Chicago: A Visitor's Guide

Chicago, built along the banks of Lake Michigan and along its tributary, the Chicago River, is a dynamic city that combines an appreciation of its past with a yearning to lead towards the future. A city of approximately three million, Chicago offers the energy of a big city, but at the same time is able to maintain a humble personality that allows the visitor to feel welcome and to freely experience its local charm.

A common destination for any visitor to Chicago is its Museum Campus, a fifty-seven acre park built along shoreline of Lake Michigan. It is home to three of Chicago's most prestigious museums, the Adler Planetarium, the Shedd Aquarium, and the Field Museum of Natural History. The Adler opened in 1930 and has one of the world's most renowned collections of astronomical artifacts. It is also at the forefront of using state of the art technology in its public presentations and opened the world's first StarRider Theatre. The Shedd Aquarium is home to the world's largest indoor aquarium containing over 8,000 aquatic animals. Aquarium divers hand-feed the sharks, sea turtles, and eels at regularly scheduled intervals. The Field Museum is one of the most impressive museums of natural history in the world. Its latest addition of significant note is Sue, the most complete and best preserved Tyrannosaurus Rex in the world. Forty-two feet long and thirteen feet high, Sue is approximately 67 million years old.

Other museums of distinction are the Art Institute of Chicago and the Museum of Science and Technology. The Art Institute is best known for its extensive collection of Impressionist and American art. Included in its permanent collection are works by Monet, Renoir, Cezanne, Lautrec, Seurat, Van Gogh, Picasso, Wood, Hopper, and Pollack. The Museum of Science and Technology is one of the first of its kind and is a special treat. Popular exhibits include the Aurora 7 Mercury Space Capsule, the Apollo 8 Command Module, the U-505 Submarine (the only WWII era German sub in the United States), the Great Train Story, and Yesterday's Main Street, to mention just a few.