On October 23 Konnie and I headed to Chicago for the ultimate purpose of my attending a conference for mutual fund directors.  We headed out ahead of the start of the conference as we had been wanting to get back to Chicago together for the first time since 1996.  As the third largest city in the US, Chicago is, according to one guidebook, famous for magnificent and innovative architecture, its colorful and turbulent political history and significance as a transportation hub, the now vanished stockyards, as well as its educational institutes and vibrant cultural venues.

During our visit we hoofed it around town enjoying the architecture as exhibited by the photos but not enjoying the very, very frequent and aggressive begging on the streets which makes strolling the city a bit unpleasant.  We continued what we began in England with our connecting with people I have worked with in Belize working with the Mayan Research Program (www.mayaresearchprogram.org).  This time it was Keitlyn Alcantara who is working on her masters degree at the University of Chicago.  Keitlyn and I dug together on the same structure during my 2009 visit but Keitlyn was unable to return in 2010 because of an unfortunate confrontation with a taxi cab while visiting Chicago in the spring.

Otherwise we focused on the Art Institute of Chicago with two visits there because of the fabulous collection it houses in this beautiful city.

Oh yes, while there we heard that the people of Chicago are so disgusted with the political environment that they are each only voting once this year…