This is Minnie the Boler – she’s a 1971 (although we initially thought 1979) Canadian made fiberglass trailer. We called her Minnie because we ended up picking a Mango Sorbet colour to paint her and one of our favourite little places to grab take-away is called Mini Mango. As such, meet Minnie the Boler.
Minnie the Boler Before
Rough shape? Yes.
We picked her up a few hours from home and although I say she’s in rough shape, she really isn’t. The body was in good condition and so was the frame. They just needed some love. Oh, and some prettiness. Nothing makes a space feel light and bright like fresh white paint and some tasteful decor.
Okay, let’s check out this Boler and see the before photos!
About 4 layers of paint.
Bland colour.
Harsh colour on the inside and not a lot of brightness.
Carpet. Yes, carpet!
A few rock chips.
And oh, the silicone. Gobs and gobs of silicone.
Look at all that discoloured silicone on the belly band. Yuck! It’s not even neatly tapped off; nope, just gobbed on in hopes of doing something I suppose.
Some frame work. Getting some extra supports welded on to reinforce the frames strength. Safety first, right!
Minor fiberglass work.
Look at all the silicone I scrapped off. So much! Oh, and all that paint.
White, then yellow, next green, then red and oh, back to white.
We removed so much crap – out with the old and in with the new.
This is me taking a sanding selfie.
Well, there you have it – photos of Minnie the Boler before her transformation. Stay tuned for what’s to come – I’ll share what she looks like post renovation this weekend.
Happy camping!
Chicago eats – here are all of the amazing places we ate at – all in one place. Awhile back I broke up our eats into Chicago breakfast eats, Chicago lunch eats, and Chicago dinner eats. Well, in all honesty, you don’t need to hit up those places for those specific meal times. We had great food, amazing food actually, at all but one place. Quite a good batting average, if you ask me! Okay, here we go!
Chicago Eats
Below you’ll find some photos of our favourite places. And, I’ve got a list each place we stopped.
Restaurants
Beatrix – Breakfast or lunch and great gluten free options.
Do-Rite Donuts – they have 3 gluten free donuts daily, try them!
Little Goat Diner – a few gluten free options, good for lunch or breakfast.
Eleven City Diner – gluten free options and close to Museum Campus
Revival Food Hall – This is like a glamoured up food court – great loop location and delicious tacos.
Barrio – Such a great chicken sandwich and delicious gluten free salsas.
Xoco – Like Mexican food? Be sure to hit up this place – gluten free options, ta-boot!
Spiaggia – Italian Michelin Starred – a highlight of our trip.
Fat Rice – Authentic food with a twist. Also, gluten free options available.
Mi Tocaya – Mexican fine dining. Just be sure to order enough food!
A few other places we love to visit regardless of which city we’re in.
Whole Foods – Yup, we love this place.
Trader Joes – The location right by Museum Campus was our breakfast spot a few times.
Chipotle – Mexican fast food? Sure. Sign me up.
Well, there you have it. All of our Chicago Eats on our 2018 trip. Be sure to enjoy your Saturday and eat well. Bye!
Chicago sights – what to see and a few tips and tricks! We of course visited some of the big places which I’ve already blogged about – be sure to check those out.
Check out these other Chicago Sights
Chicago Street Art
Art Institute of Chicago
Shedd Aquarium
Adler Planetarium
We did use the Chicago City Pass – such a great value, especially if you’re going to see some of the big museums and other tourist spots. In this post I’ll share everything else we did – some free, some not. Okay, let’s get to it!
Chicago Sights
- Field Museum
- Chicago Theatre
- Skydeck Chicago
- Cloud Gate – the Bean
- Millennium Park
- Buckingham Fountain
- Chicago 360
- Navy Pier
- Riverwalk
Field Museum
First up, the Field Museum. This is included with the City Pass and I’ll be honest, I could have done without. It’s not very interactive and requires a lot of reading. I did love the Mummies exhibition, okay, not love – more like I found it very interesting.
Chicago Theatre
Chicago Theatre – they give tours, yet it’s totally free to just swing by and check out this iconic sign. The shows, however, do cost a pretty penny.
Chicago Skydeck
The Skydeck. This place is wild. A fully glass bump-out over Chicago? Just a tad scary for those with a fear of heights. I think the admission is overpriced, yet it was included in our City Pass, so it was worth it.
The Bean
Cloud Gate, or better known as the Bean.
It’s free and if you want a couple of good shots, go early. Get some photos from the Northwest side and you’ll get a beautiful view of the Chicago skyline in the background. I have one framed in my bathroom (yes, it’s a tastefully themed travel bathroom).
Millennium Park
Millennium Park is a great place to enjoy a coffee on a bench and then take a little walk and people watch. It’s flat out energetic.
One thing to note, the public bathrooms open at 9am – there are some to the west of the Bean and also by Buckingham Fountain, to the north. I was in a panic and couldn’t find a restroom around 8:30am – the Starbucks barista totally understood my dilemma and gave me the code: 1972. Think they’ve changed it?
Buckingham Fountain
The Buckingham Fountain. We sat here and took in the fresh air while being relaxed by the gushing sound of the fountain. It’s pretty cool and totally free.
Chicago 360
Chicago 360 – okay, for some the foggy night might have sucked for some. For us, it was so awesome to see how fast the fog moved in from Lake Michigan. It was such a neat experience.
Navy Pier
Navy Pier – this place is crowded! We people watched and saw a celebrity chef – Fabio from Top Chef. He looks taller on TV.
Chicago Riverwalk
The Riverwalk – a great place to just sit and hang out. Some little shops and some river cruises. We walked along here a few times moving from one place to the next.
Ah – this is the photo in my bathroom, black and white and I upped the shadows. This one is good, the edited one is better…silly me for not sharing it.
Well, there you have some of the other Chicago sights.
Thanks so much for visiting!
