Chicago is the most architecturally spectacular city in America, with signature masterworks by Jahn, Richardson, Sullivan, and van der Rohe, founder of the exquisite—when done right—International Style. The glory days of writers like Nelson Algren, Mike Royko, and Theodore Dreiser are long gone, as well as Machine legends like Jane Byrne, Richard Daley, and Ed Vrodolyak, who provided such a saucy undertow to the city’s vast and muscular ambitions. The once-fabulous Drake Hotel is a shadow of its former self, and the other elite hotels are plagued by a lack of smart, nuanced, and competent staff. Still, the beauty of this remarkable place endures.
Come to Chi-town to swim in Lake Michigan, stroll The Art Institute, see Roosevelt University (a college inside a skyscraper), gape gobsmacked at the stunning architecture and public art, and eat and drink very well, amidst friendly, well-dressed, if fairly no-nonsense denizens. This is the heart of America. It’s turned far left of center with its recent parade of daft Woke mayors, but despite the crime, it holds on to some of its gritty and elegant glory.
Chicago: that Toddlin' Town.