May23-June 24, 2016-Our visit in Illinois- 2 days of the Chicago Blues Festival!

Friday June 10, 2016- If our travel plans bring us to Illinois in early June, we always plan to stay long enough to enjoy the Chicago Blues Festival!Today is the day, or should I say...the weekend as it goes on from Friday to Sunday! Lennie & I are anxious to attend, so is Leif. The only unhappy one is.....OTIS! Sadly Otis is going to the kennel for the weekend, a kennel we have used many times over the years while visiting the area. Because it is NOT your typical kennel, more like a Pet Spa. Otis doesn't care how nice it is, to him it's still a kennel!

                                                 Coffee in the To-Go cup.... so let's go!!!

 Because we first had to drop Otis off (no pictures of that SAD event!?!) Leif met us at the Elburn train station.

                                                                     Paying to park!

 Waiting for the train. Elburn is the end of the line, whoever is getting on in Elburn is guaranteed a seat!

                                               Is that the train coming down the track???

We're in the very front car & start out the only ones in our car!

 Being the only ones in our car didn't last long & by the time we finally got into Chicago.....the cars were full!

                                                Looks like someone opened the floodgates!

First stop lunch, at the train station. After lunch we have a mile WALK to Grant Park.

              The Chicago Blues Festival at Grant Park. The largest FREE admittance Blues Festival!

                                                               Maurice John Vaughn

                                                                        Pat Brown

                                                                   Always a crowd!

                                             Thank goodness for SHADE & A BREEZE!

                                        Then it came time for the headliner at the main stage.

                                      We choose our spots, always on the "parade route"!!!

 We had a good spot but....lost our shade & it was hot & humid, 90 degrees! Unlike last year cold & rainy!

                           A necessary evil at any event but ......they had a washing station!

A Blues Fest always includes FOOD!

 Tommy Castro & the Painkillers with guest appearance by Toronzo Cannon<---I really like him!

                                                                       Just a Blues fan!

                                                                                       Another Blues Fan!!!

                                           Did I mention we were on the Parade Route!?!

                                                                   Chicago Skyline

                                                               FINALLY....the headliner!!!!

                                                           SHEMEKIA COPELAND!!!!

                         Great singer/song writer been performing since her young teens

                                                       Chicago's skyline at night.

                  Time to catch the train home! We are hot & tired but full of the Blues!!!!

                By the time we got home it was 1:00am & we're doing this again tomorrow!!!

Saturday June 11, 2016- Otis already being at the kennel, it is not out of our way to go pick up Leif this morning. Our day starts an hour later than yesterday did. Was no problem falling asleep last night that's for sure!!! Leif was ready, his dog, Sophie is being looked in on by his neighbor. We could have left Otis with my niece Izzy but with his bum leg, I didn't want her to have to be responsible for his "catered care"!?!

                                    Back at the Elburn train station, parking is FREE today!

                                                                 There's our train!

 Several stops after we get on is College Avenue in Wheaton.  We lived in Wheaton for almost 5 years, right behind the College Avenue stop. 1105 College Avenue, our house is long gone, now an apartment complex has taken it's place.  It was my favorite town to live in as a kid!

Soon as we arrive at the Chicago Station....LUNCH! Lennie & Leif chose the same restaurant, I went looking for some Mexican cuisine!

     Once again we sought out the acts in the shade......it was more humid today & less breeze!

                                         Either the heat or the Blues was getting to Len!!!

                                                       "Lazy Lester" who's 83!!!!

 Now we move to the big stage Petrillo Music Shell, the bigger names perform at this stage, but.....no shade! While the National Anthem is being sung, the guy in the black T-shirt is signing the song!

                                                                  Wee Willie Walker

                                           We have our same spot, right on the parade route!

                  Just a Blues fan having fun. He was here yesterday, he's back in his same spot too!

The headliner tonight is Fred Wesley & The New JBs. Not a group that we would stay to watch! That means we'll be catching the train earlier & we'll get home before midnight!!!! The act we did stay is see, I expected HER to be the headliner????Irma Thomas, the SOUL QUEEN of New Orleans!!!

                                           At 75 Irma Thomas is still belting out the BLUES!

                 In 2005 Hurricane Katrina ruined both her home & her night club, the Lion's Den.

In 2007 Irma Thomas received a Grammy for her song, After The Rain, a reference to Hurricane Katrina.

That was a great show, now we begin our walk back to the train station!

Good-Bye Chicago Blues Fest, maybe we'll see you next year!?!

The ball at Millennium Park I'm taking our picture in the reflection!

                                                           Trekking to the train station!

                               The Chicago River which is dyed GREEN on St Patrick's Day

We are on board the train heading back to Elburn. It's crowded but not near as bad if we would have stayed for the headliner act!

Here we are.....Elburn train station.Almost home just a car ride back to the campgrounds. We're not going to the Blues Fest tomorrow.....I hope that means I can sleep in a bit!!!