Day back and forth

A Travelogue by an inquisitive explorer:

“The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only one page.” – Saint Augustine

            According to my little wisdom, there can never exist an alternative recreation than to traveling the whole world. Hence, the term “Wanderlust” had been coined by Germans and the meaning of this word is so relevant and appropriate in even today’s scenario. It’s not that always, people seek excuses to escape from the suffocating bondage of their routine life and that’s why they quest for wandering. There remains an acute hunger of curiosity within the mankind to know new places, new cultures, people, so they explore, keeping aside all their languishes. Revelation of the unknown has always been a natural instinct of human beings. So, they find traveling is the best medicine to live their lives at a larger basis. Like any other normal person, I too often have cravings for traveling. I have heard so many times that, here, in the United States, there are so many wonderful places to visit at least once in a lifetime. Keeping this in mind, I prepared a to-go list of visiting places in the United States and it often happens that, due to our turbulent busy schedule, we do not get plenty of time to spend in traveling and that is why we arrange it as a hurricane tour. In order to design our short span of time as a satisfactory investment, I have prepared a tight but interesting schedule for one-day visits in one of the magnificent places of the States, called Chicago. So, let’s have a look at it.

Chicago is the third most popular city in the state of Illinois and a pleasant place to settle in. It is the hub of art, culture, science and much more. This city is the amalgamation of visual arts, theaters, novels, music like jazz, blues etc. Due to its constant flowing of wind all the time, this city is often called by its nickname, Windy city. The city is really one of the best places to live in as the environment is so calm, quiet and peaceful. One most astonishing fact is that white population is the majority of this place, as a very few African Americans can be found over this place. The transportation system in Chicago is very convenient and accessible for anyone and everyone. Anyway, coming to the main point, this city possesses so many astounding places to visit that, one day is merely a very short span of time to see and have the proper pleasure from those visits. Nevertheless, there are certain places which are a must watch for a tourist and those are:

• Willis Tower

This tower being the second most top building in the whole United States which possesses a magnificent Skydeck, it has naturally become one of the most crucial attractions for the tourists of Chicago. This building is itself has 103 floors and the immensely popular glass box called Skydeck is situated at the top most floor of this skyscraper. It provides tourists a 360 degree wide extensive panoramic view of the Chicago city and three other neighboring states as well. This never before seen spectacular view, at definitely makes its tourists breathless by its magnificence and divinity.  Some notable restaurants located in this building offer delectable cuisines to relish for the lifetime. Audio- visual tours are also arranged over here, which are quite useful, informative and interesting at the same time. The gift shops situated at the first floor exhibits various attractive items to display as well as for sale. The operational hour of this building is between 10 am to 8 pm from October to March and beginning from April until September it remains open from 9 a.m to10 pm. For adults, the ticket is $17.50 while $11.00 is for youths. 

• Cloud Gate

Beside Lake Michigan, there remains an immensely innovative manmade structure, named Cloud Gate, designed by none other than internationally acclaimed Indian-born British artist Aneesh Kapoor. This bean-shaped sculpture was constructed in between 2004 and 2006, which was composed of one hundred and sixty-eight stainless steel plates. This structure has been able to earn a lot of crowd and popularity since its construction. This cloud gate constitutes a mirror-like surface which marvelously captures the Chicago skyline though in a deformed shape due to its elliptical structure. Most surprisingly, its inner surface generates multiple reflections of the subjects located under this sculpture.This magnificent creation draws millions of visitors every year. Even, several directors have applied this place as the backdrop of their renowned movies, for instance, Source Code, The Break-Up, Dhoom 3 and much more. Hence, being one of the most iconic and signature sculpture of Chicago, the Cloud Gate is a must visit place for tourists.

• Chicago Art Institute

Another noteworthy existence of Chicago, named the Art Institute, has been pulling tourists from all over the world, towards it, since 1879. The extensive size and collection of this museum have been able to establish it as the second largest museum in the United States. This renowned foundation made its mark in the central part of Chicago, adjacent to Millennium Park, near Lake Michigan. Its curatorial section encompasses an extensive collection comprising 300,000 art work, for instances,  

·         African and Indian Art

·         American Art

·         Asian Art

·         European Art, painting and sculpture

·         Modern and contemporary art

Etcetera.

These collections are more than enough to make the visitors spellbound. Various exhibitions, lecture sessions are organized inside the main building every year. This must -watch institute remains open daily in between 10.30 am to 5 pm and the ticket price starts at $29. Visiting Chicago without witnessing this royal place is definitely an ignorant chore.

• Navy Pier

Situated on the Lake Michigan, the 3300 foot long Navy pier is definitely a major attraction for tourists in Chicago. Opened in 1916, this pier was named otherwise, which later renamed as the navy pier in order to commemorate naval veterans served in World War II.  Several exciting events and attractions are held here to grab the attention of the visitors. Centennial Wheel is the landmark of this Navy Pier. Tickets vary according to the events. The best thing is, it remains open all the year around though the hours of operation vary. Therefore, it’s a never to miss out destination for the travel lovers.

Hence, these are the most visited destinations of Chicago to traverse in a very short, limited span of time. Otherwise, there are, other numerous tourist spots to explore in this delightful city, for instance, Lincoln Park Zoo, Michigan Avenue, The magnificent mile, IIT Chicago etc. This city has been championing in winning millions of hearts for its serenity and charm at the same time while preserving its beauty as well.