Chicago
 

Sears Tower.

Deep dish pizza.

Terrible sports teams (the Bears were a fluke).

Gangsters (not to be confused with gangstaz).

Whatta town!

For a Torontonian visiting the U.S.A., you can't find a place to feel more at home than Chicago.

Strolling the waterfront, shopping the Miracle Mile on Michigan Avenue, and staying in the Ritz-Carlton atop Water Tower Place ... it doesn't get much better than the windy city.

It's my kind of town, Chicago is.

Now this could only happen to a guy like me
And only happen in a town like this
So may I say to each of you most gratef'lly
As I throw each one of you a kiss

This is my kind of town, Chicago is
My kind of town, Chicago is
My kind of people, too
People who smile at you

And each time I roam, Chicago is
Calling me home, Chicago is
Why I just grin like a clown
It's my kind of town

My kind of town, Chicago is
My kind of town, Chicago is
My kind of razzmatazz
And it has all that jazz

And each time I leave, Chicago is
Tuggin' my sleeve, Chicago is
The Wrigley Building, Chicago is
The Union Stockyard, Chicago is
One town that won't let you down
It's my kind of town

Track Title: My Kind Of Town
Album Title: Sinatra at the Sands with Count Basie Orchestra
Prime Artist: Frank Sinatra
Producer: Reginald (Sonny) Burke
Written by: Sammy Cahn
Written by: Jimmy Van Heusen

Chicago...

1. One must eat at least one Gold Coast Char Dog. Drag it through the garden. Sport peppers. YUM.

2. Wrigley! A religious experience even in the rain.

3. or you can go watch the Comisky spinning scoreboard.

4. B.L.U.E.S. on Halstead.

5.The Field Museum....The Chicago Art Institute, The Terra.

6. AMAZING Pot Holes.

Lots of fun to be had.

I don't think I'd recommend a trip to Comiskey park. It's a depressing concrete hole in the ground in an awful neighborhood. Wrigley is much friendlier, and has a better atmosphere.

On the other hand, the Art Institute RULES.

I think my favorite thing about Chicago is that it's got the highest murder rate of any fucking city in the country. Yeah Chicago! Woo!

I like Chicago...no, I love Chicago...no, I fucking worship Chicago and would almost sell my soul to get back there! :) Chicago is proof that the Midwest is not all backwards, barefoot, pregnant, and like me. :3eye:

Seriously though, my first trip up there was in 1992 (went to the Museum of Science and Industry and the John Hancock Tower). I also spent a ton of time up there in 1998 and 1999 (as my ex-fiance lived there at the time). Tried to move up there twice (1997 and 1999) without success. It's simply a fascinating city...great museums, great neighborhoods, great culture. Whenever I went up there (which was generally once or twice a month), I would just drive around the entire city (which is huge), go to places that felt a world away from Michigan Ave, destroy the front end of my car (thanks to those lovely potholes), and ride the El to wherever it would take me.

My personal recommendations:

--Don't go up in the Sears Tower on a cloudy day. Go to the Hancock Tower...it's not THAT much shorter.

--There are two excellent hotels that are relatively inexpensive and close to the Loop. The Cass Hotel (on Wabash and Ontario) offers a nice room with cable and a superb location for $59-79 a night (which is super dirt cheap). The Days Inn Gold Coast is on N. Clark by Lincoln Park and offers an older style hotel complete with rooftop and lake views and a convenience store downstairs (that sells alcohol)...$79-89 a night. (There is also free shuttle service to and from O'Hare.)

--Unless you are die hard, don't even bother driving in Chicago, especially the Loop. Parking sucks and is expensive. The El and CTA buses will pretty much take you anywhere you want to go, including O'Hare and Midway. Buy a visitors pass. You may even get lucky and find a bellhop that will give you one. :cool:

--Stay away from South or West Chicago, unless you are going to Jackson Park (U. of Chicago, Museum of Science and Industry), Comiskey Park, or Hegewisch. Most of the rest of the city is fairly decent.

More information and observation available upon request...

Amen. If you didn't wear comfortable shoes, buy a pair downtown somewhere. It's cheaper than paying for parking all day.

Before Toronto had Moose in the City ...
 

http://www.chicagotraveler.com/cows/10.jpg

Chicago had Cows on Parade.

See what Chicago's "Cows on Parade" exhibit has brought about in other cities.

Reassurance
 

I mentioned this photograph fifty-eleven months ago, but I finally found it a few weeks ago. This was taken on S. Cicero Ave. near Midway Airport in mid-1998.

It's the only one I've ever seen in the city, and I'm not sure how long it has been up...perhaps there was fear of nuclear weapons in the city at one point?

(Incidentally, it's right next to Si Señor Tacos, one of the best mom-and-pop Mexican food stands in the city. Order the $5 Burrito.)

Hmmm.. that doesn't seem fair. U of C puts the rest of the world under the big gun and now Chicago wants out?

U of C ... from the Manhattan Project to ...
 

The Doomsday Clock

It is now 7 minutes to midnight.

This from the same place that locked up Goat Boy for all those years. ;)

Happy St. Patrick's Day
 

http://archive.nandotimes.com/newsro...n/nation2.jpeg

Onlookers gather to witness the annual St. Patrick's Day
dyeing of the Chicago River in Chicago.

AP Photo/Aynsley Floyd

I just happened to be perusing this thread, when I saw Nic's photo...ummm, that's NOT the Chicago River being dyed green.

Lesson to learn: Don't link to a picture directly from its originating site, unless it's your own. :)

Pop quiz! What are we looking at now?