This is a mini travel guide from a design conference trip to Chicago in May 2015. I was in Chicago for HOW Design Live 2015 for work. After the conference, I explored the city with my new conference friends.
Chicago was a great city to attend a graphic design conference. I had the tremendous opportunity to attend HOW Design Live. I learned a lot about the design industry. When you work in higher education doing design work, it was fun to get a different design industry perspective. They had sessions from design layout, leadership, packaging, etc. It was awesome. I’m pretty sure this conference is now the largest design conference in the world. If you have an opportunity to go, I would highly recommend it.
Chicago is a neat city to explore. They have a lot of unique places to visit. Some highlights you should check out while you’re there are:
- Navy Pier
- Cloud Gate/Millennium Park
- Willis Tower (aka Sears Tower)
- Shedd Aquarium
- Art Institute of Chicago
- Hancock Observatory
- Wrigley Field
- The Magnificent Mile (the main shopping avenue)
Okay, now for the food part of the post. Every state, city and country has their signature foods that contributes to its culture. I love experiencing these things about each place I visit. Chicago is one of my favorites for its food staples.
Chicago is known for their eclectic style of foods these foods are staples to ‘Chi-town’. These are some of the top staple Chicago foods to try.
- Chicago Dog (Chicagoans do NOT put ketchup on their dogs.)
- Deep Dish Pizza
- Original Rainbow Cone
- Garrett’s Mix from Garrett’s Popcorn (Cheddar and Caramel)
- Nutella Pockets
- Italian Beef Sandwich
- Angry Bird (aka Taco in a Bag)
- Gelato Flower Cone
Chicago has many restaurants you can try. They have so many amazing ones to check out. I recommend you check out TripAdvisor or Yelp for recommendations.
Chi-Town has always been one of my favorite cities to visit. It has a lot of exciting things you can do. It was home to the World’s Fair in 1893. It still has the fair/carnival feel too. Jazz and Blues music are huge there too. It has such rich history here. I love it. If you have a chance to visit, take full advantage of it.
