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Last Saturday, Katie and I ventured over to Piece Brewery and Pizzeria (1927 W North Ave, http://www.piecechicago.com/flash/index.html).  I've heard very good things about this restaurant, and it was voted best thin-crust pizza AND best microbrewery in Chicago by Metromix.  We got there around 9pm, and the place was packed.  There isn't that much seating.  The wait for just 2 of us was an hour and a half!  We were told that we could try to get a seat at the bar which might be faster.  The bar area was super crowded as well, so Katie and I decided to order a pizza for carry-out since they sell half-gallon Growlers of their beer to go.

This is where a mini-wild goose chase began.  The carry out for Piece is located next door to the restaurant, and I asked the host before we left if we could buy Growlers next door as well as order the pizza.  He said no problem.  We order our pizza, deciding on a red with mushrooms, tomato, and basil as well as the goat cheese appetizer, but it turns out that because of liquor license technicalities, they can only sell us the glass jug for the beer, but we have to go get it filled at the bar.  Quite the opposite of what the host had told me.  We went next door and fought the crowds around the bar to get our Growler of Golden Arm, a German-style Kolsch Bier.

We took it next door and sampled some as we waited for our pizza to bake.  The pizza was ready in about 20 minutes, and we took it back to my apartment to eat.  At that point, we were so hungry!  The goat cheese and marinara dip with Italian bread was decent, but I wouldn't get it again when I can just make it myself.  The pizza was yummy.  I really like the crust because it wasn't too thin or too thick- it was just chewy enough.  The beer was good too.  Katie and I managed to drink the whole half gallon!
The Growler is waiting patiently to be refilled with another brew from Piece!  I'm going back to try more of their beer, and I may try another pizza too, but not without a reservation or taking it to go.  I've learned my lesson.  :)

The quarter has started, and I've been a lot busier than I anticipated, but I am finally able to sit down and blog!  I'm really excited for this one too, because the food was so delicious!!! :)

Way back during the last week of September, Katie and I went to Cho Sun Ok (4200 N Lincoln Ave, http://www.chosunokrestaurant.com/) for some Korean barbecue.  The Yelp reviews for this place were a bit scary, but even though the reviewers were complaining about the service, they all said the food was amazing.  Since Katie and I are on a mission to try the best of everything in Chicago, we couldn't let those comments about awful service stop us! 
Because of those Yelp reviews, I was expecting some kind of dungeon where you get shoved in a corner and ignored, but that is definitely not the case.  The restaurant is simple and quaint.  We went on a Thursday evening, and the restaurant was pretty empty- besides us there were only about 3 or 4 other tables filled.  We ordered the bul-go-gi (marinated beef) for two, which they cook in front of you at your table.  They also brought out about 10 different banchan (side dishes)!  They were all some kind of pickled vegetables, and all delicious!  The bul-go-gi was tender and slightly sweet, which I wasn't expecting, and very very tasty!
The service was fine- nobody was hovering over us, but our order was taken promptly, and the food came quickly.  Same with the check once we asked for it.  That's really all you need.  All those spoiled Yelpers need to calm down.
I told one of my friends who is from Korea that we went to this restaurant, and she confirmed that it was a good choice- really authentic!
I cannot wait to go back to Cho Sun Ok and bring my friends!!  There was a dish that a lot of tables around us (even the ones with Korean people at them) was getting, and I want to try it.  Even the couple that brought their baby to the dungeon ordered this.  My mouth is watering just writing this post and thinking of how good the food was!

On the Friday of Labor Day weekend, I took Jessica and Katie to celebrate Polish culture (my culture!).  Taste of Polonia happens every year during the Labor Day weekend at Copernicus Center (5216 W Lawrence, http://www.copernicusfdn.org/).  Friday was the first day of the festival, and it was COLD, but there were still plenty of people there.
Katie and Jessica both got the Polish plate, which included pierogi (meat and cabbage, I think), kielbasa (Polish sausage), golabki (stuffed cabbage), and potato pancakes.  I had some kielbasa. It was a lot of food!  It was yummy, but it was nothing compared to my grandma's cooking! :)  Her kitchen is the best Polish restaurant I know.  For dessert, Jess and Katie got an ice cream concoction from Cafe Melba- ice cream topped with raisins, peaches, pineapple, peanuts, chocolate syrup, whipped cream, and a wafer.  I've had that at the festival in years past, and it's delicious!
We listened to some Jamaican music (at a Polish festival?) and watched people getting their hair done in crazy styles as a promotion for a salon that was advertising at the festival.
All in all, a fun night.  It would have been better if it weren't so cold!!  At least we got a backpack and lots of glowsticks (I got 5!) from the people advertising Cricket on the way to and from the festival.

Wow, it's been quite a long while since the last post, and that was all the lab and MCAT's fault, but I can happily say that as of last Saturday, I don't have to worry about the MCAT anymore.  I'll know my score in about a month!
A few Fridays ago, Katie and I decided to try the wings at Jake Melnick's (41 E Superior, http://www.jakemelnicks.com/), which won the Best of Festival and Best Hot Wings at this year's Wing Fest.  The restaurant has a very laid back feel as well as two outdoor patios.  I was very excited to sit outside  and people watch since it was such a beautiful day. :)

Katie and I share the wood-grilled artichoke appetizer.  We had a little trouble figuring out how to eat it since neither of us were familiar with the whole artichoke (just the easy to eat artichoke hearts), but we managed. lol.  Both of us got the Pancho's garlic and cayenne marinade chicken wings.  There are ten pieces in a basket, and they sure were messy to eat.  The marinade gave the wings some kick, which I liked.  I'm not brave enough to try the XXX wings (super spicy!!), so these were just spicy enough for me.

The service was okay, though I didn't think our waitress was quite attentive enough to us.  I don't usually have wings, so this was a nice treat for me.  Sitting on the patio was definitely my favorite part.  Since I'm not really a wings person, I probably won't go back the Jake Melnick's, but overall the experience was fine.

Last Saturday, a group of my friends and I decided to venture to Wicker Park for the night.  Jessica had found a bar called the Crocodile (1540 N Milwaukee, http://www.crocodilechicago.com/) that served free pizza with every drink purchase, so the plan was to start there, and then just wander around and see what was close by.
We enjoyed some fish bowls (diet Coke for me since I was driving) and the pizza .  You get one personal size cheese pizza with every drink, so everyone got their own pizza!
The service was good, and around midnight, it started to get crowded.  There is a downstairs basement area for dancing, which we had to wait in line for, that really isn't that great.  The best part is the main bar upstairs.  Our next stop was Debonair (1575 N Milwaukee, http://debonairsocialclub.com/), a bar right across the street.  I really liked the interior; it was black and white themed, and they had the new Alice in Wonderland movie playing on mute in four squares on one wall.  I thought it was very artsy.  There was a small dance floor, and the music was ok.  We didn't stay at Debonair very long and decided to make our way to Cafe Absinthe (1954 W North Ave, http://www.absinthechicago.com/).
It was very crowded, so we only stayed about 5 minutes- at least we could say we went in.  lol.  The final stop of the evening was Big Star (1531 N Damen Ave, http://www.bigstarchicago.com/).
This bar was very spacious and had cheap tacos, but unfortunately when we got there, they were no longer making tacos.  A pitcher of lemonade with bourbon whiskey and a cool breeze (I tasted a bit, and it was A LOT more whiskey than lemonade!) was a good way to end the night. :)

Overall, it was a fun night exploring a new neighborhood, but I wasn't really feeling the vibe.  The crowd in Wicker Park is a bit old for me, but I would definitely go back to Crocodile.

Two Saturdays ago, I went with Katie to Oakbrook Center to shop for business casual clothes.  I had a Lettuce Entertain You giftcard from last Christmas, so I decided to put it to good use at one of the restaurants at Oakbrook.  We decided on Antico Posto (118 Oakbrook Center, http://www.antico-posto.com/about/), an Italian restaurant and wine bar.  They have quite a few wines to choose from and their pasta, ravioli, and gnocchi are homemade.  It was a Saturday evening, so we had to wait about a half hour for a table.  You can wait at the bar, and they also serve food at the bar, but we decided to wait for a table.
Our server was very friendly but not super attentive- we had to wait a bit to place our order and then for the check.  The food is a bit on the pricey side but not horribly expensive- it is Oakbrook after all. :)   Bread with an olive oil dipping sauce is served soon after you sit down at your table.  For my entree, I ordered one of the specials that day, pistachio-crusted white fish, which was delicious!  Katie got the chicken marsala, which I tried a bit of, and that was also very good.  We passed on wine and dessert, but the homemade gelato sounded good.  I may have to go back and try it. :) Antico Posto also has specials Monday through Friday, such as 1/2 Price Bottle Tuesdays and $5 Pizza Night Wednesday.
Antico Posto was a pleasant experience- the food was flavorful, and I got to use my gift card.  I may go back to try the homemade pasta and gelato and maybe take advantage of one of the weekday specials, but I wasn't blown away by this place.

Almost two weeks ago, my friend Annie celebrated her 21st birthday!  For the occasion, we went to Mercat a la Planxa (638 S Michigan Ave, http://www.mercatchicago.com/) for dinner, then The Gage (24 S Michigan Ave, http://www.thegagechicago.com/) for an after dinner drink.

Mercat a la Planxa is a tapas restaurant specializing in the cuisine of Catalonia, a region of northern Spain.  The head chef is Jose Garces, the current Iron Chef America- I thought this was pretty cool. :)  At a tapas place, sangria is a must, and Mercat has three different kinds, including a white sangria.  We tried both the seasonal and white sangria.  I liked that the seasonal sangria had pomegranate, but (since I just wrote about Moody's sangria in the last post) I think I liked the sangria at Moody's better.

The tapas are organized by heaviness on the menu.  Lighter plates are at the top, and the dishes get heartier as you move down the menu.  There were four of us, and we each picked two tapas and ended up adding another one at the end, so we had a total of nine different tapas.  They were all amazing!!!  Each dish was bursting with flavor.  I loved the Datiles con Almendras (bacon wrapped dates stuffed with almonds), the Tocino con Cidra (slow cooked pork belly with a cider glaze), and the Conil amb Chestnut (braised rabbit agnolotti- it's like ravioli).  We split every dish so we could each try all of the plates.  The amount of food we eat ate didn't seem like that much, but none of us left feeling hungry.  Let's not forget dessert- we got the Croquetas de Xocolata (milk chocolate croquettes with banana marshmallow and rosemary caramel), which is apparently their signature dessert.  It was a little explosion of deliciousness in my mouth!!

The service was good, and the food was brought our continously as it was made, so it was very fresh.  It's a bit pricey, but for a special occassion it's great.  I would definitely come back, especially for the dessert!

Our next stop was The Gage, which has is a restaurant and bar.  Annie had good things to say about the restaurant, so I want to go back to try that some time.  It was pretty busy, and we got the last four seats at the end of the bar.  Annie had the signature Gage Cocktail, made with pear Grey Goose- it was gooooood!  I had their homemade tonic water.  It was infused with an interesting mix of herbs.  I liked it.  I was going to get the Pick Me Up, which is their orange flavored iced coffee, but the bartender warned me that it was strong, so if I was planning on going to sleep in the next 3 hours, it was a bad idea, so I decided not to get that.  Maybe I'll try it when I go back. :) Since it was Annie's birthday, the main bartender/manager bought her drink and a shot of Grand Marnier.  The bartender was friendly and even showed us the sailboat he had made from a lime and orange peels.  I told him that he obviously wasn't busy enough.  :)

It was a good ending to Annie's birthday festivities- it was a Wednesday night after all, so nothing too crazy.  I definitely want to go back to try the food at The Gage and get the Gage Cocktail.

To begin, I got my CityWalks: Chicago cards this week.  I can't wait to start using those to explore more of Chicago.  It's really funny that 4 out of the 50 walks are around UChicago.  Two are UChicago/Hyde Park, another is Kenwood, and another Jackson Park.  Those should be easy to start off with, and maybe I'll learn some new things about this area.

Now onto the meat (haha) of this post.  On July 16th, Katie and I went to Moody's Pub (5910 N. Broadway, www.moodyspub.com) for a Friday after work dinner.  Moody's website claims to have the best burgers in Chicago, and the reviews I read raved about the sangria and outdoor patio.  There was no way we were skipping any of these three essentials.  :)  We drove and had a little bit of trouble finding the place- the signage is not very eyecatching, but after calling the restaurant we found it.  One of the reasons we'd picked Moody's (other than the burgers) was that it offered free parking next to the restaurant.  However, the parking lot was not big enough!  After some searching we ended up parking on a side street not too far away.
Walking in, the first thing I noticed was how dark it was.  I would not come here to eat inside, especially not in the summer.  It's stuffy from the kitchen, and you can barely see anything.  The outside patio is great though; the only downside is that people are allowed to smoke out there.  Other than that, it's really spacious, and the atmosphere is nice.

Katie and I ordered a pitcher of sangria, and it was really delicious!  I ordered the Cheese Moodyburger, and Katie got the Moody Bleu Burger.  We also got onion rings to share.  It was toooo much food!  The order of onion rings was pretty big, the burger are half a pound, so that's pretty substantial, and there was a good amount of fries.  The burger was good, but I wasn't blown away.  The bun was dry and crusty.  The same goes for the onion rings and fries- good but not amazing.
I almost forgot about the coupon!  Moody's has a buy one, get one half off dinner coupon on their website: http://www.moodyspub.com/coupon.php Use it! :)

Overall, I enjoyed myself at Moody's Pub.  The best parts were the patio and the sangria.  I'd go back, but only during the summer months.

Quite obviously, I am no longer in Athens, so the name of my blog needs an update.  I have yet to come up with a name that I like though, so I'll work on that.  As for what I want to do with the blog, I want to continue it!!!  Duh. :)  I'm going to write about a mix of things.  Two things I definitely want to do are 1) review restaurants I go to and 2) since I'm buying the City Walks: Chicago cards, chronicle my walks around Chicago with these cards as a guide.  Recipes I try or other fun things I do might find their way into posts as well, and most likely some things related to the MCAT and applying to medical school.  Of course, any more traveling I do will be featured here as well!  I already have three restaurants I want to review and a new blog name to think of (and of course studying for the MCAT...), so I'll be busy!

I am back in the good ol' USA, having returned from all my adventures abroad on Friday, July 9th.  People have such cool stories to tell about the cool people who sit next to them on planes, and it never happened to me.  This time, however, I sat next to an interesting lady from Pennsylvania who was part of a group coming back from Slovakia, where they spent about 2 weeks learning Rusyn, her family's ancestral language.  We had a nice talk- turns out Polish and Slovakian food is very similar.  I guess that's not that surprising.
Unpacking all my things is always easier than packing them, and I love giving out the presents I got for my family and friends, as well as seeing all the souvenirs I got for myself.  Over my entire journey, I have collected about 15 shotglasses (one from every city) and 7 mugs (one from every major city), as well as other things I felt like buying wherever I was.
My days are no longer as exciting, at least in the sense that I don't get to visit a new city every few days and actually have responsibilities now.  I'm spending the bulk of my time working- this is my third summer in a developmental biology lab, where I study the development of the cardiac conduction system.  Another huge thing is that I'm studying for the MCAT- my test date is September 11th.  I already postponed my test date once when I realized that I didn't have enough time to study for the exam before leaving for Greece.  Now this is it- I'm going to study hard and get a good score!  Hopefully I can find time to take a mini-vacation/roadtrip somewhere cool in the US to ease the withdrawal from traveling.  :)

This past weekend, I went to stay with my cousin Gosia for a few days.  On Friday night, we went to the rynek (town square) in Tarnow.  During the day, it's pretty empty, but in the evening, it was full of people sitting in the beer gardens.  On Saturday, we went to Zakopane, a city in the mountains.  We walked down Krupowki and rode to the top of Gubalowka, a mountain.  It was a pretty short stay because there was a lot of traffic on the way there, and we were with small children.  On Sunday, we took the train to Krakow, a very old city that used to be the capital of Poland.  There we saw Florian's Gate, Wawel Castle with the dragon's cave, the Jagellonian University, and St. Mary's Church. 
I spent the rest of the week visiting family before my departure.  Tomorrow I'll be back in Chicago!  I'm happy to go home, but on the other hand I'd like to stay here longer.  Hopefully I can come back soon!

On the last full day of my trip, I visited Schonbrunn Palace.  The palace is nice, but the gardens are beautiful.  So many fountains and flowers!  After Schonbrunn, I went to Karlsplatz and saw the Karlskierche (Church), then I walked to the Opera House.  On the way, I got a kaiserkraner, which is a bratwurst filled with cheese in a bun.  It was delicious!  Next to the Opera House is the Hotel Sacher, with its famous Sachertorte.  Of course, I got a piece.  It's chocolate cake layered with apricot jam.  Yum!  I then strolled through the Vokesgarten, and then saw the Parliament and City Hall (Rathaus).  I ended my day in the Museums Quartier, where I went to an exhibition on British fashion.  I was super tired, so I went to the park and read.  An excellent end to an excellent trip.   The next morning at 7am (!) I caught the train to Katowice, then from Katowice to Tarnow. 
Now I only have 9 days left in Poland!  I've started my MCAT class, so now I have to study!  Hopefully I'll go to Krakow this weekend. 

Before I caught my train to Prague, I rode a bike around Dresden, and I felt a little like a local.  :)  To continue that experience, I didn't buy a tram ticket either!!  When I got to Prague, the first thing I needed to do was change my money- so inconvenient!  A Czech crown is worth about 5 cents.  Once I found my hostel and dropped off my things, I walked around New Town and some of Old Town and saw the Charles Bridge and the Dancing Building.  I found Patrinske Park and Wenceslas Square.  I had some trdelnik, which is a traditional pastry. 
On Saturday, I took a tour of Prague.  We saw the Old Town Square, the Church of Our Lady of Tyn,  the Astrological Clock,  the Karolinium, Estates Theatre, where Mozart premiered Don Giovanni, Powder Tower, the Municipal House, one of the only Cubist style buildings, and St. Jacob's Church, where the shriveled arm of a thief hangs.  After the tour, I visited Prague Castle and St. Vitus Cathedral, the Charles Bridge, the peeing men statue at the Kafka Museum, watched the parade of apostles at the Astrological Clock, tried to find the entrance to St. Jacob's Church but couldn't, so I didn't see the arm :( then ended at the National Museum.  In the evening, I went on a pub crawl with some girls I met at the hostel.  Prague night life is fun, and we ended the night at the Karlovy Lazne, the biggest dance club in central Europe. 
Yesterday, I took the train to Vienna and explore a little.  There's no free tour here, so I'm on my own.  I saw Stephensdom and walked around Stadt Park, with statues of famous composers in it, and finished the day at the Danube Island Music Festival.  Today is another full day of sightseeing!

I'm currently in Dresden, very tired from a long day of walking and sightseeing. 
I spent the last 2 days in Berlin, and I'm surprised at how much I liked it.  I definitely want to go back.  I did not get to see all I wanted to.  I took a walking tour the first day and saw the Brandenberg Gate in Pariser Platz, the Holocaust Memorial, the parking lot over Hitler's bunker, Checkpoint Charlie, what remains of the Berlin Wall and the East Side Gallery, the Luftwarfe Headquarters, Humbolt University, the Book Burning Memorial, Museum Island, the Berlin Dom, and TV Tower.  There is so much culture and history in Berlin, and it is constantly changing.  It's a great city!! 
The next day I went to the Reichstag, the location of the German parliament, which has a huge glass dome in the middle so the people can watch their representatives and the politicians can look up and see that they are serving the people.  It's really a great concept, and it's free to go up and see the great views of Berlin.  I then went to the museum associated with the Holocaust Memorial and then the Topography of Terror exhibition on the site of the former headquarters of the Gestapo.  It is very powerful stuff, but super interesting.  Walking around Berlin after visiting the exhibits, I found a random building that I couldn't find a name for on my map so I'll have to look in to that.  Walking back to the hostel, I bought myself a pair of Birkenstock sandals.  I couldn't resist.  In the evening, I went ot watch the Germany Ghana World Cup game at a beach bar on the river.  It was fun, and of course we drank overpriced beer. 
So many people ride bikes in Germany!! There is also an interesting style and fashion sense in Berlin.  I like it, and I wanted to go shopping but there wasn't enough time.  German trains are really efficient and smooth, too.  The language is actually not as harsh as people usually think.  Traveling here makes me want to learn German! 
Today I took the train to Dresden and did a self-guided walking tour with a book I got at my hostel.  The architecture here is different, and I explored the Old and New Town.  I think I saw all the major things, including the Kreuzkirche (Church of the Holy Cross), Frauenkirche (Church of Our Lady), the Royal Palace, Semper Opera House, Zwinger, Japanese Palace, Dreikonigskirche (Church of the Magi), Goldener Reiter (Golden Rider), and Jewish Cementary.  Tomorrow, I'm going to try to ride around a bit on a bike then catch my train to Prague. 

I haven't written in a while because there really isn't much to write about.  The week I got to Tarnow, my uncle was getting ready for the festival at his Church,. so the lady that cooks for us was baking delicious cakes and pies.  Then there was the festival, where I some my cousins and their kids.  During that week I went to my great aunt's for dinner.  The next week, I went to the mountains for a few days with my uncle.  It was nice and relaxing, not that I have much stress in my life right now. :)
Now I'm in Zielona Gora in western Poland, visiting my cousin.  This part of Poland used to be a part of Germany so there are a lot of ruins and old buildings from WWII.  Today we went to an old dynamite factory hidden in the woods.  It was pretty cool.  I didn't bring my laptop so I can't put up any pictures.  Tomorrow we're going to Wroclaw, then I'm going on another trip around Europe: Berlin, Dresden, Prague, Vienna, and Bratislava.  I'm really excited to be travelling again!!

The last weekend in Greece was busy but relaxing too.  On Friday morning we went back to the Acropolis Museum and had an interesting discussion about the Elgin Marbles.  That evening, we had a group farewell dinner and went out dancing afterwards.  Saturday was spent doing some last minute shopping and packing.  Sunday morning, I dragged my suitcase and duffel from my apartment to the metro station in Syndagma.  That was not the best idea- I didn't realize how heavy the duffel was!  Anyway, I made it there and made my flight with plenty of time to spare. 
My uncle picked me up from the airport in Warsaw, and we drove 5 hours to get to Tarnow.  I was pretty tired and slept sooo well last night.  Today, my arms are sore from carrying my suitcase, but it's fine since I'm just bumming around, doing laundry and playing with my uncle's super cute dogs.  I can't complain. :)