First Impression of Chicago

[EllieKay56]

I grew up in Rogers Park and lived in Chicago until I was 31. My mom stayed in our home in Rogers Park until she died 12 years ago. I love coming back and visiting the city for all you mentioned. Love showing the grandkids the lake that we swam in and the parks we frequented. It is a beautiful place.

[Jeohnny]

Originally Posted by 58Belvedere

Loved. It. Even. More.

Was there for a daughter's wedding in early October, held right on the River. Stayed at the Congress Plaza Hotel (which we loved). Did our usual roaming around, but also more driving, as we had to go to and from the Airport to ferry family around.

Aside from the usual sad human shrapnel of homeless/wino/addicted people nodding off/begging/making one wonder just if/how to help, and a brief moment of a nearly wilding gang of proto-sociopathic teens (quickly squelched by appropriately firm cops), it was another splendid experience. Loved the waterfront, how many classic structures are still used and obviously respected, the (to us) high-functioning mass transit, the energy, vitality, love for the city evident in almost everyone around us.

Sure, the traffic to and from the airport is crazy, we heard repeated rounds of police sirens wailing, etc., etc. But WHAT a great city. (Splendid weather helped.)

We hope to return next summer for another, much more explorative and savoring-the-city trip. If only the gun violence problem could be quelled. It really sullies the full appreciation the city deserves. I've been to hundreds of cities in 36 states, and only Boston (in its own quirky ways) and Toronto are Chicago's peers.

If only I'd gotten there when the old, real Comiskey Park was still being used....

GO CUBS, and thanks, Chicagoans, for keeping such a big part of America's character going.

Chicago is awesome. It's my dream city. I visited last July as well and fell in love. The main thing that shocked me as well, was how "safe" the areas felt. I had no idea that just 4 or 5 miles from my hotel, there was like 101 people shot that weekeked. It's really strange to know that different "worlds" exist just miles apart. As a black male who hopes to move there one day, I hope I would be safe living there. Trust me it's a different reality being a black male in Chicago vs being non black. And that's my only concern about moving there.

[urbanpln]

Originally Posted by lepoisson

Glad you enjoyed your stay. It's really a great city with an awesome vibe.

This city has a major problem with segregation, but I suspect that much of the segregation is by choice. People naturally segregate themselves based on race and cultural background.

This statement is not necessarily accurate. While it is human nature to choose to live in environments that is culturally familiar, Chicago's segregation is deeper that most other cities in the U.S. Cities with similar racial segregation patterns tend to be located in the industrial midwest. What these cities all have in common is, they all came of age during the World War I /industrial era. During this era tons of African American migrated to northern cities as part of the Great Migration. We all know why they came so I don't need to write about that.

Most of the deep segregation in Chicago was caused by politicians and their racist policies (in the form of public housing and other housing policies and actions), private industry (using African Americans to bust unions and not offering advancement in opportunities), real estate industry which was and still is, to a lesser degree, responsible for directing people to specific areas using all types of trickery (block busting, etc.). This happen all over the U.S., but was extremely abused in the city of Chicago, and through out the region.

There are many other factors behind Chicago's segregation problem, but I don't have time to cover them all. Despite being hyper segregated, it is still a great city and my people and organizations are working to reverse this problem. It is one one the main reasons why we are experiencing the violence problem.

[mwj119]

Originally Posted by 58Belvedere

Loved. It. Even. More.

Was there for a daughter's wedding in early October, held right on the River. Stayed at the Congress Plaza Hotel (which we loved). Did our usual roaming around, but also more driving, as we had to go to and from the Airport to ferry family around.

Aside from the usual sad human shrapnel of homeless/wino/addicted people nodding off/begging/making one wonder just if/how to help, and a brief moment of a nearly wilding gang of proto-sociopathic teens (quickly squelched by appropriately firm cops), it was another splendid experience. Loved the waterfront, how many classic structures are still used and obviously respected, the (to us) high-functioning mass transit, the energy, vitality, love for the city evident in almost everyone around us.

Sure, the traffic to and from the airport is crazy, we heard repeated rounds of police sirens wailing, etc., etc. But WHAT a great city. (Splendid weather helped.)

We hope to return next summer for another, much more explorative and savoring-the-city trip. If only the gun violence problem could be quelled. It really sullies the full appreciation the city deserves. I've been to hundreds of cities in 36 states, and only Boston (in its own quirky ways) and Toronto are Chicago's peers.

If only I'd gotten there when the old, real Comiskey Park was still being used....

GO CUBS, and thanks, Chicagoans, for keeping such a big part of America's character going.

Loved reading these write-ups. Glad you enjoyed the city.. It really is one of the few crown jewels in all of North America.