I was fourteen years old the first time I visited a major city, and within hours I fell hard and fast for Chicago. That week is when I began a life-long relationship with urban architecture, my heart beat with the thrum of an enormous city, and a love of travel lodged in my bones. They say you never truly get over your first love, and for me that seems to be true.
A few years ago my sister moved to downtown Chicago (the Loop and now the South Loop), and the combination of two darling nieces and my first urban crush is too much to resist; I cannot stay away. Every time I visit the Windy City I fall in love all over again. I love the soaring buildings, the glass and steel, the streets and trains, the river through her heart, lake at her back, constant movement on her streets. I seem to soak it up and store it for later.
I spent almost an entire day wandering the city, logging mile after mile, meandering through city blocks and around the parks, the biting wind and gray skies didn’t deter me, I knew my love would keep me warm.
Walking on and on seemed to clear my head, the cold brought me clarity, and the sense of being anonymous in a place so crowded helped me remember parts of myself I had forgotten.
In the almost twenty years (!!!) since my first visit I have continued to fiercely love Chicago, while the outlying neighborhoods are nice and all, I am completely smitten with her core. The architecture, the food (THE FOOD!), the art, the urban-ness and the hustle combined with this Midwestern sensibility and down-to-earth-ness that makes me completely knock-kneed.
Chicago, my love, I’ll never quit you.
Im ashamed to say the only US big cities I’ve been to is NYC and DC… Is DC a big city? Compared to the po-dunk I’m from, I think it is 😉
Are… Not is. I first wrote just NYC then I remembered DC but forgot to change is to are ?
I think DC is a big city, I mean, the city itself isn’t super sprawling, but the sprawling metro area is massive.
(Also? I love DC!)
xox
Glad you love my city as much as I do! 🙂
Yes. Yes I do. 🙂
xox
I loooooooove Chicago. I used to go there so often for work and now I don’t get to anymore. 🙁 Your picture of the bean is amazing! It looks seamless with the sky. Have you ever done the architecture boat tour? It was fantastic!
I’m convinced that tour is the best attraction in America. It’s perfection.
xox
Oh it looks like such a cool city. Sadly, my only brush with Chicago has been the transit lounge. I gots to get back to the States sometime.
I love love love it! (And kind of loathe it’s airport, O’Hare, specifically.)
xox
I love Chicago too! Mostly because it is where my husband was raised! I am from a small town in Idaho so his city has always seemed so incredibly sophisticated and glamorous to me. Hooray for Chicago!
Yes!!! I was also raised in a tiny little town (like, dirt road until I was 8, first 4-way stop when I was 18 kind of tiny town). I was DAZZLED by Chicago, and continue to swoon over it. 🙂
xox
I’ve never been to Chicago (well, except for the airport) and I hope to see more of the city sometime.
I hope you get that chance! It truly is divine! (I always go in autumn or spring, I tend to avoid the sweltering summer and the feezy winter temps…ahem.)
xox
On Mon, May 9, 2016 at 10:06 AM, Feisty Harriet wrote:
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Chicago is probably my favorite city in the country. Granted I haven’t been to lots of places, but Chicago won my heart years ago and will always have a special place in it.
Oh, it SO is my favorite. Swoooon!!!
xox
On Thu, May 12, 2016 at 9:40 AM, Feisty Harriet wrote:
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Wow! Beautiful photos! I’ll be heading there next month and this post made me very excited to visit! 😀