The Razzle Dazzle of Chicago – 4 things to do

21 December 2014

Chicago funnily enough reminds me a lot of Sydney. Maybe it’s the Skyscrappers and its harbour to one of the Great Lakes,Lake Michigan, that made me think that. A week is probably not enough to see Chicago. Everything is so big. Here are a list of things I suggest you do:

1. Go to Millenium Park and Art Institute

This could easily be a day out, at the park and the Institute. First visit The Cloud Gate or by most people it is known as The Bean, by Anish Kapoor. It was great to see it after watching this BBC documentary about Kapoor, and his motto ‘Never Comprimise!’

The Bean was fun to take pictures of because of all the different angles and background.

Walk around the park where you can see a lot of sculptures.

then go to The Best Museum & Gallery in the world according to Tripadvisor, the Art Institute of Chicago.If you love art, it is somewhere you can easily spend 1/2 a day in. From Monet to Degas, From Warhol to Van Gogh. You name it, it’s there.

2. Go to See a Show

I went to see The Grinch at Chicago Theatre, but Chicago offers so much more stage performance, or go to see the Chicago Philharmonic Orchestra.
It didn’t seem so difficult to buy tickets on the door for the Grinch, I am sure you can do that for any of the show.I would really recommend seeing the inside of the Chicago Theatre if you love architecture.

3. Spend a day in Lincoln Park

In the park there is the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, which is great for kids. My highlight was the butterfly room. Where there are hundreds of butterflies.

Then you walk on to the Free to enter Conservatory, which was really beautifully abundant full of tropical plants. I really loved it.

If you continue on then there is the free to enjoy Zoo. I am pretty sure in the summer the zoo must be packed full of people.

4. Visit the Museum of Science and Industry

This is I think one of the biggest museum I have been in lately.

It could take days to look at all the exihibit. The main visitor hall was full of Christmas trees when I was there, decorated by local schools to resonate different countries.

It had Tornado machine, life size planes, trains, etc. Really fun and educational for children. If you have kids, I would say allow a whole day in it. And a lot of money, the entry fee is really expensive.

Tip: If you don’t have kids I would suggest coming any other day than Tuesday. Tuesday is a free to entry for school children, so there will be a load of them there, leaving you no chance to have a go at it yourself. Guess when yours truly went?

If you have more time I would recommend to do one of the Architecture tours by Architecture Foundation also visit Oak Park for Hemingway House and Frank Lloyd Wright house and tour.

General Tip: If you are a student, don’t forget to bring your student card everything is a lot cheaper if you have one.

I might have to go to Chicago again next year, any suggestions?

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