Going north, south, east, west - Chicago UPDATED 1/7 - Page 13 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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Wow they've really changed the Shedd Aquarium. I haven't been there in years. The Field Museum is kind of funny in how you can definitely tell which parts have been updated and which parts haven't been yet.
We loved the extinction exhibit too. We were shocked to learn about all the different extinction periods that have happened. What really amazed us was how consistently something like 75% to 90% of species died off during each one.
Both the aquarium and the museum look really interesting. We are planning the visit the Mystic Aquarium in Connecticut soon, and I read that they have some of the beluga whales from the Shedd Aquarium there. Maybe their regular home is in the closed Oceanarium?
Both the aquarium and the museum look really interesting. We are planning the visit the Mystic Aquarium in Connecticut soon, and I read that they have some of the beluga whales from the Shedd Aquarium there. Maybe their regular home is in the closed Oceanarium?
Sunday 26 October – part four: sports and shopping history
By now, we were all in need of lunch, so we headed downstairs to the Corner Bakery where I got some cheddar and broccoli soup in a bread bowl, which was very nice and very filling, while Mark the chilli in a bread bowl.
I have no idea what he’s doing here?
Full up again, we headed out and back towards the El line. Oh my goodness, the wind really had got up while we were in there, in line with what they had forecast earlier in the day. I had to hang on to my hat to make sure it didn’t get blown away and while waiting at an intersection, I felt very much like Piglet on the blustery day when he got blown away!
We emerged from the El by Marshall Field’s department store, which Lesley took us in to see. It’s a wonderful old building inside, complete with a beautiful atrium that’s apparently home to the world’s largest glass mosaic. Yes, something else that is the world’s largest or tallest – the guide on the river cruise was right about Chicago liking to do that!
We then went up to see the Walnut Room restaurant, all beautifully clad in dark wood, before Lesley treated me to a Christmas ornament, which will be a lovely way to remember our first trip to this great city and the wonderful time we were able to spend with her. The only sad thing was that it was all over too quickly.
I fell in love with this guy, but he was too big and too expensive (more than $100!) to take home!
We walked back from Marshall Fields to our hotels. Mark and I both agreed that we will have to come back here one day, although goodness knows when, as we already have a lot of places that we want to visit over the next few years. Personally, I would like to come back when the new Chicago Spire is finished, as I think that could be quite something to see.
We headed back to our hotel to pick up our luggage and wait for Lesley and Beth (who was returning her mom’s car) to pick us up. We just about managed to all fit in, with our mass of luggage ( about that Lesley!) and then it was off to drop Beth off at her house. She lives in a really nice neighbourhood and we were also treated to a tour around the outside of the Wrigley Field stadium, which was neat. It was fun to see that all the houses nearby that had views of the action had balconies and we were told that the people who live there sell tickets to see the matches. Now that’s enterprising.
From there, we dropped Beth off and it was a lovely neighbourhood. I was really taken with all the Halloween decorations.
Just catching up! Whew, you miss a lot around here when you miss a few days!
Great photos, Cheryl! You've certainly shown me a part of Chicago that makes one want to see it in person.
I'm just amazed at your pictures of the Aquarium and the Museum, and Marshall Fields... the sign about how they started serving food there really caught my interest! And all the shots from different angles of the skyline just fascinate me!
I wondered if you would get a chance to see Wrigley Field. Great update, of course, we're are looking forward to your next update. Seems like you've got a knack for suspense right now
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Claytrgtshooter (Minnie Lor's Hubbie)
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about that Lesley!) and then it was off to drop Beth off at her house. She lives in a really nice neighbourhood and we were also treated to a tour around the outside of the Wrigley Field stadium, which was neat. It was fun to see that all the houses nearby that had views of the action had balconies and we were told that the people who live there sell tickets to see the matches. Now that’s enterprising. 
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