One Metro to Another

For once I feel like I don't have much to say about today. I felt like I never actually left city at any point from the Milwaukee outskirts to Chicago. With limited exception, biking through big cities is my least favorite part of touring. The Milwaukee area was definitely not an exception. There was broken glass everywhere, the roads were in horrendous condition, and the bike path Google wanted me to take was often more sidewalk than bike path and it randomly terminated, sometimes at torn up streets that were reduced to one lane for traffic, or wwould just not provide adequate signs to explain how to stay on it. I would see signs indicating I was on the official circle tour route around Lake Michigan one moment, then be on some ugly stretch of road with no clue where to go the next. I was not a happy camper today. Even as the dark clouds of the morning cleared and it became apparent I wasn't getting rained on today at least, I still found myself in a generally foul mood.

Even when I did get on a nice stretch of continuous crushed limestone bike trail that was mostly separate from the city hubbub, it was still disappointing because every quarter mile it seemed there was another stop sign, sometimes at extremely busy streets that kept me waiting for what seemed an eternity. Not to mention it really didn't have much to see. And eventually it was back to urban meandering mess, hopping over here, walk your bike here, cross this road one way then another, go off on this side street for a few blocks, to stay on the bike route. It's really not my thing. The stretch of muddy pools along a short stretch of the path that got my bike and me all dirty, again, wasn't helpful either.

The people were the highlight today. The older gentleman who rode with me a little ways, asked about my tour, and gave me advice on how to get where I was going. The lady who stopped in her car and asked me questions (turned out, coincidentally, she's also originally from Nebraska, from Hastings), and told me her house was just a couple blocks away and I could stop in for water or anything else I needed. The boy who came up and told me what a cool bike I had. Those were the moments that made the day better.

Also seeing the Baha'i temple. That was the one thing I truly wanted to see today...and it was basically the one thing I actually did see that was worth seeing. It'a an incredibly beautiful structure, along with the gardens around it, and to sit inside in the well-maintained atmosphere of calm and absolute silence amongst people of all races and creed that have come to appreciate the temple...it almost makes me understand what people mean when they talk about experiencing something spiritual. Whatever else you may say about Chicago, it brings a lot of different people of all backgrounds, race, and religion together, and it is the perfect place for the message of unity that the Baha'i try to spread. It was beyond worth the small detour to see the temple.

I biked through a somewhat cool park after that, with a constantly diverging trail with sculptures in between the paths. It wasn't conducive to stopping for pictures though. ...Not that I would have probably lost any time doing so, as the great equalizer, the stoplights, always seemed to bring the slowest and fastest cyclists together in a huge mass to wait the interminable time for the lights to change. My host for the night, an old friend I met on Whidbey Island just around two years ago when I went orca watching with my friend Rafe's class, wasn't available until later in the evening, so even once I reached the end of the journey today I had to kill some time at a park near his place before I could be inside. It was fine, gave me the time to clean up my bike (again) and call a friend I haven't talked to in too long.

And now, after a dinner of rice and PB&J on a tortilla (which honestly really hit the spot), and some chatting, it is time for bed. I have to navigate my way back out of this city tomorrow.