Although already mentioned of by a few students, I had to include the Sears Tower (as I knew it at the time of my visit) in my collection of true childhood memories. Visiting Chicago in the 4th and 5th grade definitely counts as the closest thing to a “vacation” that I was fortunate to go on as a child. Outside of experiencing an airplane flight for the first time (and unfortunately NOT getting to experience the Art Institute, even though that was the one thing I mentioned wanting to see to my dad haha), there is something euphoric about seeing clouds waist high on the opposite side of a giant pane of glass 70-80 stories up. Although skyscrapers seem to be rather primitive nowadays in terms of constructional complexity, I am still amazed by the apparently relatively simple technology that allows such a building to stand so tall. Glass beaming the way it does when serving as windows/siding on buildings also just leaves me somewhat in awe too. My experience with architecture and true understanding of it is obviously far from complete, but I definitely try to give attention to structures such as this that might leave one wondering how they are were created much as humanity wonders about pyramids and the like in the far east (the only difference being there are google links to texts/how tos in relation to the formal and only speculation/fables in relation to the latter).