Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
teenage wish-fulfillment movie, set in
Chicago and the suburbs. In fact, most
of the John Hughes movies (
Pretty in
Pink, Sixteen Candles,
and
The Break-
fast Club
) are set in the Chicago area.
Children's books set in Chicago
that will be readily available at your
local library or bookstore include
Fair
Weather
by Richard Peck, in which a
19th-century farming family is turned
upside down by a visit to Chicago for
the 1893 World's Columbian Exposi-
tion;
Playoff Dreams
by Fred Bowen,
in which a boy attends a ball game
with his uncle at Wrigley Field and
learns the story of the legendary Cubs
player and Hall of Fame member
Ernie Banks; and
The Dragon of Navy
Pier
by Kate Noble, in which Charlie,
a young dragon on a carousel, comes
alive one night and sets out to explore
Navy Pier.
Show your kids photos of land-
marks—Wrigley Field is a familiar
sight to most of us. You might also
find photos of Soldier Field, United
Center (with its statue to Michael
Jordan), the soaring John Hancock
Center (with its girded black X's criss-
crossing all the way up the building),
the Chicago Water Tower (the only
building to survive the fire of 1871,
allegedly started by Mrs. O'Leary's
cow), Sears Tower, and the lakefront.
Discuss the El trains and show kids
photos of the elevated tracks. Show
them the Chicago bridges that raise
and lower, stopping traffic so boats
can make their way to the lake. Tell
them that the Chicago River that
these bridges span runs from the lake
(rather than into it, as most rivers
do)—and about the engineering mar-
vel that reversed its flow.
