Tut Before Breakfast

As promised (and this is a big promise from a couple of non-morning people like my daughter and me) we were up and ready to go to The Field Museum before 7:30. It was the glowkid who couldn't wake up! But finally she did, and got dressed and brushed her teeth -- and we headed off to get tickets for Tut.

It was an overcast morning but the sun broke through over the lake, making everything look bright and promising. There was no wind at all for a change in The Windy City. The temps were quite moderate. All in all a perfect start to the day -- and we were the first people in line when 8:00 rolled around and it was time to buy tickets for Tut.

What I know about King Tut is minimal. I learned a lot more today. The glowkid learned even more than I did -- and she knew more to begin with. She took a notebook and sat down in front of every introductory piece and copied all the hieroglyphs and their meanings. She has to write a report for her class and give it when she gets back after vacation. Knowing her, it will be written in hieroglyphics!

After Tut we had breakfast in the Corner Bakery in the museum and, as my daughter said, "digested" what we'd seen. The glowkid was actually pretty quiet, and I expect she was -- as we were -- absorbing a lot of amazing sights.

After breakfast we got to see Sue, the tyrannosaurus (it would be hard to miss Sue as she's right there on the main floor and she's, um, BIG). Then we also toured the Field's regular exhibit on ancient Egypt, then branched out and did the Eskimo and Inuit carving exhibit and followed that up with the American Indian tribes and, particularly, the Pawnee Earth Lodge.

Of course we left much undone. It isn't possible to do justice to the Field in half a day. Or even a day. But we left happy and satisfied that we'd done what we'd come for. We'd seen Tut, we'd learned lots, we'd experienced much of the best of Chicago at Christmas. We even actually went inside a gingerbread house made of real gingerbread!

We made memories for a lifetime -- and that's what it was all about.