My family and I followed an up-close encounter with the sun by sitting down to lunch at a table overlooking a great expanse of water. "This is the best place ever," my daughter said.
We were in a hotspot, but it wasn't some tropical warm-weather destination. We were in Chicago, at the Adler Planetarium.
We'd just learned a thing or 100 about our universe and beyond at the museum. And that great blue before us? It was Lake Michigan, which nearly seems to lap at the floor-to-ceiling windows of the Adler's surprisingly satisfying cafeteria.
The experience made me think the Windy City might just make a top-notch, relatively inexpensive spring break vacation. Flights tend to be affordable, especially because Southwest Airlines flies to Chicago Midway. And a drive there is much easier than heading to a southern spot.
Among Chicago's draws, the Adler ranks at the top, especially since last July when it introduced "Deep Space Adventure," a show that vividly highlights black holes, an exploding supernova and other space marvels (www.adlerplanetarium.org).
Nearby, Shedd Aquarium and Field Museum are themselves worth a day's visit (www.sheddaquarium.org; www.field museum.org). But don't dare miss the dolphin show at the Shedd.
Just off Millennium Park is the Art Institute Chicago, with its own winning cafeteria and a gift shop that's nearly as fascinating as the gallery space (www.artic.edu).
Chicago may not be a sunny spring break spot, but it's pretty hot nonetheless -- and you're sure to see the sun at the Adler.
