Holy cow!

Legend has it that the great fire of 1871 was started by a cow. She supposedly kicked over a stool on which a lantern stood, starting a fire in her barn which quickly spread, ultimately burning down about three square miles of the city of Chicago.

The city had to be almost entirely rebuilt after the fire, and it is here that some of the world’s first skyscrapers soared skyward. Unlike cows, we birds can be proud of our part in the history of the city. Yes, we’ve had a small hand, or should I say wing, in the invention of skyscrapers.

The story goes that when Chicago architect, William Le Baron Jenney came home one evening, his wife stood up to greet him, placing the book she had been reading on top of a metal bird cage beside her. Jenney noticed that the light, flimsy cage easily supported the weight of the heavy book. This gave him the idea that a metal framework could hold up buildings, making them lighter and allowing the possibility to build higher. The rest is skyscraper history. See, you humans have a lot to thank us birds for. (But the less said about cows the better!)

Between a river cruise and some hop-on/hop-off bus touring, we’ve managed to see quite a lot of this city. As you might have guessed, Her Ladyship was thrilled with the incredible Art Deco architecture, Union Station being a firm favourite of hers. She was rather horrified to hear though, that when a large number of these magnificent buildings stood empty during the great depression, many owners decided it was cheaper to demolish them rather than pay the taxes. What a shame! Nowadays, they are building again like crazy, and the modern skyscrapers make for an interesting contrast with the old.

I found Nemo when I hopped off at the Shedd Aquarium…

And I’ve been to the Bean at Millennium Park…

This huge stainless steel sculpture is actually called ‘Cloud Gate’, but, on reflection, the local nickname seems more appropriate to me.

Now, thankfully, one thing Her Ladyship is not into is shopping and I’m eternally grateful to her for that, but with her mummykins in tow, there was no avoiding the Magnificent Mile, apparently THE place to go shopping in Chicago. We were dragged, I mean, brought around Macy’s, Bloomingdales… the usual suspects. At least Her Ladyship and I could enjoy views of the city and lake whilst bargains in footwear were being sniffed out on the upper floors, and we could admire the wonderful architecture of landmarks such as the Chicago Water Tower, the Tribune Tower and the John Hancock Center as we were marched up and down the ‘mile’. It felt more like a hundred miles to me, I can tell you! When we reached Tiffany’s, however, the shopaholic mother’s enthusiasm waned somewhat. Even she felt that that was a threshold she couldn’t afford to cross!

          

Only in Chicago: a jazz church service! Jazz is everywhere. Jazz clubs, jazz festivals, jazz buskers … jazz runs through the veins of this town.

I’ve always known that Her Ladyship is a bit of a weird one, but she still manages to surprise me at times. Well, I knew she’d enjoy certain things about America. The Art Deco architecture and the jazz, of course. I also knew she’d love the huge American trucks. That’s a given. But she has also been raving about the ice machines in hotel corridors, the fact that most electrical sockets also take USBs, how well the toilets flush, the ‘gorgeous’ fire hydrants … what? Mad woman.

But I can’t blame her for being mad about Chicago.