So as many of you know, I was heading off to Chicago for a ten-day wedding fest for a very good friend of mine and his intended.

Regally Radisson

The flight was at 1000 on Thursday morning and given that I would have to be there three hours in advance AND get to Heathrow, I opted to stay at the Radisson Hotel overnight.

A Good Night Sleep?

Booking into my room around 7pm, I dumped my suitcases and headed down to the restaurant for a bite to eat and an early night.

The RBG restaurant was quite busy but they fitted me in. The prices were quite steep, which I guess are to be expected when you have a captive audience who want to eat and sleep before (or after) a flight.

A Fantastic Feast Available

I decided to order a relatively light dish, Spinach and Ricotta Tortellini with Salmon which I combined with a lime and soda.

The pasta was in a creamy pesto sauce and the salmon had the crispiest seared skin I have ever tasted.

It was absolutely sublime and I polished off every single morsel.

Absolutely Sublime

After eating it was time for the last minute preparations before leaving for terminal 5 at 0615 on the shuttle bus that calls at all the major hotels.

It took around 40 minutes to get to the airport and Boo had already arrived. We met up and headed straight to the baggage check in to drop off all our belongings.

Terminal 5 bound

I had two large suitcases which were almost at full capacity.

Once we dropped the bags we were directed to assistance as I am still really struggling with my knee and I find it really difficult to get around such huge places, especially when I am on a time limit.

There were around three hours to kill so we headed to Pilot’s Bar and Kitchen for a spot of breakfast. I had the full English which was very tasty, although the poached eggs were rock hard!

Hard Boiled?

Heading to the gate we sat and waited for boarding and I have to admit the time simply flew by. It seemed like only minutes before we were being taken onto the flight along with another couple of people needing assistance.

Killing Time

The plane was a double decker and I had booked the last row in the first economy section. This was a set of two seats which meant I wouldn’t hopefully have to move too much if there was only one person sat near the window.

Awaiting Take-Off

Boo had only been able to book a seat a few aisles behind me, so we said we would check in with each other periodically.

The flight was due to take around 9 hours and the idea was to NOT fall asleep. Given the 6 hour time difference, it would only confuse my body completely.

Our Flight Route

This meant keeping busy with the latest films, snacks and my latest book. It is amazing how quickly time can literally fly when you have so many options available.

I started off by watching ‘The Duke’ a cracking film with Jim Broadbent and Helen Mirren which made me laugh out loud. A great plot based on the real life theft of a Goya painting from the National Gallery back in 1961.

High In The Clouds

Once finished I looked at some of the games on the in-house entertainment system and found ‘Who Wants to Be A Millionaire’. Well, I love a good quiz so had a go and on my second attempt won the Jackpot. Sadly this wouldn’t be converted into real money.

Wish It Was Real

Following that up with ‘The Lost City’ which was a silly romp through the jungle on a treasure hunt with Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum. It was a little obvious in some of the plot lines however I thoroughly enjoyed it.

During the second film I was offered some food; chicken or pasta.

Better Than It Looks!

I opted for the Mexican Chicken with Salsa potatoes. This came with a small pot of chickpea salad, a roll and butter, crackers and cheddar and a pot cherry chocolate crunch dessert.

There was wine on offer however I took some non-alcoholic beer instead. All in all the food was pretty tasty and certainly filled a hole.

Perfect Refreshment

I finished off the flight with ‘Uncharted’ which was a Tom Holland/Mark Wahlberg adventure tale based on the lost treasure of Ferdinand Magellan.

By the time that was finished, the flight was down to its last hour and I was served a chicken Caesar salad sandwich with a drink and kitkat. It hit the spot and set me up for the landing.

Time To Land

Hitting the tarmac at around 1pm I had to wait for assistance off the plane. We were assisted by the amazing Hamza who single handed, pushed me in a wheelchair through the airport whilst shoving two large suitcases at the same time.

Packed To The Gills

By the time we got to through security and baggage collection and made it to the exit doors, it was almost 3pm and it was around 30 degrees in the sun!

The heat hit us like a hairdryer blowing right in our faces.

We were very thankful when our monster sized Uber arrived to take us into the City. We knew it was around a 35 minute drive, however the Gods were not on our side. The traffic was horrendous and it took over two hours to make the journey.

Traffic….

During the ride, the groom said he would like me to be at his stag night. Given that it was Thursday and the wedding was on Saturday, time was running a little short.

It was now heading for 5pm, as we walked into the revolving doors of our hotel, Hyatt Place, only to spot the main man waiting in the reception area with arms open for a great big hug.

Local Sights

That was when he mentioned that the stag night was in an hour!

Heading to the room on the 14th floor, I barely had a chance to see how great it was before jumping in the shower, changing my outfit and make-up before heading off to meet up with the stag party.

Right Outside Our Hotel

First stop was a short walk away from our base, Hyatt Place.  However, I was completely lost in which direction I should be going, even looking at Google Maps on my phone.

A very kind man asked if he could be of assistance and when I told him I was looking for ‘Smith and Wollensky‘

Smith And Wollensky

He pointed me straight ahead and told me to walk for 3 or 4 minutes and I would see it. If I hit the bridge, I was a little too far but look to the left and I would see it.

A gorgeous green and white facade led me into an amazing looking bar/restaurant which was right up my alley. The groom to be and his best man, Barry were sitting with great looking cocktails, so I asked for a mocktail which the barman happily made.

We only spent 10 minutes in the bar as a car was booked to take us to another location where we would meet up with a couple of other people.

The car dropped us off at ‘The Frontier’ where Barry had prearranged a feast of food.

Heading To The Frontier

I was the only lady present, but happily got to know Barry, Stephan and Moon more over drinks. I was shocked when Barry explained what the food plan was though.

Fried Oysters to start followed by a whole leg of lamb, a whole pigs head plus sides!

Well, I was not sure just where we were going to put all that food when it arrived.

Meat Heaven

The starters arrived; a huge platter of fried oysters which looked a lot like Coquilles St Jacques; served in a scallop shell with grilled crumb.

I am not a fan of oysters so decided to give them a miss and leave more room for the meat that was to come.

A Flavour Feast

What was even more surprising was when a guy came out with a foldable table. It was set up right next door to our table and plates were added before a parade of people came out carrying wooden boards full of meat.

The leg of lamb and pigs head were presented to us before being carved and portioned out. The lamb platter was huge and I genuinely didn’t know how it would get eaten.

Literally Falling Off The Bone

Of course, there had to be sides; macaroni cheese and bowls of brussel sprouts with lardons.

The pig head was put onto two different platters, one of the main meat and crackling and a second one which included the tongue, eyeballs, snout and ears.

Eyes And Shots

Apparently it is a tradition for the groom and best man to eat an eyeball followed by a shot. Of course the two men completed the challenge as we all cheered them on.

Even though we were all stuffed, it was decided that we would order a dessert; Bread and Butter Caramel pudding.

Delicious Dessert

This was something I was really looking forward to, however I was a little confused when it arrived in a cast iron skillet yet was served stone cold.

Being used to the more English way of serving the dessert, I assumed it would be piping hot.

More Meat Than I Can Manage

Saying that, it was extremely tasty and I managed a couple of bites.

Fast forward a couple of hours and there were full tummies, full doggie bags to take away and a full Uber as four of us squeezed into a tiny Toyota to head to another cocktail bar.

Stag Girl

It was about a fifteen minute ride back to Smith and Wollensky where the intention was to go to the House of Blues. Unfortunately it was closed so the decision was made to head up to Grooms apartment.

It was now around 11pm however I had been up for over 25 hours so made my goodbyes, wishing them continued good drinking and walked back to the hotel.

Heading For The Hotel

Tired, but with a big smile on my face.

Till tomorrow,

SPSG xxx

PS – If you wonder why there are no pictures of the Groom to Be, the couple run a Social Media Free Household and their wedding present from all was no shared photographs.

I will honour their friendship through this request.