Episode 26: Chicago

Today we're talking about a famous U.S. city that receives millions of visitors per year: Chicago, Illinois! Donielle has lived there, and Khrystyna has visited many times, so we're sharing our experiences and discussing places to visit and famous Chicago foods to try.

show notes

Transcript

D           Welcome to Coffee and Conversation for ESL Listening. I'm Donielle.

 K            And I'm Khrystyna, so grab a cup and join the conversation.

 D           Hey Khrystyna, how are you doing? So good to see you.

 K            I'm doing good – good to see you too. It's been a while.

 D           It has. We've been super busy. I don't know about you... I think you said you got sick. I was sick.

 K            Oh gosh, it's been going around. 

 D           It has.

 K            So yeah, it's been super busy, but you have some exciting things happening. Like, didn't you go on a cruise recently?

 D           I sure did. Yeah, it was so fun. Well, I paid for it because I came home and I got sick. As always, you know, right? As long as you've known me, don't I get sick after every vacation?

 K            Yes, every time you travel, for some reason you get sick. I don't know what is it with you.

 D           I don't know, it's ridiculous. But, oh yeah, we had a lot of fun. So this was a girl's trip. So, my two friends, and I, we went for a cruise to Mexico. It was hilarious. So it was no…no boys with us, no men, no kids. And that was great. And I was saying, you know, Khrystyna needs to come with us next time for sure. Because it's just so much fun. Yeah. And you know, the girls, we'd all have a great time. So you have to do that. But, the most hilarious thing happened. I just thought I would tell you just something funny that happened on that cruise, well, actually before the cruise. 

So we flew to Houston. And then we had to take the cruise from Galveston, which was like an hour drive away from there. So we came the day before and we spent the night and we had some fun. And then we got up early the next morning, took an Uber to the port and we get out and we've got our little suitcases and we're walking up to the port. We're like, Hey, where is everybody? Our Uber is gone. Some guy comes out and says, “Hey ladies, are you trying to go on a cruise today?” And we're like, um, yes. He says, you're at the wrong port. Yeah.

And our Uber was gone and so we're like, well, can we walk it? And he says, well, yeah, you can. It's kind of far though. We're like, okay. So yeah, it was so crazy. So here we are, we're like kind of tired. We'd been out late the night before and we were like kind of dragging and here we are with our little suitcases and we're walking, yeah. And then we see the same guy. He was in like a garbage truck. He was a driver and he passes by and we're like, oh…ok, bye.

 And he comes back a couple minutes later, he circles around and he says, ladies, I flagged down a cop for you and she's going to take you to the port. So we're like, what? And by the way, “flag down” in case people don't know what that means. It's like, you know, someone's driving by and you're like, hey, hey, come on over. So we're like, what, really? A cop, a police officer? And he's like, yeah, I know, come on. So she's got a pickup truck, ‘cause it's Texas.

And so we all come piling into this car, the truck, and we're just laughing hysterically because it's so ridiculous. Only us… would be taken to the port with our suitcases and the back of the pickup by a police officer. So, yeah. So we roll, we roll up to the port and we get out and people are looking at us like we're crazy, right? And one of the girls, she takes a picture of me [sitting in the police truck] and I said, send it to my husband with no explanation. Yeah, so he responds a couple minutes later. He said, “uh-oh, she's in trouble already.”

 K            you always get into some crazy situations when you travel. 

 D           It is true.

 K            It's like, it wouldn't be you if there wasn't a story coming from you when you travel, but I'm kind of jealous now. I'm really jealous that I wasn't on that trip.

 D           Oh yeah, it was so funny and we were just laughing because we were like, how ridiculous is this? You know, and people looking at us like, what's going on?

 K            At least you didn't have to ride in the back of a garbage truck. 

 D           Yeah. Is that where you thought it [the story] was going?

 K            That's why I thought I was like, no way she was in the garbage truck going to the port.

 D           I don’t know, but at first it kind of looked good I was like oh I’d do it I…don't want to walk.

 K            Come on, that's hilarious. That's a good story.

 D           But anyway, so yeah, I wanted to share that with you. And I thought the listeners might find that funny. So yes, that's how we made it to the ship. And oh, but it was a fun trip. So thank you.

  K            Oh good, good, good, that's good.

 D           So, sort of along the lines of trips and things like that, we have a fun, I think fun topic today, and hopefully we can make this a series. We're talking about a place in the United States that you and I probably, it's something that we both know very well. I used to live there and you don't live super close, but you can get there easily. So anyway, Chicago, we're talking about Chicago. And yeah, and we thought maybe, you know, if people are thinking about coming to visit the United States and want to know a little bit more about some of the tourist places here, it might be something fun to share.

 K            Right, right. Well, and the thing is, I feel like our listeners might’ve already learned about us that there's two things we really like: traveling and eating. 

 D           Yes, both of which we will cover today. Of course. All right. So first of all, Chicago, where is it? It is in the state of Illinois and a lot of people mispronounce this. 

 K            Right.

 D           There's an S on the end of that state name, but we do not pronounce it. It is “Ill-i-NOY”, not “Ill-i-NOISE”. And it's part of the Midwest. And if you look at a map, you might wonder why is this called the Midwest? It's nowhere near the West. Not even mid.

 K            Right. So what is it? I always wondered what is this story or why was, why is it called Midwest?

 D           You know, I think it has to do a lot with, you know, before the country expanded as far west as it did, probably at some point it was Midwest because our country wasn't that, you know, hadn't expanded that far. And plus I think they said something like, anything west of the Mississippi river [was considered the west]. And so that's sort of like that area was the Midwest. Yeah.

 K            Right. Which, you know, it makes sense because when, when immigrants were coming from, you know, other countries and a lot of them started in like New York area or, I don't know, Pennsylvania kind of along the East coast. So when people are saying we're going West, right? That would be the rest of the United States. And I guess there's a Midwest and then there's a far West, near West. Yeah, makes sense.

 D           Yeah, exactly. Yeah, so is this sort of a generic term. And you can't even really get people to agree which states are part of the Midwest. Some people are like, oh yeah, this one is part of it, but other people say, no, that's not. But I think Illinois is definitely considered to be the Midwest. Yeah. 

 K            Right.

 D           Yeah, so, and it's next to Lake Michigan. Right? So you'll find Chicago at the southernmost part of Lake Michigan. And, um, yeah, so you'll have a nice long area of beach access. So it makes it quite beautiful to look out at the water and yeah, so it's very nice, but it also makes it very cold. Yes, the winters get super, super cold and yeah, Chicago is a cool city, but I don't miss that.

 K            Right. And you've lived there, so you definitely experienced winters living in the city. I mean, I only usually go there for a couple of days or so a day or trip, quick trip, because I live about two and a half hours south from Chicago. So it is, it could be a quick trip for me. Usually I try not to go there and back in one day because there's so much to do in Chicago and in Chicago area, but I don't usually go there in winter. So you know better what it's like to live in Chicago during winter. And...

 D           Yes, and even worse, I worked downtown, which is right by the water and the winds, I mean, that just, you know, you can almost be blown over as the wind, you're trying to like walk down the street. I mean, it was crazy. Really, really crazy. It is not a fun walk to take in the dead of winter.

 K            So it makes sense that another name for Chicago is...

 D           Yes, the Windy City. Yes. And actually, you know, there are people who kind of argue about what that actually means. And I think it's sort of a combination of two things, because certainly you can't deny that the city is windy and the name has to come from that. But also there's some story that apparently Chicago is historically known for having some kind of crazy politicians and very full of themselves, very arrogant and always, you know, talking… “they're full of hot air”, people will say. Yeah. So it has to do with both of those things. But for my, for my money, it's the actual wind and cold. So when you think about Chicago in the winter, I know you're not really there very often, but maybe you can imagine, there is a city in another part of the world that they say is similar to the climate of Chicago - any guess what city that might be?

 K            that has a similar climate in another part of the world?

 D           Yes.  It's not Ukraine, I can tell you that. A lot of people say it's similar.

 K            Yeah, but we don't, it's the humidity part is not, there's not as much in Ukraine. It's also humid in Chicago. I can't think of it. What is it?

 D           It is Bucharest, Romania.

 K            Really?

 D           Yeah, I had never heard of that before, but I thought, oh, that's interesting.

 K            Interesting. Huh.

 D           So if we have any students from that area, then you'll know what Chicago weather is like.

 K            Yeah, that's very interesting. And Romania is kind of close. Yeah, like the Eastern part of Europe there too. And very interesting.

 D           Yeah, yeah. Okay, so now let's talk about population. There are approximately 2.7 million inhabitants of Chicago. So fairly big city. In fact, it's the third largest city in the country. We've got New York, LA, and then Chicago. Um, LA is bigger by size, but Chicago is more densely populated. Dense means more people per, for the area.

 K            And for those who maybe never heard what LA is, it's Los Angeles. 

 D           Oh, yeah, I forget.

 K            Everybody just refers to it as LA, but sometimes people are like, Oh, LA. So…

 D           Yeah, exactly. Yeah, I do forget that sometimes. We have a joke here. When people say, Oh, where are you from? And we're like, Oh, LA. -  Really? - Lower Alabama.

 K            Good one

 D           Yeah. All right. So you were talking about nicknames. Second trivia question for you. Can you think of any other nicknames for Chicago? There are a bunch of them. Some of them not so nice.

 K            Oh, is it like, is it called like Chi town or something like that or? 

 D           Chi-town, yep, that's one.

 K            What else, what else did they call Chicago? Chicago, I don't know. I don't know. What are the nicknames there?

 D           You probably know it when you hear it. The Second City. 

 K            Oh yeah, yeah, yeah, that's right.  Okay, so why is it the second city though? Because it's the third by the population, but why is it the second?

 D           Good question. That's a good question. Okay, so here's the story on that. I don't have the name of this person, so sorry, I don't have the details, but apparently someone, some famous writer at the time, long time ago, who was from New York, and he didn't care for Chicago very much, and he sort of felt like it was a second class sort of city. So, as it happens quite often with people, when you give someone a derogatory name, sometimes people embrace that name and take that as a positive. And that's what happened for Chicago. They took that negative name and they said, "Yeah, we're the second city." And they started a comedy group, a very famous comedy group, and they adopted that name. Kind of, you know, sort of poking fun at that. And so, a lot of those Second City comedians you've probably seen, if you ever watched Saturday night live SNL, they, most of them came out of there. So it's quite famous.

 K            Yeah, it was a starting… kind of starting place for a lot of famous comedians. 

 D           Yeah, it's huge.

 K            Yeah. That's cool. OK, what other nicknames?

 D           And then the last one that I thought of that I thought was interesting was “The City that Works.” And yeah, I remember this. I think this was sort of a campaign by the mayor at the time, but it was on all the trains. You’d get on the train to go to work and you would see [the slogan] “It's the city that works.” And it was so annoying to me because it's totally true. Um, snowstorm, um, your car stuck in the snow, the train is broken. Oh, what time are you going to make it to work? Yeah. You're expected to be there. You can't just call in because the weather is bad. No, no, no. You find a way to get there. And it's true. Yeah. So I didn't particularly love that, moniker too much. Moniker means like a nickname.

 K            That's a good word actually. I haven't heard that one in a while, moniker. Yeah. Cool.

 D           Moniker, yeah. So yeah, that's a good little intro about some facts on Chicago. So next thing, let's talk about when should we go and what do we do when we go there? For me, it's been a long time since I have lived in Chicago and I've only visited a few times since then. And wow, it changes a lot.

 K            Yeah, I feel like just anywhere you go, if you haven't been there in a while, things change.

 D           It's true, yeah.

 K            So from, let you know, someone who lived there, when would you go there? When do you think was the most… like the best time to go there or most comfortable time to be in Chicago?

 D           Well, now I'll tell you, if you search online, “when's the best time to go to Chicago?” they'll tell you not to go in the summer because it's very crowded and it's true, it's very crowded. But that's when all the stuff is happening and that's when the weather is possibly going to be the best. You can never say for sure about Chicago, what's going to happen at any day, any season, any month, it could be really anything. But your best chance is the summer months.

 K            Really? But it's so hot and humid…

 D           Yeah, it could be.

 K            … there, especially when you're downtown, when you're surrounded by all these skyscrapers, there's all these tall buildings, and it just so, like you feel like the heat is trapped in there.

 D           Yeah, I don't know. I thought it wasn't so bad downtown because again, you've got the lake there and there's always a breeze. So it wasn't so bad, I thought, downtown. But you said a good word there. A lot of people may not know skyscrapers and those are those very, very tall buildings because they “scrape” the sky. They're so tall that they like touch and scrape the sky.

 K            And don't they have a couple famous ones there in Chicago too?

 D           Yes, yes. So the one that everybody likes to go to is, I guess I'll call it by the name now. They've changed the name to Willis Tower. But if you live in Chicago or ever lived in Chicago, you'll never call it that. It will forever be the Sears Tower. 

 K            That's right.

 D           Yep.

 K            Yeah, it's always… and you know, the name change happened recently because I remember when it was Sears tower and you know, I haven't been here all my life but and I remember the recent change to Willis towers. 

 D           Yeah, it had to be like within the last 10 years, I'd say, I can't remember. But, but yeah, Chicagoans do not like change very much. You know, if you've, if you've got something there, well, I guess it's like everybody, I suppose, but if you have something that's like an institution, like an iconic thing, and you try to like change it or, you know, call it by a different name, they hate it. The same thing happened. A very famous retail store, Marshall Fields... 

 K            Oh yeah.

 D           It's from Chicago. It's an institution. And they sold it to Macy's. And Macy's opened up there. People were mad. They were out protesting in front of the store with signs. And it's like, honey, it's not coming back.

  K            It's all about, you know, capitalism and whoever buys it gets to change the name.

 D           That's right. Yeah. It was, it was sad, but you know, because it is a Chicago institution and iconic part of downtown, but, but yes, times change. Yeah. So yeah, we've got the, the Willis Tower, AKA Sears Tower. We've got the, John Hancock Building. 

 K            Oh yes.

 D           That's another one. Actually, I don't know if I've really paid that much attention, but a lot of people say that even though the John Hancock Tower is not as tall, the view is better. Like you can see more. 

 K            Hmm. Could be. Could be.

 D           Yeah. But they changed that Sears Tower or Willis Tower, whatever it is, I guess, so that you can actually walk-- It looks like you're walking over and you're like…like hanging in space kind of it's oh no thank you.

 K            I think it's called a sky deck. 

 D           Yes.

 K            So there's, um, I think it tilts. 

 D           Yeah, that's what it is. Yes.

 K            So you kind of look like you're looking down …

 D           Oh no, no, no.

 K            …as you're holding onto these things. For somebody who doesn't like heights, it would be a completely terrifying experience, but I love heights, so I actually enjoy this kind of stuff. Yeah. It's really cool.

 D           Oh, really? Oh, okay. Oh, no, I didn't know. My stomach just wants to turn over. Yeah. I went there when it was just the normal sky deck and that was enough for me. I don't need to be hanging over. Okay, what else we got? We've got downtown. There's a ton of things to do. If you like museums, art, wow, there's a whole section. They're quite close in the Loop area and downtown where you can just go from one museum to another, but you wouldn't really do it because you just need all day for each one practically, cause there are some very big and famous museums. Are you a museum kind of gal?

 K            actually, I do like to go to a museum, especially art. I do enjoy going to art museums and history museums are cool to kind of depends. But art museum is my favorite.

 D           Yeah, the Art Institute is quite famous there. People really like that. Yeah. And I like the Museum of Natural History. Um, yeah, that's the one with the dinosaurs, right? Yeah. It's been a while, but yeah, they're all great. I mean, they really are. Um, so definitely go check those out.

 D           So what else? Oh, architecture. Chicago has some really amazing architecture.

 K            I think it's fascinating. Like there's just so many different, you know, like time periods too, because you have really cool architecture from different time, like, I don't know, what would you call it, like from different eras. Right? So it's really cool to see like, and the thing is, you don't, like, you have to notice it because you have to look at certain… It's not necessarily, you know, like, Oh, there's this big monument from this time. Like it's all the buildings. And as you're going through it or walking or well, preferably walking, not driving because driving in Chicago is crazy. So you're not going to be able to see architecture, but if you're walking around, it's really cool. You have to look up, always look up and look at the buildings and all the different little details and all the little ornamental things that you wouldn't notice unless you are paying attention to it. I think it's really neat, really neat.

 D           Yeah. And I feel there's these areas in downtown that you kind of, you feel transported to like the 1920s or something. You just feel like, wow, I could just picture how things looked at that time. Or, you know, the time of the gangsters, because that's another thing. Super popular history for Chicago. This is not exactly a good piece of history for Chicago, but once again, Chicagoans have taken this negative thing and they've embraced it. They have gangster tours. So for those who don't know, back in the 1930s, drinking alcohol was illegal in the United States for a short period of time, I think like eight or nine years. And so gangsters made lots of money making and selling – illegally – alcohol, and there was a lot of violence that went with it, and Chicago was home to some very powerful gangs. 

 K            And I think they've made a lot of even, yeah, a lot of movies about mob, mobsters and gangs in Chicago and all that. So yeah, it's, it is a big part of the history there. So, yeah.

 D           Yeah, so yeah, definitely take an architecture tour. You know, they have these architecture boat ride kind of things where you can, you can see it…Yeah, it's really cool. 

 K            I did one of them years ago.

 D           Yeah, me too.

K            But you know, I just think just the layout of the city, you know, the fact that it's on the lake and then you have this river going through town and you get on the boat and you can see so much. And I think it's just a really cool experience. So if anyone is traveling to Chicago just to, you know, to see the city, a boat tour is a great idea. You get to see a lot. You’re going to learn a lot about the city too. It was fun.

 D           Yeah, yeah, definitely. I agree. Of course, we've got Navy Pier. That's another big traction. And Millennium Park. Interesting fact. I used to work literally right next to Millennium Park before it was even there. They were building it just as I was, you know, the last year or so that I was working there. And now it's a huge attraction.

 K            Oh, it's a huge tourist attraction. Like everybody--you feel like everybody has to stop at the Millennium Park and you know, there's that big bean. Yeah, everybody has to take a picture with their reflection in the Bean. But I mean, talking about art, I mean, you see lots of art stuff there too, like sculptures and different, you know, more modern things and I think it's really neat.

 D           Yeah, definitely. You can walk around and see a lot of sculptures, a lot of art. It's a cool place to visit if you are into architecture and art. Definitely. There's a lot there to see. 

 K            I think there's also, you know, the really neat and kind of attractive thing about Chicago is neighborhoods. So if you kind of...

 D           You read my mind!

 K            Look at that! When you kind of, you know, go deeper into the city, like staying away from downtown area, you will notice the neighborhoods and there's the, there's a cultural difference between neighborhoods. You have these neighborhoods from people who came from certain countries and kind of made their own community there. And you will see, like sometimes you can see, oh yeah, I know this is a neighborhood of people from this country or from this culture. So that's another thing that almost kind of makes it a whole world in one city there, because it's so diverse with all of that.

 D           Yeah, it's really cool because you know, if you say, oh, I think I would like some Polish food, or I would like some Italian food or some Mexican food, Indian food, whatever it is that you have a taste for, you can find an area of Chicago that it's actual authentic people living there and opening up restaurants. And you usually get some pretty good food.

 K            Well, I remember my first time when I went to Chinatown and I think that's a very famous landmark…neighborhood in Chicago. Oh, it was great. Like there's all the, you know, little stores and little restaurants and like, you are, you feel like you're in China. Like a small part of China is there and you know, things are written in Chinese and… there is a Ukrainian Village neighborhood in Chicago and I always, when I'm there, I always try to go there. And of course, you know, I have to load up on groceries from Ukraine and other stuff and eat Ukrainian food. And, um, because it's, you know, it's always better when you don't have to cook it or wash the dishes, but I like, I really enjoy going to all these neighborhoods and just kind of experiencing that, you know, little part of the world right there - that you don't have to go far.

 D           Yeah, exactly. Yeah, it's really cool. I definitely love that about Chicago. It's very diverse. All right, so that brings us to, oh my gosh, there is so much here. You know, it's like we can't even cover this all in a short period of time. But anyway, lots of stuff to do. One thing I want to get into before I move on here about things to do.

 And I said the summer, okay, let's say between May and September. If you really don't like hot weather, maybe go more like May or September. But there are tons of festivals. And that's one of the things I loved about Chicago is during the summer, every weekend there was something new and they would have Blues Fest, Jazz Fest … and big name people would come and you would be able to just sit down for free concerts. These were free concerts. You could come and just sit and enjoy music. Yeah. Those were great. Yeah. So yeah, every week there was something, of course, there's a famous Lollapalooza [music festival]. 

 K            Well, yes!

 D           Um, that is not free, but …

 K            But it is famous, definitely!

 D           I just wanted to make that clear. That one is definitely not free.

 K            Right.

 D           Okay, we got to close out here on our talk about food because, you know, we can't not mention food, right? 

 K            Like I said: traveling and food.

 D           Yeah, what comes to your mind when you think of Chicago food?

 K            So when I think about traditional Chicago food, right? Not like the cultural or the little things we talked about, but I would say deep dish pizza and Chicago style hot dog. 

 D           Exactly. Yeah. Those were the top two on my list. Yes. The deep dish pizza is uniquely Chicago. And, you know, it's not the kind of thing I think Chicagoans eat every day or every week because it's very heavy. It's very filling, but it's quite delicious. And it's something you definitely have to try when you go there. But in general, pizza in Chicago is going to be good.

 K            Yes.

 D           So if you go to Chicago, you know, do a little research. I mean, I'm not going to recommend any places for you, but do a little research and definitely try the deep dish and try regular pizza because it's quite good. 

K            And in fact, there is a big rivalry in pizza tastes between Chicago and New York. So, but that would be for next episode when we talk about New York.

 D           Right. Yeah. And they're very different types of pizza. I mean, completely. It's almost like not even the same, you know, dish. It really isn't. But real quick, I want to say about the hot dogs. Very important. If you get a Chicago hot dog, there are rules for this and Chicagoans do not play around. If you want a Chicago hot dog, you, if you… let's put it this way, you go somewhere and you order a Chicago hot dog, you will get this: you will get a hot dog on a steamed poppy seed bun. And it has to have yellow mustard, relish, onions, spicy sport peppers. Those are like kind of long green, not terribly spicy, but more vinegary peppers. Tomato slices, a dill pickle spear. So like a length of a, you know, cut lengthwise.

 K            Do they actually put a hot dog in there? 

 D           Yeah, they do. 

 K            Oh.

 D           And finally, a dash of celery salt. But guys, here's the most important thing. You cannot put ketchup on your Chicago style hot dog.

 K            Oh, come on!

 D           Yeah, sorry, can't do it. So yeah, try one of those if you want to try Chicago food. You’ve got to have pizza, hot dog. There's also…Italian beef is quite famous.

 K            Oh, that’s true, yes.

 D           I can't tell you much about that. I don't eat that stuff.

 K            It's actually good. It's delicious for anyone who... 

 D           So what is it?

 K            So it's just a thinly sliced beef. But it's cooked in this kind of juice, not juice, but like a sauce kind of, but it's like a watery sauce. It's not a gravy or anything, but it has like spices in it. And then they put it on a bun, kind of like a little bit thicker bun, not just like a hot dog bun, but like a bread bun. And then you can like dip it into that “au jus” they call it. And it's all kind of soggy, but soft. Oh, it is so good. Oh my gosh. It is so, so good. Yeah.

 D           I'll have to take your word for it. Okay. And finally, the one weird thing, I mean, now it's getting a little bit more common. Like I even see it sold here in, in Sam's [Club], um, the Chicago style popcorn, which is the mix of cheese and caramel.

 K            Yes, I think it's I still think it's a mystery to me. Like, why would you put the cheese, like a salty cheese, popcorn and then the caramel popcorn together and then they mix it all. So I'm…

 D           Yeah, it sounds ridiculous, but it's delicious. So there you go. That's what they…

 K            So you like it?

  D          Yes, I do. Absolutely.

 K            Oh gosh.

 D           So, okay, well, like I said, we could talk for hours about this, but we won't do that to you. You got the idea, come on over to Chicago, have some food, go see some museums, take a gangster tour, you know, do all the stuff. You'll enjoy it. Just don't come in the winter, it's really cold.

 K            Oh yeah. Yeah, don't do that.

 D           Okay, so until next time, here's to good coffee, good vibes and great conversation.

 K            Cheers!

 D           Cheers.