Chicago: Art Everywhere

Many examples of quintessential food in Chicago, including hot dogs and pizza, are categorized as snacks in many other countries.  However, do not get disappointed.  They are good.  I particularly enjoyed pizza!  Chicago has numbers of pizza restaurants, and each restaurant has a big variety of pizza styles and options: deep dish, pan, stuffed, thin crust, and even NY styles.  I have tasted Pizza more often than any other food in Chicago.  I even had a Uno's pizza in the airport before boarding.  I like the deep dish pizza at Lou Malnati's the best although I could not try all pizza restaurants in Chicago.  I like their butter-flavor crust.  However, be aware that those famous pizza restaurants have many people waiting in a line.

For others, you may want to try popcorn from Garrett, to which a group of tourists asked me a direction.  The popcorn was good but huge for one person.  It may be a good souvenir for a family with kids.  You can find Garrett's popcorn at the O'Hare airport as well.  I also found the chocolate shop called Vosges Haut-Chocolat at the airport.  This shop that is originated from Chicago offers exotic candy bars and truffles.  For example, there are bacon candy bars and truffles infused with curry, wasabi and star anise.  I bought many of them for my friends and myself.  I tasted some of them, which were very delicious.  In addition, it was fun to see my friends' faces when choosing their chocolate, although I picked what I wanted first.

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Chicago offers so many things to do from morning to night.  Even just walking in the city could be a form of entertainment.  I have particularly enjoyed art and culture that are abundant and occasionally free in Chicago.  

• Viewing Chicago from the top
• Viewing Chicago from the water
• Visiting museums and cultural institutions
• Strolling through the city 

Viewing Chicago from the top:

It is always good to grasp an overview of the city when you first arrive in a big city like Chicago.  I went to two observatories to do so: first, John Hancock Observatory  and then the Skydeck at Willis Tower, formerly known as Sears Tower.  I personally like views from John Hancock Observatory better than those at the Skydeck. Compared with the Skydeck, you paid less at the John Hancock Observatory with a $1 off coupon at the city's highest cafe and a free multimedia tour.  The multimedia tour gave me interesting facts about Chicago and helped me understand where to view.  Do not worry.  It did not take me long (maybe 30 minutes) to complete the tour.  In fact, waiting for a line to get to the top took me longer than completing this self-paced multimedia tour.  In my opinion, the English tour narrated by Friends' star David Schwimmer was more lively and fun than the Japanese tour.  Either way, I recommend taking advantage of the free multimedia tour.  Well, the Skydeck at Willis Tower has something that John Hancock Observatory does not have: glass boxes extended from the deck, called the Ledge.  You can see the river and streets from the glass floor.  I did not visit either of the observatories at night.  Many reviewers love the night views at both observatories.  It might be good to go to John Hancock Observatory during the daytime and then the Skydeck at Willis Tower in the evening.  The Ledge could be scarier then.

Viewing Chicago from the water:

I wanted to have waterside Chicago views from both Lake Michigan and the Chicago River.  In addition, I wanted to take an up-close & personal look at cool Chicago buildings.  Therefore, I picked the tour which I thought might satisfy my needs.  The boat tour was great!  It was interesting to travel from the river to the lake through the locks.  It was also fascinating to see camera flashes from the Skydeck at Willis Tower as my tour guide pointed in its direction.  It was also refreshing to feel cool breeze in summer.  Many different tours and cruises are available in Chicago, including speedboat tours, yacht cruises, and dinner cruises. There must be a boat tour for you!  Even water taxi rides from one place to another might give you a great view of the city as well as a great pleasure.

Visiting museums & cultural institutions:

It is crazy not to visit one of the fine museums in Chicago.  However, I only had 5 days.  Therefore, I picked one museum where I really wanted to spend time, the Art Institute of Chicago. There are two reasons for my choice: First, the Art Institute of Chicago displays what I like, including photography, Georgia O'Keeffe's paintings, and one of the world-best collections of works by Impressionists, such as Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and Georges Seurat. Another reason was that no admission fee was required at Thursday and Friday nights in summer. I greatly appreciated this wonderful opportunity while I was envious about people living in Chicago.  For the other famous museums, I just walked around the museums and sometimes stopped by their museum shops and entrance areas.  Even that made me happy because of their artistic atmosphere. Especially, Museum Campus which includes the Field Museum, Shedd Aquarium, and Adler Planetarium is a beautiful place to walk.  

Strolling through the city:

It is easy to walk in downtown Chicago because the streets are laid out in a grid.  It is also beautiful to see the city at your pace.  I have enjoyed a walk so much that I was humming Frank Sinatra's songs to myself all the time.  (I may have looked foolish.  But who cares!)  I especially liked the Millennium Park where I found many interesting art objects and free entertainment.  I also happened to arrive in Chicago during the Chicago SummerDance festival.  I felt very lucky because I love dancing and it was free to participate!  Did I dance?  Of course!  I danced until fireworks started.  Oh, I love Chicago!

Accommodations in downtown Chicago are expensive.  I could not find a hotel room with less than 100 dollars per night.  A friend of mine who visited Chicago on business told me to book a hotel near O'Hare Airport, because the CTA Blue Line train runs 24 hours a day between the airport and downtown.  The train ride takes approximately 45 minutes.  Therefore, I chose Candlewood Suites that is close to the airport with a free airport shuttle service.  I got a super deal of 39 dollars per night through an Internet travel agency.  The room was clean, big, and quiet.  I had no regret over my choice although I sometimes had to wait for a while until a shuttle arrived.  However, if I visited Chicago for the second time, I would like to stay one night in downtown, because I want to indulge myself in a jazz club and blues bar. 

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You may not need a car to travel Chicago.  I did not need it.  Public Transportation in Chicago is very convenient.  The transportation services include Metra and Pace which support trips to Chicago suburbs.  I only used CTA trains and buses that support the city trip.  I first wanted to buy a 3-day pass from the station at O'Hare airport.  There are many people lining in front of the vending machine, because no change would be returned.  Many people searched for the exact change.  In addition, no change machine was installed.  (Stupid!)  None of the stores at the airport changed a bill.  (Oh no!)  So, I walked to a hotel next to the airport.  A concierge was really kind.  He gave me the change that I needed and found a direction that I needed on the net.  He even printed a map for me.  So, I bought the pass that was convenient to give me unlimited rides on all CTA trains and buses.  The pass also gets activated the first time I use instead of the day when I purchase the pass.  However, a tragedy happened on my last day in Chicago.  My pass was no longer valid.  I asked a bus driver if I could use a 5 dollar bill, and she told me "Yes".  However, no change was returned!!!  Yes, she was correct.  However, she should have told me that no change would be given.  I almost had a fight with her, but a fight for only a few dollars?  There were too many people riding on the bus as well.  So, be aware to prepare for exact change when you use CTA trains and buses!

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• Get free maps and coupon books available at the airport or your hotel!  They will definitely save you a lot. 
• Stop by the visitor information center, if you have some time, because you might find new tour information and ask for a recommendation such as a good place to eat.  Folks at the visitor center near the Millennium Park were very friendly and helpful. 
• Need exact change on CTA trains and buses.

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