So if your anything like me, you are hating these long, cold winter evenings. I am having serious summer blues and vitamin D withdrawal! What better way to get over these summer blues by reminiscing on the good times….. or just making myself even more upset that summer is over for another year.
Chicago is the first place I have visited outside of Europe and I must admit – I have a sweet spot for this state and I left my heart there! I traveled to Chicago to work and live in the summer of 2016 for 3 months with a group of friends. I also visited Chicago last year on a mini weekend holiday whilst working in New York.
Chicago was everything and more! From street festivals, rooftop bars to the absolutely breath-taking lakefront, there is a long long list of things to do. Before jetting off for my summer of a life time with my friends I had a bucket list of all the things I wanted to do and see whilst over there!
What to do?
Beach days
A massive thing I loved about Chicago is you are always within a 10mile radius of the beach, no matter where you are in the city! North avenue beach was a personal favourite of mine, I mean look at that view! It is one of Chicago’s most popular beaches, this beach has everything you need for the perfect chillaxed day at a beach, there are volleyball courts, and a snack area including all my favs, nachos, hot-dogs, cheese fry’s the list goes on! There are also Jet Ski rentals which I highly recommend, and of course the bar! Although don’t say I didn’t warn you, this beach is the busiest in the city, I love the buzz about that but if you are looking for somewhere a bit quieter and relaxing I would suggest oak street beach which is also amazing.
Street festivals
There are endless amounts of street festivals on all the time in Chicago, from music street festivals to food festivals there is something for everyone. Myself and my friends got to work on a food stall at one of the food festivals called Taste of Chicago it was an amazing experience and we also got to go around all the different food stands, I was in my element as you can imagine!
Visit Cindy’s rooftop bar
If there’s one thing I love more than drinking in the sun, its drinking in the sun on a rooftop bar taking in the absolutely stunning views. Cindy’s was my favourite, it has the best views of the city and the atmosphere is amazing! Don’t get me wrong we most definitely were not living it up in rooftop bars all summer, we were J1ers after all and of course had to budget, but it was nice to get too treat ourselves every once in a while. We deserved it right?
Free movie in the park
As I mentioned, we were J1ers and some days were completely broke – I’m talking not even enough money to eat sort of broke! We’ve all been there.. Thank god for free movies in the park eh? Chicago park districts movie in the parks line-ups are pretty awesome, some movies myself and my friends went to see were grease, Mrs Doubt fire and footloose, footloose being my all-time favourite! Don’t disagree with me on this one. As you can see we made the most out of this whole free movie thing – just pack yourself some snacks, a blanket and your sorted!
Visit Navy Pier
Navy Pier is M-A-G-I-C-A-L, mark my words! Navy pier is one of Chicago’s top attractions, and once you visit you will understand why. Guys I honestly can’t put into words how amazing this place is, the pier has fireworks every Wednesday and Saturday night during the summer which are a must see!
So guys if any of you are thinking of going away for the summer to work or just to visit – I highly recommend Chicago, it won’t let you down!
Niamh xx
Niamh Cosgrove is a final year BSc in Communication Management and Public Relations student at Ulster University. She can be found at: LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/niamh-cosgrove-62b986131/