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Nearby Attractions
Chicago is in many ways the nation's last great city. Sarah Bernhardt called it "the pulse of America" and, though long eclipsed by Los Angeles as the nation's second most populous city after New York, Chicago really does have it all, with less of the hassle and infrastructural problems of its coastal rivals.
For visitors, Chicago offers the Art Institute of Chicago and a wide range of excellent museums (many of which have one day of free admission per week), restaurants, sports and highbrow cultural activities. However, its strongest suit is live music , with a phenomenal array of jazz and blues clubs packed into the back rooms of its amiable bars and cafes. The rock scene is also one of the healthiest in the country with a prolific number of bands having come out of the city in the 1990s, including Smashing Pumpkins, Material Issue, Veruca Salt and Wilco. And almost everything is noticeably less expensive than in other US cities eating out , for example, costs much less than in New York or LA, but is every bit as good. Though locals might deny it, the city has a surprisingly low-key and generally welcoming population Chicagoans on the whole are proud of their city and usually keen to point out its best features. Two great ways to get a real feel for the city are to head out to ivy-covered Wrigley Field on a sunny summer afternoon to catch baseball's Cubs in action, or take a cruise boat under the bridges of the Chicago River at sunset.
From its earliest frontier days, Chicago has had some of the best nightlife in the US. "Sweet Home Chicago", birthplace of Muddy Waters' urban blues , as well as R&B's Chess Records, is still going strong, inspiring the energetic dance beat of 1980s house music as well as the groundbreaking jazz of the Art Ensemble of Chicago. Nightclubs aplenty are all over town, especially along Halsted Street, Lincoln Avenue and Clark Street on the North Side. Uptown , at the intersection of North Broadway and Lawrence, is a bit down-at-heel, but has half a dozen good venues. Highbrow pursuits are also well provided for: Chicago's classical music, dance and theater are world-class.
For what's-on information, Chicagoans pick up the excellent free newspaper The Reader (copies comes out Thursday afternoon and are usually all gone by Saturday). Full listings also appear in the Friday issues of the Chicago Sun-Times and the Chicago Tribune , and Chicago magazine has useful arts and restaurant listings.
Baseball
America's summer pastime is a treat to watch wherever you are, but at Chicago's ivy-clad Wrigley Field, where the score and the pitchers' numbers are still changed by hand, it's simply irresistible.
Modern Architecture
The history of modern architecture is writ large on Chicago's dramatic skyline, where the world's first skyscrapers now stand in the shadow of sleek corporate monoliths.
Art Institute of Chicago
Take in the Art Institute of Chicago's renowned trove of Impressionist and contemporary paintings, including a series of Monet's Haystacks and Grant Wood's American Gothic, the famous if often parodied portrait of a hardscrabble farming couple with pitchfork.
Brother Jimmy's BBQ
Get a taste of Chicago's love for ribs - a leftover from its old meatpacking days - at Brother Jimmy's BBQ , where the barbecued ribs are served with candied yams and collard greens, as well as live music on weekend nights.
Sears Tower
The world's tallest building until 1997, when it was topped by Malaysia's Petronas Towers, the Sears Tower offers predictably stunning views from its observatory - and the stomach-churning one-minute elevator ride up is a thrill in itself.
The Skyline at Sunset
The sunset cruises of the Chicago Architecture by Boat tours give you the city's impressive skyline - filled with the finest modern architecture anywhere - bathed in a stunning orange hue.
Chicago Blues
Chicago is chock-full of flavorful nightclubs for urban blues, such as the storied Checkerboard Lounge on the South Side.
Oak Park
Stroll through Oak Park, the lush suburb once home to Ernest Hemingway and Frank Lloyd Wright - with Hemingway memorabilia at the neighborhood's Historical Society, and several of Wright's key buildings, including the stunningly spare Unity Temple, dotting the landscape.
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