Chicago is a major metropolis located on the shore of Lake Michigan in Cook County, Illinois, which is located in the northeastern part of Illinois. It's the third-largest city and metropolitan area in the United States, after New York and Los Angeles. An exciting city, Chicago is noted for its Lake Michigan shoreline and downtown skyline, considered by many the most picturesque skyline in the world.

Progress and modernization rule in Chicago. The old Chicago with its smoke-spewing factories and quarreling politicians - not to mention machine gun-wielding gangsters - is mostly gone, having given way to a new Chicago known for architecture, world-class museums, and tourism in general.

Chicago is known as The Windy City. Popular myth has it that this nickname for Chicago was coined by Charles Dana, the editor of the New York Sun, in 1893. Chicago was competing with New York to host the 1893 Columbian Exposition and Dana allegedly coined the name as a derogatory moniker. Supposedly the term is not a reference to the winds off Lake Michigan as one might suppose, but rather refers to the Chicagoan habit of rabid boosterism and shameless boasting. To a New Yorker like Dana, Chicago was full of hot air.

The story simply isn't true. The name dates to at least 1885, and clearly refers to the breezes off the lake. 1885 references include "city of winds" as well as "Windy City." This isn't new information either. Mathew's Dictionary of Americanisms, published some 50 years ago, includes an 1887 quotation of "Windy City, but the myth persists--largely due to newspaper reporters and editors who repeat the tale without checking the facts.

Chicago is also known as The Second City, which refers to its rebuilding after the famous Chicago fire. The current city of Chicago is literally the second city. Some also believe it refers to the city's historical position as the United States' second largest city, after New York City, though it has long since been surpassed in population by Los Angeles. Chicago, however, is still the second largest financial center in the country, ahead of Los Angeles.

Carl Sandburg called Chicago the City of the Big Shoulders, referring to its tall buildings. Chicago was the birthplace of the skyscraper.

The best-known song about Chicago, written in 1922 by Fred Fisher, calls it That Toddlin' Town. Since then many different well known artists, including Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, and of course Chicago, have sung their versions of the song.

Finally, the city is sometimes called the The City That Works, which is a local promotional campaign by the Mayor Richard M. Daley administration. It refers to the long labor tradition as well as the long hours worked by residents, as well as a stable, municipal government which provides numerous services to its inhabitants.

Chicago's history with corruption cannot be ignored. During the Prohibition Era, the Mafia became entrenched, with names like Al Capone and Baby Face Nelson. Eliot Ness was known as the "incorruptible" investigator. Al Capone was eventually sentenced on tax evasion and Baby Face Nelson was shot and killed in the northwest suburb of Barrington, IL (small plaque at Langendorf Park briefly describes the dramatic shootout). This continued with claims of ballot packing, where the dead would vote, and the motto was "vote early, vote often". More recently the former governor of Illinois, George Ryan, was convicted in 2006 and sentenced to prison.

The Chicago Fire was a major event in the city's history. On October 8, 1871, a fire was reportedly started by Mrs. O'Leary's cow knocking over a lantern in the crowded immigrant quarters in the West Side. This quickly spread throughout most of the city, killing 300 and destroying entire blocks, including most of the original downtown buildings. A famous surviving structure is the stone Water Tower, just north of the Loop. The city was able to rebuild, in some cases improving the layout of streets, and by 1875 little evidence remained.

The climate is temperate continental, and quite variable. July and August are hot and humid, with many days easily reaching 90 degrees Fahrenheit with high humidity (though lakefront neighborhoods are slightly breezier and cooler). Summer daytime temperatures exceeding 100 degrees Fahrenheit, while not commonplace every year, may be experienced. Summer nights average about 67 degrees Fahrenheit. December through March will see very cold temperatures, with January and February seeing possible nighttime lows in the teens and possibly subzero, with even lower windchill factors (the "no exposed skin" regimes). These extreme conditions may happen one to two times during the entire winter season, lasting for only a few days before nighttime temperatures return in the range of 20-35 degrees. Winter days average between 30-45 degrees Fahrenheit. Snow is usually limited to a handful of heavy storms per season, with dustings in between. East coast cities tend to receive more snowfall than Chicago in the winter, but Chicago generally has colder temperatures in the winter. Shorter timescales also vary widely - temperatures may swing 30 degrees Fahrenheit within a week. May through September are mild and highly recommended, and the lake effect may prolong a pleasant autumn through October, and sometimes into November.

Sights

Chicago is a city of vibrant neighborhoods. While the downtown has many great cultural institutions and tourist attractions, most Chicagoans live and play outside of the central business district. To truly understand Chicago, travelers must venture away from the Loop and Michigan Avenue and out into these neighborhoods. The North Side has many neighborhoods of interest. Take the Brown Line to Armitage to visit upscale boutiques and see residential streets lined with million-dollar homes in the historic Lincoln Park Neighborhood. Walk down Sheffield towards Fullerton and take a shortcut through DePaul University before you get back to the "el" for your next adventure. Take the Red, Brown, or Purple Line to Belmont to visit Lakeview, a neighborhood defined by its mix of various races, alternative youth, gays & lesbians, independent retailers, sports, and family cultures --the Belmont strip is a favorite hangout of Chicago youth; the Belmont, North Halsted, Clark Street area is the center of Chicago's Gay-Lesbian-Bisexual-Transgender culture and is called Boystown (pronounced Boys Town); Clark Street near Addison is where baseball fans hang out and where Major League Baseball's Cubs play at Wrigley Field; and Broadway south of Belmont is a laid back mix of all of the above. Take the Blue Line to Damen to visit Wicker Park and Bucktown neighborhoods, the center of Chicago's "in" scene and home to many chic restaurants, bars and boutiques. Finally, make sure to check out Andersonville and Lincoln Square for some great Swedish pancakes or German beer.

Most of Chicago's attractions lie in the downtown or North Side areas but there are points of interest on the South Side, which also graces the lakefront, except in a southernly direction from downtown. The Kenwood and Hyde Park neighborhoods border one another and are upscale affluent South Side neighborhoods which could easily pass for any North Side area. Hyde Park is anchored by the University of Chicago, one of the world's foremost institutions which is affliated with 79 Nobel Prize laureates. This neighborhood is also home to the excellent Museum of Science And Industry, located in Jackson Park. This museum houses a submarine, a coal mine with an underground railway, a Boeing 727, and far too many other exhibits to mention. There are no El lines which serve Hyde Park directly. The closest are the Green and Red lines which are about one mile and one mile and a half, respectively, from the western most border of the neighborhood. A regional train (Metra) does, however, stop in Hyde Park before continuing on to the suburbs.

Shop

Whatever you need, you can buy it in Chicago at stores ranging from ultra budget to ultra luxury.

Destination shopping is quite convenient along the Michigan Avenue strip (from the Loop to the beach, use Chicago, Grand, or Lake stops on Red Line), including many designer boutiques, and several multi-storey malls anchored by large department stores including 900 N Michigan (Bloomingdales), Watertower Place (Macy's), North Bridge (Nordstrom) and Chicago Place (Saks Fifth Avenue). Additional brands are available from off-strip shops to the south and west of Michigan.

For trendy boutique shopping, try the shops around Halsted Street and Armitage Avenue in Lincoln Park, and the shops near the intersection of Damen, North, and Milwaukee Avenues in Wicker Park.

Hotels

Chicago has a wide selection of hotels: from budget to luxury.