Vegas & The Aftermath - Diary

[snoopy1239]

Greetings all. Dana and I are currently enjoying a one week vacation in Chicago before hitting the road to Toronto tomorrow afternoon. Armed with my crappy Casio camera, we took a host of photos and thought this thread might be a suitable place to share them with anyone who might be interested. Tikay has granted us permission to post our holiday snaps, so may I apologise in advance for temporarily hijacking the thread.

The first thing you notice about Chicago is the landscape, brimming with a seemingly endless line of sky-scrapers that almost recall the cinematography of Bladerunner. I've never been to New York, but I'd imagine that would be the closest comparison. We are located in the very centre of the city in a place called the Sax Hotel. Just one step outside our hotel offers some of the views you see below. According to wikipedia, Chicago is the third largest city in the States with over 9.7 million people, so I guess they've got to put them somewhere. However, I believe these sky-scrapers are mostly office spaces, companies happily taking advantage of what I believe is known as 'vertical expansion' (can anyone confirm the technical term?) and saving money by fitting in as much work space into the smallest possible surface area.

[Delboy]

Greetings all. Dana and I are currently enjoying a one week vacation in Chicago before hitting the road to Toronto tomorrow afternoon. Armed with my crappy Casio camera, we took a host of photos and thought this thread might be a suitable place to share them with anyone who might be interested. Tikay has granted us permission to post our holiday snaps, so may I apologise in advance for temporarily hijacking the thread.

The first thing you notice about Chicago is the landscape, brimming with a seemingly endless line of sky-scrapers that almost recall the cinematography of Bladerunner. I've never been to New York, but I'd imagine that would be the closest comparison. We are located in the very centre of the city in a place called the Sax Hotel. Just one step outside our hotel offers some of the views you see below. According to wikipedia, Chicago is the third largest city in the States with over 9.7 million people, so I guess they've got to put them somewhere. However, I believe these sky-scrapers are mostly office spaces, companies happily taking advantage of what I believe is known as 'vertical expansion' (can anyone confirm the technical term?) and saving money by fitting in as much work space into the smallest possible surface area.

Wow! It looks so clean. Remember how it looked in The Blues Brothers?

[snoopy1239]

Greetings all. Dana and I are currently enjoying a one week vacation in Chicago before hitting the road to Toronto tomorrow afternoon. Armed with my crappy Casio camera, we took a host of photos and thought this thread might be a suitable place to share them with anyone who might be interested. Tikay has granted us permission to post our holiday snaps, so may I apologise in advance for temporarily hijacking the thread.

The first thing you notice about Chicago is the landscape, brimming with a seemingly endless line of sky-scrapers that almost recall the cinematography of Bladerunner. I've never been to New York, but I'd imagine that would be the closest comparison. We are located in the very centre of the city in a place called the Sax Hotel. Just one step outside our hotel offers some of the views you see below. According to wikipedia, Chicago is the third largest city in the States with over 9.7 million people, so I guess they've got to put them somewhere. However, I believe these sky-scrapers are mostly office spaces, companies happily taking advantage of what I believe is known as 'vertical expansion' (can anyone confirm the technical term?) and saving money by fitting in as much work space into the smallest possible surface area.

Wow! It looks so clean. Remember how it looked in The Blues Brothers?

I must confess, I am one of the few who have seen The Blues Brothers? Was the landscape notably filthy in that film?

We can't account for the non-central regions, but from our experience here in the centre, Chicago appears to be a very clean city indeed.

[Delboy]

An extreme example I know ....

[danafish]

Actually the floor of our hotel room looks a bit like that at the moment.

[amcgrath1uk]

An extreme example I know ....

This was shot in a disused and ready for demolition mall.. but god yeah Chicago looked a hell of a lot dirtier in the film..

[Tonji]

Have you been finding your way around on the El?



(well it is Tikay's thread)

Have fun.

[snoopy1239]

Of course, to view Chicago in all its glory, you must ascend the Sears Tower just across the road from Union Station. A short, but most pleasurable trip along the river bank directed us towards this mammoth structure, but in truth, we located our target long before, if only for the tall white antennae that lurk on top.

Click to see full-size image.

For once, I won't be requiring assistance from Wikipedia to discuss the ins and outs of the Sears Tower, as we were treated to a brief educational film upon entry. In fact, the Sears Tower was more of a tourist attraction than I first imagined, and even boasted an array of souvenir shops selling items from T-shirts to mugs. I guess you can have a shop for anything if it's even mildly famous.

The reason for the Tower's fame is that in 1973, after just three years of construction, it surpassed both the World Trade Center and the Empire State Building to become the world's tallest building. Initially erected by the Sears corporation to hold their many workers in just one location (they have since relocated), the Tower was never intended to be a record breaker and it wasn't until they closed in on the record that they decided to go that extra mile.

I don't know if it is the top floor, but the lift zips punters up to Floor 103 (it goes up in tens, apparently), where you are offered a quite spectacular panoramic view of the Chicago skyline. The floor itself is highly reminiscent of that of the Stratosphere in Las Vegas, and apart from the lack of gaudiness and desert horizon, the view isn't too dissimilar.

During our visit, we were teetering on dusk, and were treated to a natural firework display in the form of flashes of lightning that lit up the skyline. It was a truly spectacular sight and absolutely perfect timing. Unfortunately, the timing of photography was far from perfect.









Since its erection in the 70s, The Sears Tower has been surpassed by the Petronas Towers in Malaysia and Taiwan's Taipei 101, although The Sears Towers still holds onto the slightly less impressive fact that it boasts the biggest antennae. Both recently constructed (last decade) structures are quite magnificent, but even after 35 years, I still believe that the Sears Tower has somehow managed to maintain its modern feel with its slick dark finish and the columns which stop at different levels.

[lucky_scrote]

Snoopy, how come your skin isn't an ivory white anymore?

[snoopy1239]

Have you been finding your way around on the El?



(well it is Tikay's thread)

Have fun.

It's funny you should mention that, because as a special treat for tikay, I decided to join his limited and often mocked clan of enthusiasts and indulge in my own spot of trainspotting. A guilty pleasure to say the least!

Like most of Chicago, it's very in your face, and just glancing out of our hotel windows gives us a view of the nearby train-track crossing the Chicago River.



Just across from the River and passed the first block, the train continues on its merry way, passing overhead at the crossroads. No bridges here.





I hope tikay appreciates this train porn...










Like tikay, I can't settle for just observing the exterior of a train, and couldn't resist purchasing a ticket for quick nose around. I don't know if all Chicago trains follow a similar design, but this particular one was a double-decker with a balcony type seating plan on the second floor.

[snoopy1239]

Snoopy, how come your skin isn't an ivory white anymore?

What do you mean? I've always boasted a tanned complexion. 

[snoopy1239]

It's din din time over here, and tikay will clearly require a few moments to gather himself after all that visual train candy, so it's time for us to hit the town in search of barbecue ribs.

If people find this interesting, I'll post some more piccies tomorrow. 

[danafish]

If people find this interesting, I'll post some more piccies tomorrow. 

Yes please, absolutely fascinating, why don't you post the zoo pictures? Elephants!

[tikay]

It's din din time over here, and tikay will clearly require a few moments to gather himself after all that visual train candy, so it's time for us to hit the town in search of barbecue ribs.

If people find this interesting, I'll post some more piccies tomorrow. 

Yes, yes please keep the Chicago Pics coming. I'll comment properly, & thank you, tomorrow, it's 0200 here, & I'm a little tired, just got back from London, & was looking forward to chilling on the Diaries for an hour or two  - only to find it's all going off again on the other side of the Forum. Happy days.

[tikay]

While I think of it, I'm so pleased bolt pp is back.

I don't know where he's been, & I ain't gonna ask, but his Posts are always worth a gander. He gets pretty close to the line from time to time, but he's a well funny geezer. I don't always agree with him, but his Posts have an extrordinary capacity to surprise - you never quite know what he is gonna say, what his angle is, where he's coming from, or going. Nor does he, I fancy.

I still recall that story he weaved about hitting some bloke with his giant-sized TV remote control.

I invariably like folks who don't take themselves too seriously, & have a sense of humour. It's why we started this Forum - poker with a smile.