Chicago, the third most populous city of US is situated in the state of Illinois. The city has a total population of around 3 million and it is the largest city in the Midwest United States. The World Cities Study Group ranked Chicago as the one of the alpha cities of the world.
Though founded in 1833, Chicago became a city only in the year 1837. The city soon became a major center of industry, finance and transport. Nearly 45 million tourists visit Chicago every year. Also the city has significant relations with politics as it has been home for many famous politicians. Barack Obama, the first Afro-American President of US hails from Chicago. The city has many nick names such as the City of Broad Shoulders, Windy City, Chi-Town etc
Tourism plays a prominent role in Chicago and nearly 45 million tourists visit the city every year. Chicago has lots of attractive places and activities which makes it a distinct tourist destination from other US cities. The city is also one of the largest convention destinations of US. Some of the must see attractions of Chicago are as follows.
Magnificent Mile
Situated between the Chicago River and Lake Shore Drive, the Magnificent Mile is a shopper's paradise in Chicago. Most of the big brands in shopping such as Nike, Adidas etc are present here. The city is referred to the Champs-Elysées of Chicago.
Sears Tower
This building was constructed in the year 1974 and it was the tallest building since the construction of Petronas twin towers in 1997. There was much debate going on whether Petronas is actually higher than Sears tower. It is because the antennas of the Petronas are included in its actual height where as it is excluded from the Sears tower declaring that it doesn’t form the actual part of the building. With the construction of Taipei 101 in 2004, this debate became irrelevant.
Grant Park
It is the major park of Chicago situated between Lake Michigan and Michigan Avenue. The debris which was formed due to the Great Fire of 1871 was pushed into the lake and that filled area is now actually the park. Though steps were taken to develop the park by constructing commercial properties and skyscrapers, a Chicagoan citizen filed a lawsuit claiming that the park should be left as an open space. Finally after 20 years of battle he won the case in1911. Since the park remains as an open space it provides a majestic view of the tall buildings in Michigan Avenue.
Art Institute
The art institute is one of the must see places of Chicago. The elegantly designed bronze lions that are kept at the exterior of the museum itself reveal the stuff of the museum. The museum exhibits several priceless artifacts of different centuries |
