Cycling and Culture in Chi-Town

Chicago is magnificent. The architecture is magnificent. Lake Michigan is magnificent. The Lakeshore Trail is magnificent. The museum campus and the museums are magnificent. The free Lincoln Park zoo is magnificent. The Christmas lights are magnificent. Are you getting the gist? I didn't even really want to go to Chicago - I knew nothing about it, couldn't really be bothered looking into it, and Daniel struggled to tell me what was actually there to see and do beyond a Jay-Z and Kanye West concert. It ended up being a magical few days, a highlight of the trip and easily the most beautiful city we visited.

The edge of Lake Michigan has not been industrialised, which makes the Chicago shoreline one of the most gorgeous in the country. We hired bicycles and rode some seven or eight miles along it, from Lincoln Park to the Museum Campus - an amazing ride despite the bitter cold and the locals laughing at our daggy bikes. It's also surprisingly hard to cycle while wearing a dozen layers of thick clothing.

Look Mum, No Eyes!

Skyline

No Feet

The museums themselves are world-class. The Campus is a fifty-seven acre park on the water, surrounding the Field Museum of Natural History (some of you may know this from the Ben Stiller Movie Night at the Museum), the Adler Planetarium and the Shedd Aquarium. You would need a week to explore the cavernous depths of these places properly - we were wrecked after a few hours. The most famous exhibit at the Field Museum is Sue, the largest, most complete and best preserved T-Rex skeleton in the world. Running in a 3-D theatre is a half-hour documentary about the discovery and recovery of Sue - it really was interesting. The most amazing creatures at the Shedd Aquarium were the majestic Beluga whales.

Chicago at dusk from the Museum Campus

The Return

It was twilight when we finally left, and the view back to the city was breathtaking. The photos really don't do it justice, they never do. We didn't ride home but jumped into a cab - it was too late, too cold and we had somewhere to be...