You will discover Chicago really is an international destination, after spending leisure time at its world-class restaurants and night clubs, looking up at a breathtaking skyline of architectural masterpieces and street art on every corner, or any of the other attractions surrounding you in this great city on Lake Michigan.
Visitors to PRINT® 05 & CONVERTINGSM 05, the international commercial/package printing, and converting exhibition on September 9-15, 2005, will find this global show in a truly "world class" environment.
Chicago can claim two great wonders of modern civilization. It is the birthplace of the skyscraper. The most famous of a stellar architectural lineup includes the Wrigley Building - of chewing gum fame - with its tower of spires made to look like a birthday cake; the Tribune Tower with buttresses modeled after the button Tower of the Rouen Cathedral in France; and the famed Sears Tower, the tallest building in North American at 1,450 ft and 110 floors. Go to the John Hancock Center's observation tower for one of the best views of the Loop and the Lake and to the The Sofitel Chicago Water Tower Place for views of the city's famous "Magnificent Mile." The Chicago Architecture Foundation (www.architecture.org) provides tours of these and more.
While Jazz may have been born in New Orleans, it calls Chicago home. If you're planning to spend extra time in Chicago around PRINT 05 & CONVERTING 05, plan on doing so on the front end because jazz rules the first week in September during the city's annual jazz festival. But anytime is the right time for jazz in Chicago. The Jazz Institute of Chicago sponsors free concerts and there are venues galore for superb jazz all over the city. Connoisseurs can check it all out at www.hothouse.net or www.jazzinstituteofchicago.org.
Live jazz -or any kind of music and entertainment - can be found in Chicago almost any night of the week. The Second City comedy troupe was founded here and performs here and live theater is in abundance. The city's dynamic stew of artists, intellectuals and immigrants maintain thousands of restaurants to suit all tastes. Two great web sites for putting it all together during your stay in Chicago are www.chicagoreader.com and www.metromix.com.
Chicago is one of America's premier "sports towns," and during PRINT 05 & CONVERTING 05 the football Chicago Bears and baseball Cubs and White Sox will all have their seasons in full swing. Sports memorabilia and souvenirs will be plentiful.
There's always something to do in Chicago. The famous "Magnificent Mile" is the address of all the blue bloods of American retail, but none with a pedigree better than Chicago-born Marshall Fields and its brilliantly colorful Tiffany ceilings. Stroll through the Field Museum of Natural History or jog along the shore of Lake Michigan in Grant Park past the impressive Buckingham Fountain.
The Museum of Science and Industry is one of the most visited museums in the United States, and is itself a beautiful Beaux-Arts building. View the largest and most diverse collection of sharks in North America at Shedd Aquarium. See Lincoln Park Zoo, one of the last free zoos, and the Harold Washington Library, the world's largest public library.
Don't blink as you're walking by the Civic Center or you will miss the Chicago Picasso or the "Flamingo" by Alexander Calder at Dearborn and Adams Street; the Marc Chagall mosaic on a section of the First National Plaza at Dearborn and Monroe Streets; or Joan Miro's "Chicago," a 40-foot sculpture of a woman with outstretched arms.
Check out the multilingual site www.meetinchicago.com for the latest Chicago happenings, restaurants, theater and information about getting around Chicago.
Chicago has much to offer - but the main attraction from September 9-15, 2005, is PRINT 05 & CONVERTING 05 at McCormick Place, where 900,000 square feet of exhibit space is reserved for you to see and participate with the best in the world in commercial/package printing and converting equipment. For more information, call 703-264-7200 or visit www.PRINT05.org.
