded with baskets, chairs, tables AND umbrellas!! Yup, it was pouring rain. The kind of rain that when you drove along the streets of Chicago, pedestrians had to be mindful of your car as it might send a splash wave of rainwater their way.
Well, we pulled into North Avenue Beach — our meeting place — and as we began to unload the car, umbrellas fully opened, the sun fought it’s way through the clouds and the rain calmed down. Within 20 minutes we had the glaring sun setting it’s beautiful orange hue behind Chicago’s skyline as we anxiously waited for our group leader to announce our departure.
With umbrellas under our arms we headed over the North Avenue bridge. After a quick right we joyfully arrived along the pond of Lincoln Park Zoo. Within minutes we began to settle into our tables and chairs, and our decorated place settings. All so eloquently organized and everything went without a hitch.
Imagine sitting along the pond of Lincoln Park Zoo with the Chicago skyline as your backdrop, musicians playing in the background, only candles to enter into the night, and your friend, companion, partner or true love as your date!
It was a night to remember and I look forward to this grand tradition that Chicago will continue to bring every summer!!!
