NIK-LAS.com | Chicago


	Chicago is the largest city of Illinois State and the 3rd most populous city in the USA after New York and Los Angeles, with nearly 2.7 million residents. Located in northeastern Illinois at the southwestern tip of Lake Michigan, Chicago does have it all, with less of the hassle and infrastructural problems of its coastal rivals. Resting within the humid continental climate zone, Chicago’s summers are hot and humid, and its winters are cold, snowy, and windy. Its two popular nicknames are "Windy City”, and "Chi-town".

	Chicago was founded in 1833, near a portage between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River watershed. It developed by serving as the main connection between the established east coast cities and the wide open Wild West frontier. This unique position made the city into a crucible of innovation. Many aspects of modern life, from skyscrapers to suburbia, had their start, and perhaps their finest expression, here. The history of modern architecture is stamped on Chicago's dramatic skyline, where the world's first skyscrapers now stand in the shadow of sleek corporate monoliths. It features the likes of the Frank Lloyd Wright houses and the 110-story Sears Tower, which was the world's tallest building until 1997, when it was topped by Malaysia's Petronas Towers. The Sears Tower offers rather stunning views from its observatory.

	Strolling through Oak Park, the lush suburb once home to Ernest Hemingway and Frank Lloyd Wright, you will find with Hemingway memorabilia at the Historical Society, and several of Wright's key buildings, including the stunning Unity Temple. The Loop downtown holds the head offices of many major US companies and some of the nation's most important commodity markets, which together handle the buying and selling of one-third of the world's agricultural and industrial products.


	Despite burning to the ground in the legendary fire of 1871, Chicago boomed thereafter, doubling in population every decade and reaching two million by the 1900s, mostly with by Irish and eastern European immigrants. Chicago is known to have the largest Polish population in the world outside Warsaw, and the largest Romanian American community in the US. It has a nearly even percentage of European Americans and African Americans as well as sizable populations of Hispanics and Asians. Today, the city retains its status as a major hub for industry, telecommunications and infrastructure, and is listed as one of the world's top ten Global Financial Centers.

	For visitors, Chicago offers the Art Institute of Chicago and a wide range of excellent museums renowned trove of Impressionist and contemporary paintings. However, its strongest suit is live music, with a phenomenal array of jazz and blues clubs packed into the back rooms of its amiable bars and cafés. There are many flavorful nightclubs around town, especially along Halsted Street, Lincoln Avenue and Clark Street on the North Side, and at the intersection of North Broadway and Lawrence just Uptown. Two great ways to enjoy the city are to head out to Chicago's ivy-covered Wrigley Field on a sunny summer afternoon to catch baseball's Cubs in action, or take a cruise boat under the bridges of the Chicago River at sunset.

	There are a multitude of attractions, events, tours, and recreational activities happening throughout the city, every single day.


	School Facilities

	Intrax Centre: Located on the world-famous Michigan Avenue, known for its prestigious dining, shopping and historical and architectural landmarks. The spacious center occupies the second and third floors of a four-story building, which features 20 classrooms, a convenient student lounge and kitchen, free wireless internet and 2 computer labs where students can practice their English by using various language learning software. It is just a block away from Millennium Park, a unique architectural and landscape design jewel covering 10 hectares of majestic gardens, distinctive sculptures and outdoor concert venues.