Chi-Urban Excursion

Today was ‘the day.’ Just like any other important day is labeled ‘the day’. Today was the day that we adventured off to Chicago for the spring break trip of our lives. Somehow everyone made it on time to the airport at 7am despite packing procrastination and daylight savings time. Everyone breezed through security, and then we boarded a short, 45 minute flight to Seattle. After landing, we traversed all the way across the airport to find our next flight–the one to Chicago. With quite a lengthy layover, some of us decided to explore the airport, and went in search of a food court. Ivars and bagels were the choices of preference for our late breakfast, and eventually we all settled down at the gate–A9 if you’re curious. Some of us dozed off, with dreams of history museums and deep dish pizza, while others chatted about the city, and the places they wanted to visit. Finally, the time came to depart on our final leg in the journey. We boarded the plane, and prepared ourselves for a 3.5 hour flight. Soon after everyone was aboard the plane, the pilot came on the loudspeaker and announced that we were delayed for about an hour, waiting for planes to leave the Chicago airport. We all waited patiently, playing games, watching TV, reading, and of course sleeping while the plane made its way halfway across the United States. In remarkably quick time, we found ourselves in Chicago! The great windy city! We snagged a taxi van we made our way to the Chicago Getaway Hostel and dropped our stuff off in our rooms. We all met up in the lobby and had a quick meeting and overview of our schedule for the week with Eric Heyer. The itinerary is incredible! With our stomaches grumbling out of hunger and everyone’s patience running low, we embarked on a journey to find a deep dish pizza restaurant. And boy did we find one. Lou Malnati’s graciously welcomed us and served us some of the best pizza we had ever had. We left the restaurant stuffed and proud of our first Chicago-ian experience.

After dinner some of us had to run to the CVS and get some hygienic products that were too much of a hassle to carryon. Little did we know the CVS was closed. We meandered around the neighborhood and finally found our way to the Walgreens–which was closed as well. The walk was not in vain though. With a cool breeze blowing against us, everyone agreed that the walk was appreciated, especially after such pizza feast! We made it back to the hostel and departed to our bedrooms, ready to end a long, but amazing day.

Here is a group picture from the 2011 trip! Before we left we had to get Chicago style pizza! I definitely recommend that this year’s group gets some pizza, too!

-Libby

Well is has officially been one week since we landed in Spokane from Chi-Urban Excursion. We were spoiled by the early spring temps that hovered in the 70s most of the week only to return to a few days of snow this week! The dramatic shift in the weather from one city to the next is an analogical cue to the fact that climate actually matters!  The weather can impact our attitude, our choice of clothing, how fast we drive and even what we eat. Our understanding of cultural climate on an experiential, as well as scholarly, level provides exactly the same impact. The Chicago trip was a magnificent immersion that helped us all think more critically about the climate around human difference.

-Tracy

Spending spring break with seven Gonzaga students has been a tremendous affirmation to the Jesuit tradition of educating the whole person. Students had the rare opportunity to learn about the realities of urban communities. The entire week was filled with amazing people like Eardley, from Sri Lanka, who spoke of the biblical intersection to the contemporary debate over immigration; and Jose who gave us a walking tour of Pilsen, a predominately Mexican neighborhood, that featured the outdoor murals that were not just art for art’s sake, but displayed complex images that had political or social content.
The amount of information everyone was provided to about East Indians, Puerto Ricans, Mexicans, African-Americans, and the elderly LGBT, and more was astounding. My personal highlights include seeing the President Barack Obama quilt exhibition in the DuSable African American Museum and being reminded of why its important to remain connected to your cultural history.  Another moment I found moving, as did the students, was our lunch and conversation about campus issues with 10 Loyola University students.
There will always be something to learn, to embrace and to advocate for, and I believe this trip provided an up close and personal experience to just that.  Until next year…

Tracy