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Chicago Overview
Chi-Town, the place where three million people call home, has acquired a first-class reputation around the world. The city has evolved into a mix of amazing architecture, world-class shopping, famous attractions, eclectic culture, and sports team with passionate fans.
Chicago features landmark buildings, such as the John Hancock Center, the Wrigley Building, and the Tribune Tower, as well as residential and commercial centers, hotels and entertainment. Some of the city’s most impressive architecture can be seen on the city’s Magnificent Mile. In fact, the American Planning Association selected North Michigan Avenue as one of the 10 Great Streets in America.
Chicago’s Magnificent Mile is one of the top shopping districts in the world. Located on North Michigan Avenue, from the Chicago River north to Lincoln Park, Magnificent Mile shopping features more than 400 stores, varying from boutiques to department stores to art galleries to electronic shops.
It’s not just shopping that put the Magnificent in the Mile. In addition to the world of shopping, the Magnificent Mile offers over 200 restaurants, including the acclaimed Signature Room at The 95th, Spiaggia, Tru, The Pump Room, and Spago.
Top of the list for fun with kids is the famous Chicago Museum of Science and Industry This isn’t your typical go and see museum. It’s hands-on, interactive fun throughout. Where else can a kid climb aboard a World War II submarine, plunge into a working coal mine or work alongside robots in a toy factory? The largest science museum in the Western Hemisphere is home to more than 35,000 artifacts and 14-plus acres of hands-on exhibits designed to spark scientific inquiry and creativity (not to mention, fun).
Who doesn’t love a dinosaur? The Field Museum (aka, Museum of Natural History) has one of the most famous, Sue, the fossilized bones of the single largest, most complete, and best preserved T. rex fossil ever discovered. Plus a dinosaur hall with lots more great dinosaur stuff. Kids can also wander among ancient mummies and discover what life was like for Egyptians 5,000 years ago, explore the earth beneath their feet and learn what it takes to live a bug’s life in Underground Adventure or take an up-close look at their favorite animals from around the world in Nature Walk at the Field Museum.
The Lincoln Park Zoo is one of the finest zoos in the world and the price is right: It’s Free! Favorites at the zoo include the Seal Lion Pool with underwater viewing, the Pritzker Family Children’s Zoo with sidewalk fountains that randomly spray and squirt overheated visitors, the AT&T Endangered Species Carousel, the Farm-in-the-Zoo, which features a variety of new animals, down-home demonstrations and fresh-grown food, the Regenstein Center for African Apes, where chimpanzees and gorillas can often be seen exploring their outdoor habitats, the Regenstein Birds of Prey Exhibit with a magnificent rescued Bald Eagle, the Kovler Penguin/Seabird House with an underwater-viewing pool, and the McCormick Bear Habitat, where the sight of polar bears diving deep into their pool at their underwater-viewing window is always a crowd-pleaser. The Lincoln Park Zoo includes several eateries: the Big Cats Café, Café Brauer, and Landmark Café.
For a sky-high thrill, enjoy the Sears Tower Skydeck, the highest observatory in Chicago, or the Hancock Observatory at the John Hancock Center. On a clear day you can see four different states (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin) from the Sears Tower Skywalk (1,353 feet) or the Hancock Observatory Skywalk (1,000 feet above the street). Or travel virtually through the skies at the Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum, home to two full-size planetarium theaters, including the world's first all-digital projection StarRider Theater, plus one of the world's most important antique instrument collections.
Take the plunge (virtually) at the Shedd Aquarium, the largest indoor aquarium in the world. Enjoy a 360-degree tour of an underwater reef community, see dolphins and beluga whales, watch more than two dozen sharks in a 400,000-gallon habitat, or take an exotic journey into the Amazon, in a 8,600 square-foot walk-through flooded forest that houses 250 species including a giant snake, venomous ants and 73 kinds of catfishes.
The arts in Chicago reach great heights, as well. Exhibitions at the Art Institute of Chicago have drawn worldwide acclaim. You could spend days there enjoying the impressionist paintings alone, and then be happily transported into the 21st century at the bold Museum of Contemporary Art, which overlooks Lake Michigan. Gutsy Steppenwolf Theater productions, from True West to The Libertine, have jolted critics on both coasts. The city's scores of other theaters, including the Victory Gardens, the Goodman, the Court, and the Shakespeare Repertory, regularly showcase the talents of remarkable local actors who just might turn out to be the next John Malkovich or Gary Sinise. The Grammy-laden Chicago Symphony Orchestra wins standing ovations at home and abroad. At the other end of the Loop (Chicago's central business district), the Lyric Opera's lavish productions boast excellent singers and conductors.
And don't forget film critics and TV talk. The thumbs of Roger Ebert and the late Gene Siskel weighed heavily in the movie review scale. Plus, who doesn't know Oprah, Jenny Jones or Jerry Springer? Chicago is also the home of the groundbreaking Second City improvisation and comedy club. Here, talented performers have included the brilliantly funny Mike Nichols and Elaine May, the late John Belushi, Jim Belushi, Bill Murray, and George Wendt. And even city hall lightens up in March by dyeing the Chicago River green in honor of St. Patrick.
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