Chicago

Had a great time with friends in Chicago Saturday.

Brunch at Orange. A good breakfast joint. Good atmosphere, good food and big serving.

Went to Lincoln Park Zoo. Spent a lot of time watching the chimps and the gorillas. The weather was really nice... in the 50s. Even the chimps were out and about. Looking at the African apes, I wish they weren't kept in cages. The facility at the zoo is really good. But I just wonder if the animals would be happier in the jungle. But then, from their perspective, they might just as well be thinking.... "what are all these people in cage staring at us for?"

Oh... we saw zebra too. Two zebras stood out from the herd of three there. One with a black body with white stripes and the other has a white body with black stripes.

Then we watched a play at Lincoln Square Theatre... Rashomon. A Japanese story about a rape and murder, being told by four people with four different contradicting accounts. Very well acted. The actress who played the samurai's wife and the actor who played the bandit were exceptionally good. Moral of the story? People see things what only they want to see and they tell only what they want to tell. We are selfish creatures; we lie; we are deceitful. But the silver lining is that we have compassion--the goodness that lies within us, no matter how deep and hidden it is, is undeniably there.

Lincoln Square... a nice street (square?) with small shops and eateries. After the play, we stopped at a pastry/coffee shop. I want to go back there later in Spring. I want to take pictures of kids playing in the plaza. I want to visit the book stores there or just stroll along all the row houses in the neighborhood.

Dinner was at Medival Times. With low expectation, I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the food and the show as well. You don't get to see people dressed up as knights and kings and princess... jousting on horses and sword fighting all the times. Eating with your fingers was actually quite a satisfying experience.

After dinner, we went to a Andy's for some good Jazz. I wish I knew how to play Jazz. Well... wishful thinking really... my piano skill has deteriorated so much due to years of lack of practice, let alone playing jazz. I will probably stick with my singing for now. Even with singing, I have a long way to go.