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Old 08-31-2008, 02:04 PM
 
Location: CHICAGO
88 posts, read 357,784 times
Reputation: 29

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Chicago - This is Brandon checking in and I wanted to thank everyone (especially Drover and Lookout Kid) for helping me out those last few weeks that I was in Seattle and trying to do my research on The Windy City. I have moved in to Portage Park area and found the CTA to be a much better way of traveling around the city than my car. I do want to second peoples comments about Portage Park being underserved by transit, though. So far I have been all over the Loop, Gold Coast, Old Town, Lincoln Park and Near North and they are all nice places.

(Take into consideration I have only been here less than one week)

Here is a summary of my biggest shocks being new to Chicago:
-The west side has some scary looking street corners around Chicago/Cicero/Austin/Belmont
-The Cell is difficult to get to on foot and I was kinda let down by the sports bars in that area
-Chinatown wasn't within walking distance from the Sears Tower
-The Chicago School of Architecture is simply amazing and the skyline is so vast once you are inside of it
-Chicago is so much bigger than Seattle and Boston (both cities I know pretty well) and I may as well have moved here from small-town USA given the size of this city
-Wrigleyville is definitely trendy, but Wrigley Field is spectacular
-Cabrini Green has condos within a 5 block walk that were starting in the low $300k's
-Michigan Ave is simply amazing
-St Peters on Madison is well integrated into downtown
-Traffic absolutely sucks on Lake Shore Drive (and everywhere else) on anyday
-Downtown Chicago has some real friendly people when trying to find things on maps and tour guides
-I paid about $10 for a pack of cigs on day 1
-Old Town has some great steak houses
-The panhandlers are less in volume than Seattle but pretty relentless about their pursuits around South State Street
-There seems to be a lot of marketing from Real Estate people pushed in my demographic/income bracket advertising how safe the South Loop is but I wasn't all too impressed with some of the side streets there
-Hyde Park seems off the beaten path and I havent figured out how to get around that area
-Coming out of the subway tunnel for the Blue Line @ Van Buren for the first time ever and seeing downtown from the stairwell approaching the sidewalk was my most favorite experience so far
-Anyone know how many Dunkin' Donuts there are in Chicago?

First impressions are what they are, but after 1 week in Chicago all that I can say to encourage other people from around the world to move here is:
Do it! This city is simply amazing and IMO the greatest city in the US. It has everything that I ever liked about Manhattan but without all of that crap flying in my face and more impressively arranged structures/architecture than any other city I have been to. Chicago has a pretty robust economy and I have seen some pretty good salaries around here on job boards that look like they can get you the right lifestyle and the dollar goes much further here than NY.
Chicago must be experienced by all people as far as I am concerned.
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Old 08-31-2008, 03:02 PM
 
Location: Berwyn, IL
2,418 posts, read 6,260,043 times
Reputation: 1133
lol at the Dunkin' Donuts comment.

The Cell is hard to get to on foot? Meaning, walking from the loop? My buddy does it very easily by taking the Cumberland blue line stop to Jackson, and walk to the Red line stop. Get off at 35th, and the stadium is right there. We usually meet after work at go to a game.

Glad you like it so far though.
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Old 08-31-2008, 03:13 PM
 
Location: CHICAGO
88 posts, read 357,784 times
Reputation: 29
Thanks for the commute tip!
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Old 08-31-2008, 03:46 PM
 
293 posts, read 246,172 times
Reputation: 476
I've been to Chicago several times for work and I loved it.

I would move there inmediately if I had the chance, it´s amazing. My biggest goal right now is finding out a way to live there.

People that live in Chicago are so lucky.
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Old 08-31-2008, 03:55 PM
 
Location: Oak Park, IL
5,525 posts, read 13,958,585 times
Reputation: 3908
Quote:
Originally Posted by brinegar312 View Post
1
-Anyone know how many Dunkin' Donuts there are in Chicago?
Not nearly as many as in Boston.

Welcome to Chicago!
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Old 08-31-2008, 04:30 PM
 
11,975 posts, read 31,811,456 times
Reputation: 4645
Welcome! You're in the Honeymood phase. After a while the difficulties of urban living do mount a bit, but most Chicagoans still love their city! Since you're from Boston you should be ready for winter already, with a just a few more days of extreme cold.

Quote:
Originally Posted by brinegar312 View Post
-The west side has some scary looking street corners around Chicago/Cicero/Austin/Belmont
Yep, the West Side is scarier and more dangerous than the South Side in many ways. Many poor black South Siders I've talked to say the West Side is "lower class" than the South Side, in that the southern migrants that settled there in the Great Migration were poorer than the ones who settled on the South Side a little earlier in the century. I don't know if this is true or not, but it's an interesting tidbit. It could just be old fashioned rivalry!


Quote:
Originally Posted by brinegar312 View Post
-Traffic absolutely sucks on Lake Shore Drive (and everywhere else) on anyday
Lakeshore Drive can be one of the easiest ways to get around, but they are re-surfacing the portion between Montrose and Hollywood right now. It's particularly bad during Cubs home games.


Quote:
Originally Posted by brinegar312 View Post
-Coming out of the subway tunnel for the Blue Line @ Van Buren for the first time ever and seeing downtown from the stairwell approaching the sidewalk was my most favorite experience so far
There is some great architecture in that area! I also love coming up from the Jackson stop right in the middle of Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe's Federal Plaza. It's one of the great urban spaces in the world, and has that great red Alexander Calder sculpture in contrast to the black Mies towers. The Sears Tower looms overhead in the background as well... I love it! You often see this plaza featured in movies.


Quote:
Originally Posted by brinegar312 View Post
-Anyone know how many Dunkin' Donuts there are in Chicago?
There are 369 within 50 miles. Yeah, I just Googled it.
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Old 08-31-2008, 04:49 PM
 
Location: Evanston
725 posts, read 1,850,971 times
Reputation: 195
Welcome! I enjoyed reading your synopsis. I love coming out of the subway and seeing the towering buildings all around too. Lol about the Dunkin Donuts. It's a challenge not to stop and buy coffee (or donuts!) at the zillions of DD's, Starbucks, Paneras, Corner Bakeries, etc. from my walk to the train to my office. There are like 3 on every block!!! I could easily become fat (and poor) if I stopped whenever I had the urge.
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Old 08-31-2008, 09:54 PM
 
Location: Phoenix metro
20,004 posts, read 77,410,260 times
Reputation: 10371
Welcome to Chicago! Glad you like it so far! And just think... youve seen maybe 2% of the city. lol
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Old 09-01-2008, 12:35 AM
 
19 posts, read 18,581 times
Reputation: 13
Wait until winter comes!! ha ha
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Old 09-02-2008, 09:54 AM
 
Location: Chicago - West Lakeview
1,722 posts, read 2,557,496 times
Reputation: 882
Welcome!


-The west side has some scary looking street corners around Chicago/Cicero/Austin/Belmont

Belmont between Cicero & Austin is DEFINITELY much better than Chicago between Cicero & Austin.

-The Cell is difficult to get to on foot and I was kinda let down by the sports bars in that area

The bars near the Cell are in Bridgeport, and they definitely cater much more to the neighborhood regulars than the trendoid places in Wrigleyville.

-Chinatown wasn't within walking distance from the Sears Tower

Nope, not even close. Next time get thee back to the Red Line, and get off at the Cermak-Chinatown stop.

-Wrigleyville is definitely trendy, but Wrigley Field is spectacular

Sorry, but meh.

-Cabrini Green has condos within a 5 block walk that were starting in the low $300k's

Actually, there's a number of pricey condos directly across the street from Cabrini-Green.

-St Peters on Madison is well integrated into downtown

It is, and also, it's a relative pretty church for a modern church.
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