Kathleen's Chicago Book Bag

November 18, 2010

I heart Chicago! The El is urban fun. The Walnut Room at Macy’s State Street has traditional food and is housed in the oh so, shopalicious, block-wide, seven stories high, Marshall Field’s building. And, I love, love the Cloud Gate sculpture at Millennium Park. Look deep inside this gigantic piece of shimmering metal, see yourself and the city reflected there, and let your troubles float away.

I recently returned from a cousin’s Chicago wedding and would use any excuse to return to the city. The not-so-shabby wedding (ceremony at the Adler Planetarium, after party on the roof of the trendy Wit hotel in the theater district) was a great way to get reacquainted with the windy city—and, it was windy. Horizontal, high-speed winds drove the planned for lakeside event inside, but all was well with a steady stream of good food and good drinks. And thanks to my Chicago book bag, we hit all the right spots.

Frommer’s 24 Great Walks in Chicago was the best resource. This 2009 edition had great color pictures and tidy routes with notes for quick eats. My mom and I really enjoyed the South Loop walk, and once we saw the stunning photo of "the bean", (Anish Kapoor’s Cloud Gate) we bought some umbrellas and hustled over. I could look at that all day. Frommer’s Chicago Free & Dirt Cheap (2010) took us directly to the Chicago Cultural Center housed in the old library—site of the most amazing Louis C. Tiffany glass dome—all for free, of course, with a little leg power. Before the trip, I devoured the Masterpieces of Chicago Architecture with 200 illustrations taken from the Art Institute of Chicago’s repository of drawings and models. And here’s one I’m reading now because I couldn’t make it to the Art Institute: Marianne Malone’s The Sixty-eight Rooms (2010). It’s about a sixth grade class visit to the Thorne Rooms collection of 68 miniature rooms and various time periods. It’s on my wish list!

Kathleen N.
Smithville Branch