Chicago

Overview

Since its humble beginnings -- in 1835 it was a group of cabins on the Chicago River --- Chicago has boomed with activity and received quite appropriately the name "The City That Works." By 1890 it had become the second largest city in the nation, although it never caught up with New York City. Then in 1871 what started as a small fire in a stable far to the west of the city center, became a blazing inferno that destroyed the whole inner city. This tragedy resulted in a golden opportunity for Chicagoans; the chance to rebuild their city from the ground up.  The result is a better street layout and safer sanitary conditions for its citizens (also aided by the flow reversal of the Chicago River, which took waste downriver to the Mississippi River instead of out into Lake Michigan, the city's water source).

Chicago is famous for its jazz and blues clubs, and for good reason.  If music isn't your thing, you can wine and dine in the greatest of restaurants... everything from ribs to exotic food, Chicago does it right.

Perhaps the greatest feature of Chicago is its beautiful architecture. While not as big as New York, downtown Chicago is unmatched in its sheer beauty because of the uniqueness in style of each building. Standing in the heart of Chicago is a memorable experience: standing on a bridge over the Chicago River, the Wrigley Building on one side and the great towers of downtown on the other; swarmed by the masses shopping along Michigan Ave. (The...more

History