Ahh Chicago. I honestly think I knew nothing about you, and what to see here. Except something about a bean. Let me tell you, I was not disappointed (in the rest of the city, not just the bean thing).
I am currently en route to Seattle, WA from Syracuse, NY. I've never been to the "capital of the midwest" (I just made that title up, I hope it's correct), so I figured I'd have to drop in for at least a full day to walk around the highlights. This probably sounds atrocious to many people/travelers, appauled that I'm not budgeting a month for The Lopp district alone. But in efficieny travel, it's all about seeing the most you can, genuinely enjoying it, and kinda moving onward and upward. And upward...and upward. So..many..skyscrapers.
Chicago has architecture. It's that industrial, purely capitalistic neo-who-knows architecture surrounding the city. Buildings are imposing, elegant, and just massive! I've been to NYC many times, and though it's tough to compare skyscraper game to the Big Apple, Chicago is an easy contender. And did I mention the River?? NYC has a couple of those too, but not so well dressed up.
I spent the first part of my day at Millennium Park. This is where "The Cloud Gate" is, and what everybody for descriptively refers to as "The Bean". It looks exactly as the latter nickname infers. After one-too-many photos, I headed over to Giordano's for deep dish pizza. This was a Yelp suggestion, and was 0.2 miles away as opposed to 1 mile, so convince beat out stars. That being said, the pizza was great! Still may favor my NY thin crust though.
I then began an epic walking trek through the jungles of Chicago. The Loop district is fairly grid-like, so navigation is easy. Heading north, you reach the river bend, which is borderline majestic (think Pocohantas, just less singing, and talking raccoons). The Chicago skyliners line the river directly, and with severl old tell bridges spanning the water, it makes for an impressive scene. It's like Paris and NYC had a love child.
My day ended with a free ballet concert at Millennium Park (lucky Saturday), which lasted a few hours, and I was glad of it. One last drive up/down the "Magnificent Mile" (Michigan Avenue) listening to my favorite city driving song, then I headed back to the hotel. Great day!
