Well, Porter is having a half-off sale, so trip has been booked. Arriving February 22 in the afternoon, leaving February 27 ditto. Anyone who can and wants to meet up, let me know! :D
Not yet! I'll probably go to the Art Institute and other such obvious attractions, though, since the last time I was in Chicago (as opposed to passing through O'Hare) I was under 10. So I'll figure out somewhere to stay that is convenient, unless I'm told that I absolutely must rent a car (I usually don't when I travel). Recommendations for anything and everything welcome. XD I'll probably be hanging out with canis_m for a while over the weekend. But I would love to have dinner on the 24th if you're free, that's my birthday proper and so one should at least dine out, I think. XD
And I will have a vehicle; note however that I am approx. zero use as a guide as the only place I can navigate to reliably without aid is the Mitsuwa in Arlington Heights. XD; And uhh some restaurants in Glenview.
Is a vehicle de rigueur for getting around? Or should I just make sure to book a hotel somewhere convenient? NYC is, like, the only place I travel to in the States, and of course it isn't there. XD;
In my experience, the parts of Chicago that anybody has any reason to care about are actually entirely do-able by subway - well, and by subway plus cab when you really don't feel like walking from the subway station.
Your mileage will vary.
[Having said that, booking a downtown/loop or Magnificent Mile hotel is absolutely essential for, uh, easy access ot he subway)...
Eying the Lakeshore W and dreaming of triple Starwood points. XD (It's a prepaid sale price, so I'll have to wait until next week when my Amex rolls over, ahaha.)
Rely on the wisdom of others for this, since I've never been there without a car, my friend from the suburbs always went everywhere by car, and I have no knowledge of what it's like to get around the city without one, only a vague sense that once one is downtown, a car is not necessary to do downtown things. But if you want to save up places that would be hard to get to w/o a vehicle for the time when I'm there, I'm happy to drive. Even in the direction of hot dogs. XD;
...How far out are you? Would it be more convenient for you to stay over in my hotel room on Saturday (...if you have nothing else to do on the weekend, I guess XD;)?
I could probably swing by at some point during that time period, since I live in the land of beer only about an hour north of Chicago. Let me know when's convenient for you! The weekend's probably best for me too, but I'll know more about my schedule after the first of the month.
Chicago's got some nice places to eat and to see; what sort of things are you interested in?
Pretty much any and all recommendations are welcome at this point. :D I don't actually know that much about Chicago, and the last time I was in the city (as opposed to passing through O'Hare) must've been in the 80s, rolling. The Art Institute, definitely, since I'm always up for a solid day or two of museum-going. XD
It's starting to look like Saturday night is gonna be the birthday dinner proper. XD Suggestions for a good place to eat?
Well, it's _your_ birthday dinner! What kind of food do you want to eat? There are neighborhoods for just about every background.
Devon Street is the place to score the really good Indian food. If you get a hotel near the Magnificent Mile or the Loop, there's lots of nice walking to be had, and reasonably nice food (there is a cute little bistro I can point you to if you're there). If you want to explore more of the city, yeah, you'll probably want a car. Museums - well, if you're in the Loop, the Art Institute is definitely walkable, as is the Field Museum (another good museum, IMO). Chicago's a lot of fun, but it does sprawl.
You might also want to consider a proper Chicago deep-dish pizza. Let's see, I suppose Giordano's (http://www.giordanos.com/) was good last time I was there! (Be prepared to roll home after, though)
I will be in town (well... very much in the south but still in town)! I would love to see you! I also have a car which is not really necessary but helps and also I love the Art Institute. I'm not sure living downtown is necessary, but you should definitely try to lie next to some place close to a subway stop.
There are SO MANY PLACES in Chicago. As for birthday dinner, are you expecting a lot of people / have a price range?
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winterfish
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Date: 2012-01-07 09:35 pm (UTC)no subject
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Date: 2012-01-08 10:20 pm (UTC)Your mileage will vary.
[Having said that, booking a downtown/loop or Magnificent Mile hotel is absolutely essential for, uh, easy access ot he subway)...
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Date: 2012-01-08 10:25 pm (UTC)I'll mention Topolobampo time and time again; even if you can't score a table, see if you can get a bar stool.
Pretty much anything Wicker Park is good for a bar crawl; Yelp is your friend.
And for the Authenticity Value, and The Fugitive flashbacks, just search around a top-rated Polish place and go with the flow.
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Date: 2012-01-08 04:10 am (UTC)Chicago's got some nice places to eat and to see; what sort of things are you interested in?
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Date: 2012-01-08 04:35 am (UTC)It's starting to look like Saturday night is gonna be the birthday dinner proper. XD Suggestions for a good place to eat?
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Date: 2012-01-10 05:07 am (UTC)Devon Street is the place to score the really good Indian food. If you get a hotel near the Magnificent Mile or the Loop, there's lots of nice walking to be had, and reasonably nice food (there is a cute little bistro I can point you to if you're there). If you want to explore more of the city, yeah, you'll probably want a car. Museums - well, if you're in the Loop, the Art Institute is definitely walkable, as is the Field Museum (another good museum, IMO). Chicago's a lot of fun, but it does sprawl.
You might also want to consider a proper Chicago deep-dish pizza. Let's see, I suppose Giordano's (http://www.giordanos.com/) was good last time I was there! (Be prepared to roll home after, though)
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Date: 2012-01-08 10:15 pm (UTC)Do recommend Graham Elliot for food...bit pricy, but really fun meal.
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Date: 2012-01-11 10:07 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-01-11 10:31 pm (UTC)There are SO MANY PLACES in Chicago. As for birthday dinner, are you expecting a lot of people / have a price range?
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Date: 2012-01-15 07:07 am (UTC)