Chicago was once called America’s second city. Its metropolitan area was the number two in the country (it is currently third behind Los Angeles), but this nickname also has to do with its historical rivalry with New York. Today everyone knows it as the Windy City, although the nickname has nothing to do with the strong gusts that sweep across Lake Michigan, on whose edges the American metropolis rose. It is named so because of the comments of a reporter from the New York Sun, who in the midst of the dispute between the Big Apple and Chicago over the venue of the 1893 World’s Fair, referred to the city’s politicians as individuals “full of hot winds.” The event ended up taking place in Illinois and the comment went down in history.
A mega fire destroyed the city in 1871, destroying 17,500 buildings. Chicago was literally reborn from its ashes to become a playground of the architectural styles that marked the end of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century. Many architects and urban planners saw the organization of the World’s Fair as the perfect opportunity to design the city of the future, with an urban plan created by Daniel Burnham that includes many of the ideals that helped create Paris.
This is how the most beautiful and sophisticated skyscrapers in the world appeared in Chicago, with the imprint of architects such as William Lebaron Jenney, Louis Sullivan, Frank Lloyd Wright and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, among others. It is the glory of art deco and the so-called international style that resulted in high-rise residential buildings, offices, schools and civic centers that still retain a predominant role in the urban life of the city.
Chicago’s Mexican neighborhoods
According to 2020 census data, Latinos already represent 29.1% of the total population of Chicago, which has 2.7 million inhabitants and rises to 8.5 million when the six counties that make up the metropolitan area are added. An interesting fact is that Hispanics already surpass African Americans, a group that has suffered a population decrease in the State and today accounts for 28.7% of the city’s residents.
Of the South American and Central American communities that live in the city, the Mexican community is the largest with almost 350,000 people. The Mexican imprint has been felt for decades in the neighborhoods of the Lower West Side (southwest of the city), such as Belmont Cragin, La Villita and Humboldt Park; but of all, Pilsen is the most special. Its roots date back to the late 19th century, when a wave of Czech immigrants settled there and named it the fourth largest city in the Czech Republic. Over the years, the demographic composition changed completely, giving way to the Mexican community that today is the absolute protagonist.
In the Little Village area, along 26th Street, you can visit a wide range of bakeries and Mexican restaurants. This neighborhood is full of murals (16th Street) that have not stopped growing since artist Mario Castillo painted the first to protest the Vietnam War in 1968. The most recent ones have had the support of the Chicago Urban Art Society and of the National Museum of Mexican Art, one of the unmissable plans in the area. Other attractions are Thalia Hall and restaurants such as Dusek’s Board & Beer, Simone’s, Punch House and the traditional Panadería Nuevo León.
Millennium Park and the Art Institute of Chicago
The ideal route begins in Millennium Park. An urban jewel that extends from the downtown, right on Michigan Avenue (the most beautiful in the city) to the shores of the lake. It is an unprecedented urban development that concentrates the Jay Pritzker Pavilion, designed by Frank Gehry, with capacity for 7,000 people; Chicago’s The Bean (Cloud Gate), Anish Kapoor’s monumental public sculpture that has become the city’s symbol; the Crown Fountain by Jaume Plensa; and the Lurie Garden, by Kathryn Gustafson, Piet Oudolf and Robert Israel. This summer the park’s 20th anniversary will be celebrated and there will be a celebration which includes public shows such as the presentation of the acclaimed Colombian salsa band Fruko y Sus Tesos (July 18), a symphonic concert with the score of Star Wars composed by John Williams (July 19) and a performance by rapper Common (July 20).
In the same area there is the Art Institute of Chicago, one of the best museums in the country, with a collection that includes the great masters of universal art. Currently, there is an exhibition dedicated to Georgia O’Keeffe, called My New Yorks. Another temple of the visual arts is the Contemporary Art Museum (MCA). This city also has unique urban art, with monumental works such as Alexander Calder’s Flamingo, the Picasso Statue and Marc Chagall’s Four Seasons mural.
The architectural boat tour on the Chicago River is quite an experience as is climbing to the top of the Willis Tower, to the Chicago Skydeck (a classic), the highest viewpoint in the United States, with a height of 1,354 feet (413 meters). On the other hand, in the Chicago Opera Theater and the James M. Nederlander Theater can see the best of the city’s performing arts; and when it comes to flavors, the Oriole restaurant by award-winning chef Noah Sandoval (661 Walnut Street), recognized with two Michelin stars, the Mexican Birrieria Zaragoza (4852 Pulaski Avenue) and the Peruvian Tanta (118 Grand Avenue). Mixology lovers also have one of the best options at LondonHouse Chicago (85 Wacker Avenue).
These sunny months, the city turns to the streets to take revenge for the long and severe winter, and the beaches of Lake Michigan: North Avenue Beach and Oak Street Beach are two of the best known. No matter what time of year you visit, Chicago will always be inexhaustible.
#Trip #Chicago #inexhaustible #city