Work- and Weekends- in the Windy City

As I shivered through another windy day in Chicago, my colleague Brandon grinned and said, "Let's hope it gets colder; you may see shelf ice on Lake Michigan. Very pretty." I didn't see shelf ice- and wasn't disappointed- but yes, I saw much more, nearly all of it around the lake. The first sight I went to see was the Shedd Aquarium. With a huge number of aquatic creatures- colourful angel fish to gossamer-light jellyfish and massive belugas- the Aquarium’s a huge hit, especially with children. The Dolphin Show and the Marine Mammal Show are among the biggest draws.

The day we visited the Aquarium, we also went past the Millennium Park, with its gleaming steel bean, a large sculpture that reflects Lake Michigan on one surface and the Chicago skyline on the other. And the skyline is worth all the reflection it gets. Pun intended- one can just stand and gaze at those soaring skyscrapers, all glass, steel and interesting shapes, for a long time. And the best known- the impressive Sears Tower- is worth visiting for a bird’s eye view of Chicago. A lot of the other buildings downtown are also imposing, and the one thing I regretted was that the 'architecture cruises' down the Chicago river don't operate during winter.

For me, the highlight of the trip was the Art Institute. This museum holds one of the finest collections of art I've ever seen. The section on Impressionist Art- with masterpieces like Van Gogh's Bedroom at Arles and Self Portrait, Georges Seurat's Sunday at La Grande Jatte, Mary Cassatt's The Bath- is just magnificent!

Two other museums that came highly recommended were the Field Museum and the Museum of Contemporary Art. The former is supposedly one of those family-friendly places where children (and adults, presumably) can learn about everything from ancient civilisations to prehistoric creatures. The museum's prize possession is a very well-preserved Tyrannosaurus rex called Sue. The Museum of Contemporary Art, I was told, is also worth a visit for anyone who's keen on modern art- it also hosts frequent special displays, such a recent one on Design. Unfortunately, it snowed all of my last weekend in Chicago, and my plans to visit both museums got shelved. But next time I'm in town, they'll top the agenda!

Quick Tips:

The Windy City is aptly named- it's windy. Very, very windy. I nearly found myself being swept off the pavement and on to the road at times- and I am no featherweight! A good windproof jacket is a must, along with gloves, something to protect your ears, and layered clothing.

I was at a disadvantage, since I was on business and my client had their office in Lincolnshire: consequently, I ended up staying in Skokie, which was just about half an hour from Lincolnshire - and a good hour and a half by train and bus from downtown Chicago. If you have the option, choose to stay somewhere near downtown Chicago, because that's where nearly everything worth seeing is situated: the Shedd Aquarium, the Sears Tower, the Art Institute, the Field Museum, the Museum of Contemporary Art, and more. The flip side of that, of course, is that accommodation is a whole lot more expensive - but if money isn’t a concern, then this is where you should be staying. It’s just a whole lot more convenient than having to spend three hours traveling daily just to see the sights.

Best Way To Get Around:

The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) is the second largest transport network in the US, and its trains and buses connect most of Chicago and its suburbs. The CTA train network consists of a series of lines, segregated on the basis of area, and named for colours - the Red Line, Purple Line, Green Line, and so on. The buses are numbered, and nearly all train stations are in close proximity to a bus stop. On the whole, the CTA system is efficient, fairly fast, and clean. The only problem was that some of the trains - including important ones that connect to downtown - don't operate on weekends. Similarly, buses operate shorter hours on weekends. Since the only time I got to go sightseeing was weekends, this meant I had to head for home as early as possible. Despite that, CTA was a good option for me, and economical too - I'd buy a day pass, for , from the local Jewel Osco (it's also available at other supermarkets and smaller shops). The day pass and the week pass allow you unlimited travel on all CTA buses and trains over the specified period - a day or a week. Any time you board a bus or go through onto a platform, you insert the pass into the slot.

Other than CTA, the major train network is Metra. Metra's lines are not the same as those of CTA, and CTA passes or tickets are not valid on Metra. Like CTA, however, Metra also offers a day pass - specifically a weekend pass.

For those who don't have their own transport, and don't care to travel by public transport, there are (of course!) taxis. For me, taxis were useful only when I needed transport between Skokie and O'Hare International Airport, or between Skokie and Lincolnshire, where my clients had their office. For both, the best option was to call American Taxi at (877) 755-2227 and ask for a cab. They're always prompt, the drivers are usually good (and often very chatty - nearly all the cabbies I was driven by wanted to know where I was from, what India was like, and so on), and best of all, it's economical. Whereas city cabs will charge you for both ways if they have to pick you up or drop you outside the city, American Taxi will charge you only one way. Cool!

I didn’t have any say in choosing Comfort Inn as accommodation, since my company’s office in Chicago had already gone ahead and made bookings - with proximity to the office being the main consideration.

Despite that, I do admit that the Comfort Inn was not bad at all. My room, a single, was large enough to allow me plenty of space. The queen size bed, which could have accommodated one more person, was comfortable, the sheets crisp and clean. There was a large TV (which I never got around to watching), a table and chair, a neat sofa with extendable footrest, and a wardrobe which did double duty. It had a full length mirror in front, and neatly suspended on the inside of the wardrobe was an ironing board with an iron. Very handy. Also particularly useful was the alarm clock radio on the bedside table - it got me out of bed every single day well in time for office! And talking of office - the WIFI in my room allowed me to do quite a bit of online work from the comfort of my room - a boon when it started snowing.

The Comfort Inn doesn’t offer much in the form of recreation. There’s a swimming pool, but that happened to be closed for renovations and repainting while I was staying at the hotel. The only restaurant at Comfort Inn is Don’s Fishmarket, where the menu is built round steaks, salads, soups, and seafood. My recurring encounters with Don’s were at breakfast. All hotel guests can avail of a free breakfast buffet at Don’s, and though there’s not much variety, it’s filling enough. I invariably ended up having toast, scrambled eggs, hash browns and bacon, with orange juice, coffee, and the occasional doughnut.

Other advantages of Comfort Inn include the free shuttle service that guests can use within a three-mile radius of the hotel. All you need to do is inform the front desk that you need the shuttle, and one of the receptionists will drive you out or pick you up, as the case may be. This was very convenient for me, since my office was in Evanston, well within that radius.

Another plus point is that the hotel is close to some major stores and malls - Jewel Osco, Marshalls and Old Navy are right behind the hotel. The Old Orchard Mall is further away (still within the all-important three-mile radius!) and has Bloomingdale’s, The Body Shop, Bath and Body Works, Nordstrom, Macy’s, Cheesecake Factory, and other favourites.

The Comfort Inn may not be the ultimate in hotels, but it’s convenient and comfortable enough. The staff are friendly and cheerful, and at just about $95 a night for a single room, it’s economical too.

I was introduced to Chipotle by a colleague who’d been staying at the Comfort Inn across the road for the past two months. "Every time I get tired of pizza, pasta and sandwiches, I head for Chipotle," she said. And that, as it turned out, was what happened to me too - and with a frequency that I hadn’t imagined myself capable of. Three days out of seven, I found myself heading for Chipotle for dinner.

Chipotle is a good, honest-to-goodness Mexican joint, all smart brushed steel, black-and-white photographs, blond wood and deep red finishes. There’s also an outdoor seating area, but since I went in the heart of winter, sitting outside was out of the question. But the inside is comfortable enough: no-nonsense, sleek, and a great place to sit and have a cosy chat while you eat. Mostly, fellow diners would include families and businesspeople - including a lot of people staying at my hotel! Chipotle seems to have a large fan following.

Which brings me to the food: good wholesome stuff. You go up to the counter, place your order, and choose what you want in it. The counter staff - a friendly, helpful lot - whip up your order for you and raise a check, which (depending on what you choose), will usually be between $7 to $10 per person.

I generally ended up settling for a burrito bol: a bed of rice topped with beans, and with loads of add ons. I tended to alternate between chicken, pork (cooked with beans), and shredded beef. Along with that, I’d ask for sauteed green peppers and onions; salsa, grated cheese, sour cream, and guacamole. Chipotle offers three types of salsa, in varying degrees of `heat’- the spiciest, a fiery red in colour, was very hot- so hot, in fact, that even I, very used to spicy food, found myself gulping down gallons of juice to douse my tastebuds! The mild salsa, more tomatoes than anything else, was what I usually had.

Other than the burrito bol, the other items I tried on the Chipotle menu included the burrito (all the ingredients of the burrito, wrapped in a large and soft flour tortilla) and crisp tacos. The ingredients - the meats, beans, peppers and onions, salsa, sour cream, cheese and guacamole - remain the same for just about everything, but you can choose what you want and how much you want. With a bottle of fruit juice added to my order, I usually ended up paying around $8 for a hearty meal. Extremely good value for money!

Don’s Fishmarket Grill and Tavern has been billed as one of the top restaurants in the Northshore area. It’s got a part nautical, part old time feel to it: deep green leather upholstery, lots of dark wood, bric-a-brac (wooden models of ships, old posters, and the like). The bar counter, agleam with glasses and bottles, stretches along the right, with bar stools in front and wall-mounted TVs at either end. The staff, clad in black, are friendly and helpful. After a few days, they got to know us so well that we could count on some lively chatter even if we came down to breakfast all by ourselves!

But to come to the most important part: the food. Don’s specialty is seafood, and they have a fair number of fish, crab, shrimp and other dishes on the menu - all the way from starters through soups and entrées. They feature 'catch of the day’ specials, as well as a soup du jour. In addition, for those who aren’t keen on seafood, there are burgers, sandwiches, salads, and the like. Not a huge menu, but extensive enough to offer a fairly wide range of dishes to choose from.

Among the items I ended up sampling were shrimp with garlic butter (with a deliciously tangy squeeze of lemon, and a sprinkling of chives - a very good starter); and red Manhattan-style chowder (chunky and hearty, bursting with celery, carrots, tomatoes, and seafood). Another day, I had a huge portion of Bangkok catfish: a tender, just-right filet of catfish on a bed of flat noodles, with a delicious sweet-sour sauce and plenty of lightly sautéed veggies. Filling but light and fresh.

Another dish I can vouch for is Don’s burger. I prefer steak well done, and this one was just perfect: cooked through, but tender and juicy at the same time. It came with a grilled burger bun, lettuce, slices of tomato, gherkin, and a huge order of gorgeously golden and crisp fries. I also opted for a side of sautéed mushrooms (raw mushrooms, bacon, and cheese were among the other sides I could've chosen). To end my meal, I chose the key lime pie: a very buttery crust and oodles of light whipped cream, but a lime filling that was sweet to the point of cloying.

Nevertheless, I'd rate Don's as a good place to eat. The ambience is comfy; the service is brisk, efficient and friendly; the food is good and the portions are generous. Expect to pay anywhere between $15 to $40 per person for an entrée and dessert, without alcohol. Reservations are recommended for the evenings, when it can get fairly crowded. A tip if you’re staying at the hotel: take your room key along; you’ll get 10% off at Don’s.

I guess I gave in to peer pressure when it came to visiting the Sears Tower; had I been on my own, I doubt if I’d have visited it. But since I was exploring downtown with three colleagues, I found myself in the minority. Everybody wanted to ride to the top of the tallest building in the USA.

We paid up $11.95 each, and were ushered into a small movie hall, where we (along with some thirty or forty other visitors), were shown a brief video on the history of Sears, Roebuck and Co.; the design and building of the Sears Tower; statistics; and more. What I found particularly quirky was the unusual way in which the design of the tower was finalised. Architect Bruce Graham and structural engineer Fazlur Khan were dining out and Khan was trying to describe his concept of a 'stepped’ tower, when Graham took out a pack of cigarettes. He pulled out the cigarettes, then pushed some back in, and some even further in. And hey presto, there, in Graham’s hand, was a miniature replica of what Khan had in mind!

The Sears Tower was built 1970-74, and two decades later, in 1995, Sears ended up vacating the building. It is now occupied by various offices, but the Skydeck, which offers panoramic views of the Chicago cityscape, continues to be a big draw.

The Skydeck sprawls around a central block, which is decorated all over with interesting photographs, illustrations, and bits of information about Chicago - from the fact that its name is derived from the Potawatomi word, checagou, which translates as 'wild onion’, to detailed (and tragic descriptions) of the Chicago Fire, supposedly begun by the ill-judged actions of a cow! Equally absorbing were the anecdotes of famous denizens of Chicago - down to the bartender Mickey Finn, whose potent brews were capable of knocking out even hardened tipplers. What I liked was the fact that there’s a child-high stretch of information too, winding its way all around the central section. Here, kids can look at old life-size photographs to see what children wore to the beach in 1910; how their mothers would have dressed them in the 1880s; what their lunches would have consisted of in 1940. Cool!

Most people, of course, come to the Skydeck to see the view- and it’s pretty spectacular. We had the misfortune of visiting the Sears Tower on a cloudy day, so our experience wasn’t as fantastic as it could have been. But yes, we did see quite a few amazing buildings all around - and Lake Michigan, glittering silvery and cold under a thin blanket of snow, looked enchanting. Had it been a clear day, we would probably have been able to see 50 miles round.

The Sears Tower Skydeck is open 10 to 10 in summer (May to September) and 10 to 8 the rest of the year. Over a million visitors arrive here every year, so be prepared for long queues, especially on clear, sunny days.

Chicago’s Art Institute boasts of over 5,000 works, and by the time I’d spent four hours here, I was in a starry-eyed daze. There are many galleries, but the ones I can recommend are:

European Prints and Drawings, and European 1400s, 1500s-1600s, 1700s, and 1800s. A collection, spanning centuries and countries, with works ranging from the icon-like paintings of the 1400s, through the opulent mythological depictions, dreamy landscapes, still lives and portraits of later years. Along with famous names like Caravaggio, Tiepolo, Murillo and Turner, are lesser known painters - Karl Blechen’s Interior of the Palmhouse at Potsdam is in every conceivable shade of green, with brilliant light and shade. Alberto Passini’s Circassian Army Awaiting its Commander at a Byzantine Monument is full of life - down to the pigeons pecking at grain!

The collection of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art is mind-blowing, too. All the heavyweights are here - Monet and his waterlilies; Van Gogh (Self portrait, Bedroom at Arles); Toulouse-Lautrec (The Jockey, At the Moulin Rouge); Millet (Among others, The Song of the Lark - a peasant girl standing in the half-light, sickle in hand, listening intently - and the equally rural Bringing Home the Newborn Calf). Another monumental work is Georges Seurat’s painstakingly perfect pointillist masterpiece, A Sunday on La Grande Jatte.

Chinese, Japanese and Korean Art converge in a glorious display of carved jades and serene Buddhas, ferocious warriors and mettlesome ceramic stallions glazed in vivid yellows, greens, and browns. There are delicate silk paintings, brocaded costumes - and most abundant of all - porcelain. These range from delicate green teapots to pale blue jun pottery, glazed with purple-red.

Beyond the Paperweight Collection, which houses hundreds of largely French glass paperweights in floral designs, lie the European Arts. These galleries contains everyday art: carved furniture, ornate mirrors, crystal, and porcelain- Wedgwood, Dresden, and Sèvres.

The American Arts galleries, similarly, have furniture, silverware, paintings, and sculpture. Many stalwarts are represented - John Singer Sargent (Mrs George Swinton is very impressive); Winslow Homer (the silvery fish in The Herring Net almost writhe as they’re hauled into the tossing boat); and one of my favourites - Mary Cassatt. The Bath, depicting a mother bathing her little girl, is heartwarmingly tender. Another must-see in this section are Frederic Remington’s metal sculptures. One is of four cowboys, racing their horses so fast, only six of the sixteen hooves touch the ground!

And if you have children in tow, do check out one last gallery, the Thorne Miniature Rooms. Each room, only about a foot each side, is a perfect miniature replica of a typical historical room - mainly American or European, though there are Chinese and Japanese rooms too. There are bedrooms, living rooms, libraries, drawing rooms, dining rooms, even kitchens, all the way from Louis XIV through Victorian England, to 1930s Paris, to New Mexico, Virginia, wherever. Everything- furniture, upholstery, utensils, books, toys, paintings - is a perfect miniature. Utterly enchanting!

The Institute is open from 10am to 5 or 6pm, depending upon the season. Tickets are $12 per adult; there are discounts for senior citizens and students.

My colleague Neela was in Chicago directing a video shoot when an actor, Brendan, mentioned that he worked at the Shedd Aquarium - and that he could let Neela have five free passes. Neela was sweet enough to ask me, so we formed a quartet with two other colleagues, and headed for the Shedd Aquarium.

The tickets queue was very long, so we were glad to have passes. Our first priority was the Oceanarium, where Brendan hosts the Dolphin Show every 1.5 hours. We got there early enough to watch an earlier show starring a sea lion that happily jumped about, roared, and 'kissed’ volunteers. Though excellent, it lacked the glamour of the dolphins. Four Pacific white-sided dolphins, all complete charmers, leaped, pirouetted and raced. After such an amazing show, few people could resist the temptation to go down to the water’s edge and watch the dolphins as they darted about below the surface.

The Oceanarium also includes other marine mammals, such as whales (we got to see Bella, a brown Beluga calf, swimming shyly alongside the protective bulk of her big white mother) and otters. Above the Oceanarium, on the ground floor, are a number of other galleries showcasing riverine and marine fauna from across the world. The most representative is Waters of the World, with sections devoted to each major ecological system. It houses some fascinating species: a Congo puffer fish, marked like a miniature cheetah; an Australian lungfish that’s been at the Aquarium since 1933; velvety midnight-blue eels, covered in delicate red stripes; red devil cichlids; turtles; piranhas; and more.

There’s Local Waters, which focuses on snapping turtles, lake sturgeons and other American aquatic creatures. There’s Seahorses and Seadragons; Amazon Rising; and the circular Caribbean Reef in the centre of the main hall. It’s full of fish and coral in some of the most dazzling colours ever - cobalt blue, turquoise, orange, yellow, red, shimmering silver. The colours are repeated in the awesome Wild Reef, but this particular exhibit, which reproduces a Philippines coral reef, is a lot more. It has plenty of information on the zoological, economic and social importance of coral, and (like all the other exhibits) offers loads of opportunity to watch fish- including sharks and sting rays - up close.

The exhibits are diligently labeled and educational. Touchscreens allow you to view the feeding habits, habitat, and other traits of fish you’re watching, and push buttons let you see an artificial giant coral polyp feed off mock plankton.

On the whole, a fun experience for both children and adults - though children are probably more in evidence. Ticket fees vary from the cheapest, at $8 per adult, which allows you access only to Waters of the World, Amazon Rising, and Caribbean Reef; to $27.50 per adult, which covers everything except food, drink, and shopping of course. The aquarium is open from 9am to 5pm in winter (except weekends, when it stays open till 6pm) and from 9am to 6pm in summer. Restrooms, souvenir shop, and food court are within the aquarium.