The third largest city in the United States is less well known than its bigger "brothers" New York and Los Angeles. The city, which paints the river green in March when the vast Irish community celebrates St. Patrick's Day, "boasts" the nickname the Windy City, and writer Nelson Algren described it as "an October city, even when it's spring." But Chicago offers much more than green water and cool breezes. Chicago is a wonderful blend of modern architecture and lifestyle that makes art out of city life.
Hint
Circle around the circle
Chicago financial and business center The Loop we know from the movies. In the distance, a few meters above the heads of pedestrians and the roofs of cars, along frighteningly outdated metal structures, compositions of public transport trains grind Chicago Transit Authority. We have a great opportunity to see the city from the carriages on the slightly elevated rails. It is best to take the brown line that crosses The Loop. We enter at the building Merchandise Mart, which was the largest building in the world when it opened in 1930 (the building is so big it has its own zip code), and we get off at the station Clark/Lake, before the brown line rushes back.
Chicago Transit Authority, 567 West Lake Street, www.transitchicago.com
Exploring by bike
Chicago is not Amsterdam, and in the United States it is the most cyclist-friendly metropolis with a network of several hundred miles of bike lanes. The approximately 30-kilometer-long path along the lake is completely closed to car traffic Michigan from Uptown to Hyde Park, where they lived until a few years ago The Obamas. You can rent a solid bike for as little as 35 US dollars a day and set off on the most active exploration of the city.
Bike and Roll, 239 East Randolph Street, www.bikeandroll.com
Restaurants
Chef Grant Achatz
Steak? Finger thick pizza? Hot dogs? These are all quintessential Chicago specialties and, if the locals give us the right addresses, damn good specialties. It would be a shame to limit ourselves only to the mentioned food, because the cooking is much better in Chicago. The biggest star in the world of taste buds is Grant Achatz, one of the leading chefs of molecular gastronomy. If we don't get a free table in one of his two restaurants Paragraph and Next, where you can reserve a table only by buying a ticket long in advance (which costs up to $500 per person), you can still enjoy unforgettable culinary experiences.
Alinea Restaurant, 1723 North Halsted, www.content.alinearestaurant.com
Chris Nugent's goose foot
A restaurant with a very special philosophy and the chef's life story Chris Nugent it is Goosefoot. The name of the restaurant has nothing to do with feathered animals or the fascination with feet, but rather the name of a family of plants that are very important for cuisine. Around 150 different types of vegetables is part of this family, which includes Swiss chard and quinoa. During his cooking career, Chris worked with many master chefs, and in 2009, when his brother died in a tragic event, he became aware of the transience of life and the importance of enjoying every moment in quality. In 2011, he opened the Goosefoot restaurant in the neighborhood Lincoln Square, and his cooking philosophy is based on the use of locally grown ingredients and fresh and imaginative dishes. It is also interesting that the restaurant promotes the philosophy of "bring wine from your cellar", which means that guests can bring their own wine to the restaurant and drink it with excellent food at no extra charge.
Goosefoot Restaurant, 2656 West Lawrence Avenue, www.goosefoot.net
From the hands of Toni Mantuan
In the modern wing of Chicago Art Institute of Chicago is a restaurant Terza Piano a must stop for lunch, Sunday brunch or Thursday dinner. It is run by a renowned Chicago chef Toni Mantuano, who became famous with the restaurant Spiaggia. In addition to a menu that follows the seasons, the restaurant is also known for its range of wines and American cheeses, and they also make their own refreshing soft drinks. You can have a meal or a drink in the restaurant or on the open terrace, which offers a beautiful view of the... Millennium Park and avenue Michigan.
Terzo Piano Restaurant, 159 East Monroe Street, www.terzopiano.com
Entertainment
On the drink
Who sits in the cage - the guests behind the net or the waiters - is an irrelevant question. The most important question is how to get in The Aviary, a bar owned by a cooking star Grant Achatz in the area Meatpacking District. Tip: arrive before 18:00. And if we don't manage to get in despite the early hour? Let's treat ourselves to a short trip to the trendy Bucktown and let's mingle among the creative and successful young ambitious people who gather in bars such as Red Door.
The Aviary, 955 West Fulton Market, www.theaviary.com
Red Door, 2118 North Damen Avenue, www.reddoorchicago.com
An evening with music
In the migration wave from the South, not only the black population came to Chicago as a labor force, but also their own music. The city is still famous for its own jazz and blues clubs. Almost a hundred years on the club stage Green Mill in Uptown famous jazz musicians are guests. He was certainly one of the most famous performers Frank Sinatra, and they also loved the club Charlie Chaplin and infamous Al Capone, who was even the owner of the club for a while. A few turns up the Chicago River to the north, jazz lovers can club Andy Jazz Club they enjoy lunchtime tunes, and the last shows don't end until midnight. Another jazz sanctuary is the club Buddy Guy's Legends, owned by a blues legend Buddy Guy, who often appears on stage himself.
Green Mill, 4802 North Broadway Avenue, www.greenmilljazz.com
Andy's Jazz Club, 11 East Hubbard Street, www.andysjazzclub.com
Buddy Guy's Legends, 700 South Wabash Avenue, www.buddyguy.com
Architecture
Skyscrapers
For lovers of modern architecture, Chicago is the promised land. Since most of Chicago's buildings burned down in the Great Fire of 1871, the city attracted investors and architects who turned it into a real architectural treat. They "invented" skyscrapers here, they worked here Frank Lloyd Weber and Mies van der Rohe, the city has the headquarters of the world's most famous architects, such as Helmut Jahn, studios Skidmore and Owings and Merrill. The result is fascinating buildings that are best viewed with the help of Chicago Architecture Foundation guides, who vividly explain the history of architectural styles and are happy to share the interesting stories of the city's most famous buildings.
Chicago Architecture Foundation, 224 South Michigan Avenue, www.architecture.org
Let's go to Chicago
And if neither restaurants nor jazz clubs attract us, then perhaps the following attractions will convince us: until the opening of New York's One World Trade Center, it remains the tallest building in North America Willis Tower with 108 floors and 442 meters. On the 103rd floor, we can see if we get dizzy if we step on it The Ledge – a shelf with a glass floor, which opens up a view 412 meters down. It is the largest science museum in the northern hemisphere Museum of Science & Industry, in which we can walk around the real German submarine U-505. The most advanced digital cinema is in the planetarium Adler, where it is in the hall Grainger Sky Theater the image is eight times sharper than in ordinary digital cinemas. One of the largest collections of French Impressionists in the world is housed in the museum The Art Institute of Chicago. While we are there, we also have to see a building called Modern Wing, which houses an extensive collection of modern and contemporary art. The modern "extension" is the work of a well-known architect Renza Piano. The listed superlatives and many other attractions of Chicago will convince even die-hard lovers of New York and Los Angeles to visit the Midwest of the USA and flourishing Chicago.
Willis Tower: 233 South Wacker Drive, www.willistower.com
Museum of Science and Industry: 5700 S. Lake Shore Drive, www.msichicago.org
Adler Planetarium: 1300 South Lake Shore Drive, www.adlerplanetarium.org
The Art Institute of Chicago: 111 South Michigan Avenue, www.artic.edu
Check out some more photos of Chicago!
