In case you didn't know, Chicago is situated at the edge of Lake Michigan (yes, of course I knew that !!), but you probably didn't realise that there is a beach (Oak Street Beach), right at the end of Michigan Avenue (Chicago's Rodeo Drive / Bond Street) which is very weird as it is totally overlooked by skyscrapers (the first ever skyscraper was built in Chicago...). We had a day off yesterday (no driving 400 miles, no unpacking or re-packing) and spent the afternoon in the sun. Today, we took a river boat tour to check out the city and I have to say that we love it here !! Both Elizabeth and I agree that Chicago is probably the nicest
city we've visited in the US (and one of the nicest in the world) - it has a great vibe - not too fast; everything is together, it's not too big or spread out - it's not too big; however, I know the winters can brutal and so I'd have to visit in December / January before I would really know how good the quality of life is here.We also visited two colleges today - Northwestern and the University of Chicago (which is where Obama taught after he left Harvard Law School). Northwestern is acknowledged to be the better of the two schools. It has two campuses - the larger in a suburb called Evanston which seemed great. Harley liked it and would definitely put it down as a possible - it's main strengths are in Engineering, Journalism & Theatre - it's buildings a mix of old and modern. University of Chicago has more of an urban feel to it and it didn't have as strong an appeal although it is still definitely a good school. It was built in the 1800's by John D Rockefeller who loved everything English so the buildings look a little mock-Oxford in style.
Northwestern University - a mix of traditional & modern
University of Chicago
Once again, if you want any feedback from us on these colleges (or know anyone else who may be considering them for their offspring), don't hesitate to get in touch. Tomorrow we leave for Cleveland, Ohio and the highlight of the trip for the boys - The Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame (as if you didn't know that was in Cleveland ??!!).
