Page 15 - (DK Eyewitness) Top 10 Travel Guides - Chicago
P. 15
Willis Tower and Its Views ❮❮ 13
Chicago River
Lake Michigan
4 7 TOP 10 TOWER FACTS
This is the third
Chicago’s 156
mile (250km) long river largest of the five 1 It is 110 stories high
tops world records with Great Lakes. Water 2 It weighs a massive
its 43 opening bridges. tempera tures struggle to 222,500 tons
An amazing engineering hit tepid during summer, 3 The tower took three
feat resulted in the but many beachgoers years to construct
rever sal of the river flow swim nevertheless. On a 4 Building costs topped
in 1900 (see p40). Every clear day, you can often $150 million
St. Patrick’s Day the main see across to the shores 5 It contains over
branch is dyed green. of Indiana and Michigan. 2,000 miles (3,220 km)
of electric cables …
6 … And 25,000 miles
(40,233 km) of piping
7 25,000 people enter
and exit each day
8 1.3 million visit the
Skydeck each year
9 The elevators travel
at an ear-popping 1,600
ft (490 m) per minute
10 Six automatic
machines wash its
16,100 windows
McCormick
9
Place
The first convention
center opened here in
1960 but burned down
seven years later.
Helmut Jahn built the
second in 1971 at twice
the size with 40,000
sprinkler heads. Four
Willis Tower dominating the Chicago skyline buildings now make up
this complex, and are
Merchandise
United Center
5 8 connected by a shop
Mart
lined promenade.
This vast indoor
sports arena and concert One of the world’s largest
Navy Pier
venue is also known as commercial build ings 0
“the house that Michael (in floor area), this 1930s A former naval
built,” as it was basket structure was run by the base turned funfilled
ball player Michael Kennedy family until the mecca, and Chicago’s top
Jordan’s fame that late 1990s (see p79). attraction (see pp24–5).
attracted the money to
fund it. Outside, there’s
a statue of him.
Grant Park 6
Built entirely on
landfill following the
Great Chicago Fire
(see p40), this 319acre
park (right) is one of
the city’s largest and the
site of summer music
festivals (see p46).
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