Exploring Chicago

Photograph: Grace DuVal The best places to watch the Chicago River dyeing Get a great view of the Chicago River dyeing ceremony for St. Patrick’s Day from these vantage points. Written by  Zach Long ,  Emma Krupp  &  Jeffy Mai   As is tradition, the Chicago River will be turned green for St. Patrick’s Day on Saturday, March 11. Crews start the process in the morning, working from Columbus Drive to State Street, and the dye typically lasts a day or two (here’s how they dye the river). After the water changes colors, it’s off to Grant Park for the Chicago St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Whether you decide to crowd onto the Riverwalk or buy a ticket to a rooftop event, here’s where you can watch the St. Patrick’s Day Chicago River dyeing. How do they dye the Chicago River green? The Chicago Journeymen Plumbers Local Union 130…

How To Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day In Chicago In 2023 Get ready for a glorious day of giddy green shenanigans, from watching the river turn a gorgeous emerald hue to thoroughly enjoying the best bar crawls!  ELLIOT MCGOWAN With a historically large Irish population in our diverse and wonderful city, it’s no surprise Chicago’s usual St. Patrick’s Day celebrations are of international renown. It’s almost time to enjoy the iconic parades and parties we look forward to yearly. Chicago’s famed St. Patrick’s Day celebrations will return this March, and there is so much to do! With it now just a hop, skip, and a jump away, we’ve rounded up some of the best ways of celebrating St. Patrick’s Day in 2023. 1. See the Chicago river dyed green The Chicago river being dyed green The river dyeing tradition is one of Chicago’s most…

Here are 8 great ways to celebrate Black History Month in Chicago Soak in some jazz, revel in an all-night dance party, relive the March on Washington and other things to do in Chicago this month. By Mendy Kong Photo of women workers, East Calvary Ch. Dated to ~1922. Slide 31 out of 44. Courtesy of the Newberry Library February is Black History Month. Explore the city all month long with food from Black-owned businesses, jazz concerts, exhibitions featuring Black artists and scientists, and more. Get jazzy For music-lovers, get a two-in-one by celebrating the day of love and Black History month with The South Side Jazz Coalition. On Valentine’s Day, the ensemble – piano, guitar, bass and drums with guest vocalists – will perform a free concert of jazz classics. Feb. 14 at Compassion Baptist Church (2650 E.95th St.,…

Chicago Theatre Week kicks off This year’s celebration focuses on Black History Month, while Black circus artists take the spotlight at Aloft. by Kerry ReidFebruary 16, 2023 A scene from Trial in the Delta: The Murder of Emmett Till, presented by Collaboraction at the DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center through February 19. The production is part of Chicago Theatre Week, running through February 26.Credit: Joel Maisonet “If you see our show, that’s at least two spots on your bingo card!” That’s what Jimalita Tillman, global director for the Harold Washington Cultural Center, said at the Chicago Theatre Week kick-off party Monday night at Wicker Park’s Den Theatre. She wasn’t being metaphorical either. Theater audiences who check out participating shows starting today through February 26 can literally fill out a bingo card, with slots for categories such as “a comedy,” “a show…

Some of Chicago’s oldest buildings, museums and water towers allow visitors to travel back in time. Written by Zach Long  &  Emma Krupp You can’t step inside a time machine and explore the past (not yet, at least), but you can experience bygone days by visiting the places where history transpired. There are elements of Chicago history scattered throughout the city that date back to its incorporation in 1837—you simply need to know where to look. One of the best museums in Chicago resides in a building that dates back to the World’s Colombian Exposition of 1893, while the site of a notorious gangster’s last stand can be visited across the street from a popular Chicago music venue. Want to learn more about Chicago history through present-day exploration? Check out these important pieces of Chicago history hidden in plain sight. Photograph: J.B. Spector…

Begin the new year with events, festivals, concerts, theater and more great things to do in Chicago in January Edited by Emma Krupp Monday December 12 2022 We’ll be honest: January is not exactly Chicago’s finest month. But before you start to dwell on the prospect of snow, cold and seemingly endless winter, allow us to point out some of the best ways to kick off the first few weeks of 2023. Start by catching the final days of Christmas lights in Chicago (they offer a nice excuse to take a walk outside, even when the holidays have passed) and get some fresh winter air when you take a spin around the best ice skating rinks the city has to offer. Prefer to stay inside? Tour new exhibits at Chicago museums—many of which offer free days over the next few months—or check out some of the best things to do…

9 things to look forward to in Chicago in 2023 Dog shows, immersive exhibitions and new Guinness brews await you. Written by  Emma Krupp  &  Jeffy Mai As we near the end of 2022, it’s time to start looking ahead to what’s coming in the new year. Lots of big projects are in the works, including a Guinness brewery, several new music venues and NASCAR’s first-ever street race. So don’t let the winter blues get you down—there are plenty of bucket list-worthy activities on the horizon. While delays can, and invariably do, happen, we’re optimistic that the next 12 months will bring the city a wealth of notable openings. Without further ado, here are the things we’re most looking forward to in Chicago in 2023 Photograph: Winter Churchill Finding out who’s best in show at a new dog show coming…

by: Mack Liederman   Hilary Marzec has long introduced Chicagoans and tourists to the beautiful interiors of lesser-known Loop buildings. Longtime tour guide Hillary Marzec shows people Chicago’s artful interiors.Hillary Marzec Credibility: Original Reporting Sources Cited DOWNTOWN — Chicago’s peak tourism season has come and gone, but local tour guide Hillary Marzec still wants to take you inside some of the Loop’s most stunning buildings. Marzec runs her tour business, Inside Chicago Walking Tours, out of a Rogers Park office and calls herself a Downtown “architecture nerd.” For years, Marzec gave architecture tours via river boat but branched out on her own to “help people see the details up close,” she said. Inside Chicago Walking Tours offers $35 tickets throughout the winter and pay homage to the lesser-known buildings of the Loop, which people may pass over en route to “the big hitters”…

Lincoln Park Zoo Is on Lion Watch, New Cub Due in January Patty Wetli | December 9, 2022 12:41 pm Zari, Lincoln Park Zoo’s 4-year-old African lion, is expecting a litter in January. Here she is with her cub, Pilipili, born in March 2022. (Lincoln Park Zoo / Diana Miller) Lose a Cub (so long, Willson Contreras), gain a cub. The Lincoln Park Zoo announced Friday that its pride of African lions is set to welcome a new arrival, or arrivals, in January. Staff confirmed via ultrasound that 4-year-old Zari is pregnant. She and her 5-year-old mate, Jabari, are also parents to 9-month-old Pilipili, who was born in March. “This is a very exciting time for the lion pride at the zoo but also for the entire zoo population. A birth represents preservation of a species that has faced many challenges…

Colin Boyle The 109th Annual Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony at Millennium Park on Nov. 18, 2022.Colin Boyle/Block Club Chicago MILLENNIUM PARK — As flurries created a Chicago snow globe Friday night, the switch was flipped on Millennium Park’s Christmas tree for the first time this season, drawing an eruption of cheers and fireworks. Thousands crowded into the park to kick off the holiday season with the 109th annual lighting of Chicago’s official tree. The star of the show was a 55-foot Colorado blue spruce donated by the Glisovic family of Morton Grove. The tree stands in the park, near the corner of Michigan Avenue and Washington Street. It will be there until January 9. Before the park echoed with the tree lighting countdown there were musical performances by Son Monarcas; “Wicked” cast members Lissa deGuzman (Elphaba) and Jennafer Newberry (Glinda); DJ…