I’ve lived in St. Louis for three years now, yet I’ve only made the five-hour drive to Chicago twice. My first trip two years ago was primarily a shopping spree at the Bolingbrook IKEA, with a few hours spent taking in the sights in Chicago. On Saturday I found myself in the Windy City yet again, this time taking my girlfriend Megan to O’Hare as she set out for Haiti to spend a month working for Architecture for Humanity. After dropping her off at 4pm I was faced with the decision whether to embark on my five-hour journey home and arrive at a reasonable hour, or enjoy being in another city for the evening and arrive…later. I went with the latter—or my stomach did anyway. It wouldn’t let me leave Chicago without a few slices of delicious “Chicago style” pizza. So I headed for the Loop.
After stowing my car in the bowels of Millennium Park, I resurfaced and looked at my surroundings. Inspired, I took out my trusty iPhone 4 and began filming. This is what I saw:
Much of this I saw on my first trip to Chicago two years ago, but some of the buildings were still under construction then. My favorite new addition is Aqua Tower, by Chicago architect Studio Gang. The rippling effect created by the undulating balconies is quite breathtaking. Some of my other favorites are the Tribune building, Marina City, Gehry’s amphitheater, and Piano’s modern wing at the Art Institute. I look forward to seeing more on my next visit!
Looks like a fun trip. Next tine visit the other Ikea – much larger. Chicago has some great neighborhood business districts and inner suburbs like Oak Park and Evanston are charming.
The balconies on that one tower are fascinating.
Thanks for the tips, Steve. Oak park will definitely be a major stop on my next visit…lots of Frank Lloyd Wright houses to see there (always an architecture nerd).