“The Devil in the White City” by Erik Larson started the madness, that is, my obsession for Chicago. Two summers ago I read this incredible book about the first American psychopath-serialkiller, H.H. Holmes, who committed an alleged 200 murders during the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair. Inked on the pages of this utter fascination, the book describes the Gilded Age with such detail that I could literally smell the stank of decrepit death blackening the waters of the Chicago River and I could also painfully feel the manic desire its prominent architects nearly died for while building the White City to be centerstage to the world. Since reading this book, I yearned to see Chicago, breathe its air, explore its intercity depths and gaze upon its unmistakable architecture, all the while soaking in its dark but trying story.
When I arrived at Chicago Midway, a far less trafficked airport located in Southwest Chicago, and on a Friday night at 10, my cousin Nicole was there to pick me up. We hadn’t seen each other since we were about five years old, but it was obvious we are family. We remembered that as kids, our mothers sported us with nearly identical haircuts: a kind of asymmetrical bowl cut thing where the back was a bit longer than the front, and it's apparently a tradition we continue to this very day. Without intentional coordination between us, we both sport dark shoulder length lobs.
Furthermore, we're both Virgos and Nicole has this encyclopedic knowledge of all the zodiac signs which rubbed off on me for the five days I explored Chicagoland. I found myself asking everyone and their grandmother what their sign was, providing me, what I thought was, the opportunity to better understand the person via their star traits.
During the ride to my hostel, Holiday Jones, located in the up-and-coming Westside, I asked Nicole about her life in this big, beautiful city. She explained that for one, Chicago is affordable. As an artist, she can maintain a typical Chicagoan artist’s lifestyle with a studio and apartment, all located in fairly nice residential areas of the Southside. Nicole also works ten jobs as a writer for various online magazines, covering topics of art, women’s health, subculture, lifestyle and the performing arts. She said that it's not unusual for Chicagoans to have multiple professional gigs too, because one opportunity always leads to another and another, and another, which is very much the case for Nicole.
When we arrived at Holiday Jones, I quickly changed into something more 'fun' for, what would be, a very long night out on the town - unbeknownst to any of us, of course. The first place we hit was Sidekicks, a low-key dive bar located in the Chicago suburbs or "the subs" as my cousin and her friends called it, and more specifically in Albany Park. I had the most delicious milk stout of my life as I photographed Nicole and her friends having a total ball performing karaoke hits such as Weezer's "Buddy Holiday" and Hanson's "Mmmbop". Dressed in her mom's 1980's Jetsons' blue flight attendant suit with black fishnet pantyhose, and the most killer coal black platform boots that could jelly a Hot Topic customer service associate for, like, ever, Nicole danced the night away with her friend Jackson who just couldn't contain himself as he exclaimed,
"You are seriously the best dancer ever, Nicole!";
Nicole studied dance at university as curriculum of her arts and photography degree and can follow easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy; something I envy on account I have two left feet.
After hours of singing, dancing, drinking, listening to some guy named Felix with his Aryan afro debouch Ancestry's genealogical algorithm with one argument, that being,
"two people must be related if they're the same height",
and after testing the strength of my iron gut by consuming some mystery fried foods from the bar's single-manned kitchen, someone in our group of half strangers (who we adopted at some point in the night) and half comrades, had the brilliant idea of skinny dipping in Lake Michigan right then and there. So that's exactly what we did.
Nearing 4:30 a.m., we packed up, bummed cigarettes from strangers, collected who we could from the ruckus of an incredible karaoke night and were off to Montrose Beach. Crossing two busy highways by foot and most of us without shoes, no less, we finally made it to the closed beach where we stripped, hid with all of our nakedness from patrolling police officers, and finally entered the glacial waters of the largest (by area) freshwater lake in the world: Lake Michigan. With thorough coaxing from my cousin's kind friend, Ellen, that indeed there was nothing dangerous or man-hunting/killing living in Lake Michigan, I finally went under and with a special thanks to an assisted polar-plunge from Jackson. With all of our cheeks glowing under the blue moonlight, we waded in the waters for about an hour and watched the sun rise in an inconceivable bouquet of golds, purples, pinks and blues.
Exhausted from the crescendo of an unreal but exciting night, we all returned from where we came, stumbling over one another's shoes as we periodically lost them because nobody really cared or had the energy to wear them proper anyway, and all the while laughing.... laughing a lot. Nicole then dropped me off at Holiday Jones and I slept that night into the wee hours of the late morning like I was dead.
That morning, I awoke at 11, got myself ready for a humid day of touring the city and made my way to a most delicious Americana cafe: Cafe Milk & Honey, which was conveniently located three blocks from my hostel. For an affordable $8.25 plus, I had the popular avocado toast with crumbled bacon, pickled onion, poached eggs, roasted cherry tomatoes topped with smokey paprika aioli breakfast plate and a big ol' 20 oz. latte. I give this place 5 stars for interior, vibes, healthy food choice, delicious flavor, affordability, and best of all, in my opinion, for the kind staff. Customer service always makes for a wholesome experience.
Then I hit the road and took the underground blue line to downtown. I walked all nine blocks of Chicago's Magnificent Mile, which is also referred to as The Mag Mile; it's an upscale section of Chicago's Michigan Avenue. I people watched for hours, explored various shops and Chicago-original boutiques, bought my husband and I some cool silk-screened t-shirts, got caught up and lost in the 100th Lions Clubs Parade of Nations for about two hours, photographed every breathing moment of the entire day, and all the while imagined myself in Vivian Maier's 1960's Chicagoland; it was a dream come true - I was in Chicago! Finally!!
Eventually, I caught the number 6 bus to the Southside from Wacker and Michigan Ave. I was headed for Hyde Park to meet my cousin and chill by the lake at Pebble Beach with she and her friends. Along the way, I met Christabell who is from North Carolina and who moved to The Windy City for adventure and work. She is a math and science teacher and works with a lot of intercity folks of various economic statures. She explained to me how opportunity, at least in Chicago, is really a product of income. She said that kids who come from less privileged backgrounds aren't less intelligent in any way, in fact, often they are just as intelligent and even show a greater sense of innovation and thinking outside of the box because they are cultured to be resourceful with little means, but being a product of their impoverished cultures, they aren't introduced or raised with the popularized concept that "hard work will provide one with opportunity and growth". Christabell explained that this concept of "hard work pays off" is popularized in families of wealthier financial standing, because they have 'the means' for investment, time and a disposable income specifically allotted for their kids. I always thought this was the case, attending public schools my entire life and growing up a military brat, in which you see a lot of different types of peoples, backgrounds, cultures, and incomes, but it was interesting to learn this from someone who has direct exposure to both sides of the spectrum and from the inside-out.
An hours ride to, and we finally made it to The Point at Hyde Park where I met with my cousin and with whom I kicked it for a few hours. In our cheeky bathing suites, we lounged at the banks of the clear Lake Michigan water, listening to it splash up against the rocks and slabs of cement broken off from a controversial city installation and initiative to provide safer access for folks entering the choppy waters. According to Nicole, the city aimed to align the Southside beaches with long slabs of cement, but were forced to trash the idea through civic protest. To this day, nobody really hangs out on the cement slabs anyway.
Christabell joined us later and lent me a fantastic book about Chicago, printed by Bonechi, from which I learned a bit of African American History regarding the famed Blues Trail. According to the book, the "Great Migration" from the South to "The Promised Land" of Chicago brought more African Americans from the Mississippi than any other state, especially and during World War II. With the migrants, came the Delta blues that was the foundation of the classic postwar Chicago blues style. Muddy Waters, who became the king of Chicago blues, was among the thousands of Mississippians who arrived on Illinois Central trains at Central Station, which stood across the street from Michigan Ave and Lake Shore Drive from 1893 to 1974.
After a few lazy hours, Nicole and I packed up shop, separated ways from Christabell and set forth to explore the city followed by dinner at Medici on 57th; a popular coffee/pastry joint known for their sinful Garbage Burger. In the meantime, our exploration took us to The University of Chicago campus; "a world class and private university located in a global city" - as the institution has superbly messaged on its website.
Modeled after Oxford University, the University of Chicago is complete with breathtaking Victorian gothic architecture that features spires, cloisters and grotesques. The campus is also one of the greenest places in all of Chicago - ok, I may be exaggerating here, because all of Chicago is super green, really - but! this very greenness offers an unreal vibe that's both bohemian-hip and prestigiously academic; it's the hipster's dream school, because its costly, eco-driven, but trendy! Nicole also told me that the campus, although privately institutionalized, is rather open and welcoming to the general public. The neighborhood in which the university resides, Hyde Park, feeds off of the brilliance of the university's students and organizational affairs. The school often advertises lectures, exhibitions and events neighborhood-wide, bringing together a mix of students and non-students who make up a welcoming campus experience and community. Oh yeah, and Obama taught at The University of Chicago!
And somewhere in the innards of the campus is a hall in which Doc Films exists. Doc Films is a special feature of the university because it hails as the longest running student-driven film society in the United States; having been founded in December 1940. Doc is also famous for hosting the likes of some of film's most brilliant cinematographers and directors, including: Alfred Hitchcock and Woody Allen. In 2005, Doc also premiered the highly controversial "Brokeback Mountain", which was an exclusive showing before it hit mainstream theaters. Doc is known for premiering movies that cannot be seen anywhere else.
After my grandiose tour of Chicago University, Nicole and I meandered through the quaint and colorful Southside neighborhoods with their baroque facades and contrasting color palettes. Chicagoans took that warm summer evening to relax on their cozy porches to the buzz and glow of fireflies shining in their front yards.
Alas, we made it to Medici on 57th where we dined on the famous Garbage Burger and Bacon-Bleu Burger. The food was delish and the portions HUGE, which was perfect for all of the energy we burned throughout our long and personal evening. The coolest thing about Medici, in my opinion, was their BYOB (if you want) policy, which we took great advantage of with a nice bottle of red wine that Nicole brought from home.
We ended the night with an evening cruise by car through the Southside; another great feature of the Chicagoland experience is its driving infrastructure. Unlike New York, Chicago is a midwestern city, with midwestern mentality and culture - people are less city slicker and because of its vastness, driving by car is totally easy and acceptable.
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