Vibin’ With Chicago: A In-Depth Map of the Windy City
Growing up in the suburbs of Chicago, a trip downtown always seemed like an exciting adventure. But, like most suburban children, my experiences were limited to the loop. I never imagined the expansive city that I have come to known in the short time I have been at DePaul. Before Immersion Week, the only other part of Chicago I had visited other than the loop was the south side. After I met my best friend, we took a few trips to her childhood home in the south side. Though I was young, this definitely skewed my view on the area as I had several bad experiences spending the night there, though I did make some life-long friends. During Immersion Week when I was told I would have to revisit the south side, I was fearful. Despite my initial fears I was proven wrong and this gave me my idea for this map. To me every area has a vibe, as a child visiting the south side this area had an angry vibe. Keeping this in mind I re-explored Chicago trying to keep an open mind. Unfortunately, I did have some of the same experiences in the south side after again staying the night a few weeks ago, but I also found new experiences in the north side and traveling west. In traveling I have made a map of my view on the vibes of Chicago and created a guide for myself of where and where not to go.
In creating my map, I really had to consider my previous biased against places. I had a bias for the loop, being the place I visited most frequently, but I also had a bias for the south side, having heard about it and experienced it. Knowing this I kept Krygier and Wood’s philosophy in mind, making my map a “proposition in graphic form” of the vibes of Chicago (10). This whole map is biased with my own views and experiences as I did not consult anyone else about to where to go or their experiences in the area.
My first place I visited was the north side. I started in an area I know well, in Lincoln Park at the DePaul campus. I describe the vibe here as very chill. In contrast to most of the city, no one seems to be in a rush here and people actually wait for the walk signal at crosswalks. There are few loud noises here and a lot of people just seem to be hanging out socializing whether it be in the quad or outside the academic buildings. I then moved to Old Town, somewhere I just recently learned about during Immersion Week. This is a very friendly area with many parks filled with children. Again no one is in a rush here and things are very chill. I labeled this area’s vibe as romantic due to the proximity of the buildings that create a romantic flow down the street. Also, I saw a lot of couples and families here who all looked very happy and in love.
Next, I re-explored the Loop, trying to contrast what I had felt before as a child and what I felt now. Walking along Jackson street on my usual route to the train, I noticed what I notice almost every-day, that the Loop is full of rushed and very impatient people. The traffic here is extremely heavy and loud, again, something I noticed every-day. However, as I walked along Michigan Avenue I did notice a lot more art in the strip by the Chicago Art Institute. I saw a lot of Greek looking sculptures and I saw a park with some odd colorful doors. Along this strip of Michigan Avenue quirky and classical art seems to be dispersed, hidden by trees but a lovely gem in the middle of this expansive urban area.
Here I crossed over to Lakeshore Drive. Out of all the times I had been to Chicago and been in the Loop area I had never been on the sidewalk of Lakeshore Drive only driven past it. I labeled this area as having a romantic vibe. The sidewalk in this area is wider so people can easily walk right next to each other. Also, it has a great view of the lake and I couldn’t help but thinking this would make such a good date spot. As I walked further I again crossed the street, passing the Maggie Daley park. After this I moved into the more commercial strip of Michigan Avenue where the streets are lined with shops. This is the area of Chicago that I know the best. Similar to when I was a child, this area has an exciting vibe with the hustle and bustle of the city. Like Solnit describes in The Solitary Stroller and the City, Chicago “makes the unknown and the possible spurs to the imagination” (162). Anything seems possible there and there are endless opportunities to shop, dine, and be entertained. Everyone seems to have a destination and the tourists are wooed by the lights and sounds of the city.
This was the last place that I visited in the interest of making the map as I filled in the rest with my prior experiences through Immersion Week and exploring the city during my life living in the suburbs. Immersion Week showed me new areas that I will definitely return to like Old Town, and some that look too much like the boring suburbs where I already reside. To me this was Rogers Park and Beverly. Like my hometown, these areas have a suburban-friendly vibe. These areas are detached from the intensive city life and are community based. Our tour guide in Rogers Park demonstrated this by knowing so much about her neighborhood and the people who lived there. Beverly demonstrated this through its large parks that draw in the community.
The least recent place on my map that I have visited before is the area in the south side. My best friend grew up in Back of the Yards and after she moved to the suburbs her family kept their home there. She brought me a few times in middle school so she could show me where she grew up. I remember having a similar experience every time: we were not allowed out of the house past dark and every night I stayed I would hear gunshots which terrified me but would not even wake her. This relates to Antonia Malchik’s claim in some areas “to open a door and step outside and go somewhere …was a risk”. Here going out at night was an extreme risk and in the day, alone, being unfamiliar with the residents, was a risk. I met a few of her friends there which we occasionally talk to today but I just got an overall angry vibe there, as if it was an unspoken truth that the things that happened there happened because this was how they were designed and the youth had little other opportunity. Even my friends would show this as some of them remained in that area after graduation, not because they didn’t have the ability to be something greater, but because they felt they weren’t given the opportunity to. They didn’t have parents who had extra money to put into a college fund like me and my friend. Instead if they wished to further themselves they would have to pay back their debt themselves, a daunting task compared to getting a job right away and staying in their familiar area where housing prices are considerably lower. Because of this, I do not plan on taking a trip back to the south side again.
The last place I want to discuss on my map is Humboldt Park, somewhere so rich with culture. I pass this area every day on the train and couldn’t give a name to the area until Immersion Week. When I pass the area on the train, I noticed that some of the billboards are in Spanish, adding to the feeling that this is a culture filled area. Then during Immersion Week I got a better view of how culture is celebrated in the area with monuments, flags, and murals celebrating the cultures of the area. Because of this, I labeled the area cultural.
In conclusion, through visiting different areas of Chicago I now not only have a better sense of the city, but what areas I prefer. I find I prefer areas with romantic vibes over areas with angry or even friendly vibes. I believe this is because I am a romantic at heart, always looking and thinking about relationships and my own relationship. Ever since I was little I embraced the cliche that I love love and have found I am most happy when I am in a relationship, whether that be a good or bad thing. More importantly tough, I know have a better outlook on the city in general as it doesn’t seem as daunting to me. This map forced me to recognize the areas that I had been to and think critically about their vibe and why. Why is the vibe of Lincoln Park chill while the vibe of Back of the Yards angry? These are important issues that stem from social justice. It doesn’t seem fair that these areas are so dramatically different, yet this raises the question of “is social justice realistic and to what extent”. It often seems that nothing can be completely fair to what extent can make it so?
Rushed Loop Traffic
