So I made my official reintroduction to both NYE in America and CouchSurfing all at the same time. As most of you know, I am a huge fan and advocate of CouchSurfing.com and I'd been really excited to get back into my CS groove. I didn't do nearly as much of it as I wanted to in Spain (mostly because I was in a constant state of semi-denial that I actually lived there). So I decided to go big and host a pair of Italians for the Big Night of 2012.
Other than having fantastic surfers, the night was absolutely amazing. Some new Chicago girlfriends and I bought all-inclusive tickets to a dive bar in the neighborhood, Tin Lizzie. It was a great crowd and such a good deal. $60 all you can drink and eat from 8:30-2. And we did everything we could to make sure we ripped those guys off.
Chicago is a bit different from most other cities I've lived in, in that, for the big night, most bars are pre-pay only. A lot of them are rip-offs, I imagine, with all-inclusive rates going well up into the $100's, and lots of overcrowding in some of the trendier bars or those closest to the Universities. But we struck gold.
There's not a lot to remember from the night (see aforementioned point about trying to drink the bar under the table) but I do remember it being epic.