Photography

Manhattan

New York City in June is a vibrant place, and quite different from Chicago.  In Toronto, Los Angeles and New York one can walk down a street and end up finishing lunch without even stopping.  New York’s bridges also make it unique among large American cities, and the ability to walk around the corner and get a deli sandwich from the bodega is something that has been lost in this Subway and Jimmy John’s world.

Brooklyn

Finally got around to exploring the second densest borough in New York City.  On a previous visit to New York I only left Manhattan once and that was to visit downtown Brooklyn.  Prospect Park is not Central Park, but it is still a wonderfully diverse landscape.

 

Brooklyn Bridge

A wonderfully built bridge that has withstood the test of time and shows just what American engineering can accomplish.  They simply don’t make bridges like this anymore.

Chicago fourday

Wicker Park and Union Station

Assorted pictures from around Wicker Park, one of the more interesting and less CHAD and TRIXIE neighborhoods in Chicago.  I do miss going to Reckless Records.  On the other end is Chicago Union Station, with a woefully underused Great Hall.  If the design had been reversed it would have made a lot more sense.  People could wait in a nice room instead of the cramped concourse.

Chicago Threeday

Chicago River and Museum of Contemporary Art

The Chicago River on a March afternoon, going along this unique waterway—a lot more intimate than the East River or the Hudson in New York.  The Museum of Contemporary Art is a great museum thanks to its free Tuesdays, making a reasonable priced museum (compared to the Art Institute) even more accessible.

Chicago twoday-featured

Downtown Skyscrapers and the Art Institute

The condominium boom in Chicago has transformed the skyline into a modern city, very different from Manhattan with its rich history.  Whereas the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building tower over Midtown, the Aon Center and the Trump Tower as well as the new condos dominate the view from the lake.  In the middle of all this is the Art Institute, sitting on the edge of the city like the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Central Park.  It’s quite a contrast that the relatively younger city continues to look young compared to cities back east.