The Chicago Visit….

It was exactly a month, after landing US,Windsor Locks Bradley International Airport, on Friday 20th March 09, I got a drive to the Hartford/Springfield/Windsor Locks Bradley International Airport, not a big one. Indeed a great drive it was. There are may people who can do things, but very few have the heart to do it, and it does makes a difference….

From here I boarded the flight to Chicago O'Hare International Airport at 4.40 (EDT) pm, which took off at 5:15pm. And though it was to reach the airport at 7:04 (CDT: One hour behind) pm in Chicago as per the itinerary, the plane landed the airport at 6:05 pm.

There were big hoardings everywhere in the airport, 'Chicago: 2016 Olympic Candidate welcomes you'...As we drove towards Lake Bluff, where they stay, Sajeev said that O'Hare was the name of the Lake around which the airport was build...It was a very big airport....so was the parking area in number of floors..


Had never in my wildest dream expected to be to their residence.....on the other side of the globe....There was with them her colleague and friend, Naveen from Hyderabad. Had homely vegetarian food prepared by her, spoke for long, and they were watching the US English movie of 2002, Adaptation based on Susan Orlean's book The Orchid Thief, directed by Spike Jonze and written by Charlie Kaufman.Guess its an (auto)biographical movie, of two brothers, and the author.....

Me because of a duck's cold, and Friday Mania, went off to sleep when the movie was half way through…

And next day, was the visit to one of the worlds greatest city, known as the windy city, not because it is really windy but because of the Politicians.


As the 400th anniversary of Columbus' arrival in the Americas approached, many cities wanted to host the World's Fair, also known as the World's Columbian Exposition, after eight ballots, Chicago won it, leaving behind cities like New York, and Washington...New Yorkers were very angry, and started calling them by the name windy city.

After the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 destroyed a third of the city, including the entire central business district, Chicago experienced rapid rebuilding and growth and build the first skyscraper in the world. The history of skyscrapers in Chicago began with the 1885 completion of the Home Insurance Building, which is often regarded as the first steel-framed skyscraper in the world. The building was originally constructed with a height of 138 feet (42 m) and 10 stories, and was later expanded to a height of 180 feet (55 m) and 12 stories before being demolished in 1931. It was near the Castle shape building….



Undoubtedly: ‘Chicago builds itself up…Knocks down, scrapes away the rubble and starts over….’

The journey began with the millennium park, with its beautiful landscape, the latest attraction created in 2004, with the shell shaped, Kapoor sculpture,

inspired by the liquid mercury, stainlessly reflecting the entire surroundings, both land and sky....alike...the cloud gate of Chicago..


To add to the attraction here was the free hugs by men and women...

Walking which was after a month, and through the down town, we passed through the Chicago river


which though not especially long, is notable for the 19th century civil engineering feats that directed its flow south, away from Lake Michigan, into which it previously emptied, and towards the Mississippi River basin.

On the crowded streets, there were people singing and collecting money, people with coat begging…



As you approach the down town you will find tall wall like buildings, and three of them equidistant and almost the same size, they being,
The Sears Tower, at 108 stories, stands as Chicago's tallest building since its completion in 1974 and is the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere.
The second- and third-tallest buildings in Chicago are the Aon Center and
The John Hancock Center with 100 floors, respectively.

Then we had lunch below the John Hancock Observatory…the way people smiled while taking photographs, and how soon the smile vanished was really astonishing…and the elevator within 40 seconds took us to the 94th floor observation deck where in was displayed exhibits about the city of Chicago.
Maps explaining the view in each direction…


And the live view:


To the South of the City there is part of Lake Michigan, ….Blue and lovely…..the navy pyre, amusement park, world fair place,

tall buildings..including the Sears Tower..


To the west are the big buildings, sports grounds, restaurants, Pizza originated here in 1943,


To the north is the Lake shore drive, restaurant of boat shape, with bathing suites, and the buildings….



To the east is the Lake of Michigan, 80 miles, away is the state of Michigan. Beautiful view….indeed…

The photo taken below, cost 22$, and they give it with the background of Chicago at various hours....

It seems there are people who climb the stairs and reach 100 floors, in half an hour….!!!

There it is written:
‘Butterflies in your stomach,
Tingling in your spine,
Raising your hair,
The view is sensational’

Come Kiss the sky….



Though The John is not the tallest building, the view from here is said to be the best.

We walked along the road side and on the beaches of the lake shore,


By the grace of God, the weather that day was pleasant..….

Before returning, we did some window shopping, and then to the parking area, which is a very huge one, like a multistoried auditorium, or even bigger…I don’t know…indeed vast place….!! Difficult to find the floor where the vehicle is parked….

Chicago: “As you are so are your buildings, and as are your buildings, so are you”.

Great pleasure, and opportunity it was…Thanks to all who made it happen….


Even the night view while returning was mismerising....

Well that was the end of day one, and there was yet one more day...in the state of Illinois, with Chicago in the northeast having 66% of its population, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and western Illinois, and natural resources timber, and petroleum in the south, is often viewed as a microcosm of the United States.

Lesson:
“Make no little plans, they have no magic to stir men’s blood, make big plans, a noble logical diagram once recorded will never die, but will be a living thing…”