CHICAGO

I was in Chicago in August 2005 http://www.tremontchicago.com/

The Tremont location allows you to actually walk to some of the greatest places in Chicago if you enjoy walking. Be certain to pack good shoes if that is the case, but you are near Navy Pier which is the one place you don't want to miss. From there you can actually take a trolly around town, take a boat excursion, catch a cab, or even a segway tour if you don't like to walk. In Navy Pier you can purchase tickets to almost any attraction in the city. You can also go directly to a site and purchase entry. A few suggestions I have are:

Watertower - shopping, shopping, shopping all confined in one building and about 1/2 block from your hotel - a must see!

Navy Pier for boat tours - the one I suggest is the Architectural Tour on Lake Michigan - $25. It is the best tour in the city if the design of the buildings intrest you. Navy Pier in itself is wonderful to tour. There is an IMAX theatre which is always having spectacular features which are bigger than life.

Millennium Park - You must take a walk through here, there is food, entertainment, and art.

Sears Tower - Worlds tallest skyscraper - you can go to the top and view the city on a clear day. You might want to take some transportation from your hotel to this location.

You can have lunch (a bit pricy but worth it) in the John Hancock building - Signature Room on the 95th floor that overlooks the entire city - it is incredible on a clear day. It is on Michigan Avenue.

Visit Museum Campus where you can visit the Field Museum of Natural History, the Planetarium, and the Aquarium & Oceanarium all in walking distance from each other. There is a shoreline taxi that you can get at Navy Pier for a shoreline tour, or take a taxi so you can actually visit each museum individually.

If you don't mind the walk which is about a mile, you can go to the art museum and then down to Millennium Park - they are at the South end of Michigan Avenue - your hotel is at the North end. In the Millenium Park, you can rent a bike to visit the sore of lake Michigan.

You can take in a play or movie at a reasonable cost if you go to the ticket booth on State Street (I think it is called Hot Tix where you get discounted tickets at the last moment) and purchase a ticket for that evening.

As for restaurants, they are numberless on Michigan Avenue. Every couple of feet you have your choice of any cuisine you desire.

Michigan Avenue (The Golden mile) is the Hub of the shopping mega if you want to take anything back with you.

f you want to visit a beautiful church, stop into Holy Name Cathedral on Superior Street - near Watertower.

Have a wonderful time!

Some pleaces to eat:

Balagio Ristorante: 18042 Martin Avenue Homewood IL 60430. www.balagio-restaurant.com

Francesca’s Vicinato 12960 S. LaGrange Rd. Palos Park, IL60464 www.miafrancesca.com

Wildfire 1300 Patriot Blvd. Glenview IL60026. www.wildfirerestaurant.com