From the time I was seven until I was eighteen I visited Chicago at least once a Year. I always travelled there on the Great Northern Railroad from Shelby Montana. My Mother worked there from the late 1920’s until 1936 when she and my Father moved back to Canada.
I have Family that lived there from both my Mother and Father’s Family. During that time Chicago was the second largest City in the United States. Today the population is over three million People and both Los Angeles and Seattle are larger. It is not the Capital City of the State of Illinois, (Springfield is).
When I got married my Husband never wanted to see Chicago, (by then most of my Family had died or moved away), until a few Years ago when a Cousin of his got married. We flew there on Northwest Airlines from Edmonton to Chicago. This was the only time I stayed in a Hotel. We stayed at the LeMeridien on Michigan Avenue.
This review is a combination of all my visits. Chicago is a Port City that is on the lower west side of Lake Michigan. It also has the Chicago River running through the centre of the City. The City is divided into four areas: The South Side, the West, the Loop, (this is the down town area), the Northside, (this is sub-divided into the Northwest and Northeast).
WHAT I LIKE ABOUT CHICAGO:
THE EL is a commuter train that is at least two stories above the ground. It runs from the Southside to the Northside and ’’loops’’ around the centre of the City.
LINCON PARK runs along the western shore of Lake Michigan from the down to about the 1400 Avenue . You can walk or bike along the trails, sit on the rock steps, (there are sandy beaches but they are further north), and get a suntan or visit the Zoo. Across the Street from the Park are the expensive Condos.
My Grandparents and Aunt lived one block away from the northen part of the Park. The Street that is two blocks north was once called Broadway. It is now called ’’Old Town’’. When my Husband and I were here the Festival called ’’A Taste of Chicago’’ was on.
BROADWAY was a great Street that had an ethnic flavour. Walgreens Drug Store was on the corner closest to my Grandparents Apartment. The first time I saw a Pizza crust hand made was a few blocks away. The Bakery sold both White and Chocolate Cheese Cakes. Venders sold fresh Chips, (wrapped in old newspaper), hot salted Pretzels, Hot Dogs and Popcorn. There were Kosher Jewish Food, Italian and Greek Markets. The Bagel Shop made every type of bagel you could think of. My favourite was one that was stuffed with apples, cottage cheese and cinnamon. That is all gone today.
A TASTE OF CHICAGO is a food, hand made items, art and music Festival. It is at least ten blocks long. The Street is closed off and down the middle of the Street are two rows of Food Booths. At the end of each block is a Stage, (it is built high enough so you can walk under it to cross the street), where the famous Musicians of Chicago are playing. In front of the Stores there are Booths set up that the Artists and Artisans are allowed to display and sell their items.
RIVERSIDE PARK is in the northeast area. It is an Amusement Park.
THE BOTANICAL GARDENS are on Lake Cook Road. The Skokie River is on one side of the Park. The Guide Book says there are ’’Trees 8, 892, Annuals 1, 351, Aquatics 14, 461Bulbs 663, 686, Cactus 420, Epiphytes 712, different Ground Covers 103, 084, Perennials 893, 210, Shrubs 47, 897, Succulents 28, 015 and Vines 12, 715. While we walked through the Gardens we had Lunch at ’’The Grill’’ on the Café Deck.
THE ART INSTITUTE is a School that teaches Art and a Museum. It was built in 1893. There are 2, 000 Art Students attending classes. In the Exhibits you go through halls of more than 300, 000 pieces of Art from Famous Artists from Chagall to Monet.
THE FIELD MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY is on Lake Michigan. On the first floor there is the Gift Shop and the Corner Bakery. The Lower Level is where you will find the Egypt collection. On the Main Level is the Gallery of Birds of the Word, the Mammals Hall, a collection of First Nations People, (including Totem Poles) and the African collection. The Top Floor has a collection on pre-historic Asia, The Grainger Gallery has a collection for Ancient Israel and the Gem Collection.
THE MAGNIFICENT MILE is part of Michigan Avenue. It is the place to go to see the high price Stores, Restaurants and Hotels. You can see the historical Water Tower, (the oldest building that survived the Fire that was started by Mrs. O’Leary’s Cow in 1871) as you stroll down the six blocks that make up this area.
NAVY PIER was build in 1909. Large Ships that are bringing items to Chicago land here, (from the Atlantic Ocean they sail through the St. Laurence River and down the entire length of Lake Michigan). Over $150 million USD was invested to redevelop this area. Today you will find The Stain Glass Museum, Shakespeare Theatre, the Crystall Gardens, other Stores and even a Beer Garden. There are a lot of Cafes and you’ll love the Music. Along side the Pier there are a lot of private Boats. You can also take a Cruise up the Chicago River.
THE SEARS TOWER is the tallest building in the United States. It is 110 stories tall. The night before the Wedding there was a Dinner on the top floor. All of the blazing lights of Chicago were below us.
To get to the southside you use to pass by the STOCKYARDS. All the beef that arrived here was from Alberta.
THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO is on the Southside. It has a huge Campus and it is a mixture of new and old architecture.
THE MUSEUM OF SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY is also on the Southside. There is a Coal Mine in the basement area. You fell that you are going down for miles under the earth but it is only a few floors down. At this Museum you will see everything that is new in the Science and new Industry areas. The first time I visited here there was round table that had the newest phones on the market around it. Each of us were asked to say a few words into the phone and then press ’’playback’’. We each took turns doing that. Right after my turn while we were listening to my voice, (I didn’t recognize my voice), the nine other People looked at me and almost in unison asked, ’’Where are you from in Great Britain?’’
When my Mother lived in Chicago she lived on the Southside. When I was younger she always took me to the Deli, (now gone), for mile high thinly slice Pastrami on an Onion Bun.
While we were driving here it was the first time I saw People living in Buildings that were crumbling and one of the walls of their Apartment was open and they were burning paper for heat.
If you like NHL Hockey you can see the Black Hawks play at the United Centre. If you like Professional Baseball the Chicago Cubs play at Wrigley Field and the White Sox play at Comiskey Park.
MY FINAL THOUGHTS:
The second Day I was in Chicago with my Husband we were standing on one of the corners on the Miracle Mile.
He looked at me and said, ’’Honey why haven’t we visited Chicago before? This is a great place to visit.’’
That sums up my feelings about Chicago. The Chicago web site is:
https://chicago.il.org/TODO.HTM
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