USA
 
CHICAGO --- THE WINDY CITY 

Been to Chicago twice, thanks to McD's International Conferences and HMU classes.  But it's only during my 1997 trip to the Windy City that I had the chance to get a glimpse of its beauty.  

Chicago is rarely a tourist destination compared to San Francisco in the West Coast and New York in the East Coast.   But people who've never been to Chicago are actually missing a lot for this place does have a style of its own.  

O'HARE AIRPORT --- the first stop  
Chicago O'Hare International Airport features a new state-of-the-art International Terminal complete with laser lighted walks.  It's definitely one of the more "hi-tech" airports one has ever been to.  It's about 50 minutes away from the downtown Chicago and costs around $25 to get there.  

SIGHTSEEING IN CHICAGO  
Chicago is a city of natural and man-made wonders, where you will find miles of beautiful lakefront parks and beaches, sprawling neighborhoods of every ethnic culture and the world's tallest skycrapers.  You can stroll along part of the 29 mile lakefront, savor the culinary adventure of fine restaurants, walk through one of the city's finest museums or art gallery or spend a magical evening at the theater.   Some well-known attractions in Chicago are:  Buckingham Fountain, Sears Tower Skydeck, John Hancock Observatory Center,  Art Institute, Michigan Avenue, Chicago River, etc.    

Sears Tower Skydeck - This is the tallest building in the world.  For a minimum fee, you can go to the topmost storey and see the breathtaking view of the entire city.  I was able to go there during one of our free nights last year and believe me, what you've seen in Hsin Kong Building in Taipei is incomparable to what you'll witness here.  

Chicago River -  One should take about 40 minutes to ride along a boat cruise that tours around the Chicago River.  Such tours, complete with live narration of the sights and sounds of the city, will take you through Chicago's one-of-a-kind skyline and famous architectural buildings.  
  

Great Architectural Designs - Not much was left after the Great Chicago Fire in 1871 which destroyed just about everything that had been built before it.  But rising from the ashes, Chicago reconstructed itself with the help of such visionaries such as John Wellborn Root, John Holebird and Daniel H. Burnham who changed the face of architecture, and the city forever.  Some well-known architectures are the Monadnock Building, Rookery Building, Fine Arts Building, Wrigley Building, Auditorium Building, to name a few.  You will find that these architectures exemplify the unparalled beauty and range of Chicago architecture.  

Multi-cultural - If you stay long enough in Chicago, you'll find that it has a wide array of ethnicity --- Greek Town, China Town, Little Italy, Pilson (Bohemian) Town, and Ukranian Village.  Of course, you can also have a taste of the different fine cuisines of such origins.  

Michigan Avenue-  Shop till you drop! Every girl who've been to Chicago will tell you that you shouldn't miss the joy of shopping along Michigan Avenue.  I can vividly remember that during last year's IMCC, I always "run" (literally) out from the hotel, browsed through Michigan Ave. after our conference (around 5 pm) and come back after 90 minutes satisfied!  The sense of satisfaction does not only stem from the fact that you'd get something somehow, but going through the entire process is an enjoyment in itself.  Only if we have more free time...  

HOTELS - quality is diversified  
I stayed in the Fairmont Hotel in 1994 and it's one of my finest stay.  I had a harbour view then, overlooking Michigan Lake and just by looking out from the window is quite a breathtaking experience.  The service was also very good.  
But when I stayed at Sheraton Hotel last year, the experience was entirely different.  Service was not only bad, the rooms are very small and facilities are limited.  The worst part is they charged me twice!  Had to go through the trouble of clarifying my accounts, etc.  
Had a very luxurious one-night stay at Westin Riverfront Hotel when Sheraton wasn't able to give us rooms on the first night.  And I must say that this Japanese-themed hotel is also worth staying.     
 

 
 
 
Along Chicago's streets		   
Chicago's skyline at night...
 
 
 New Orleans 

New Orleans AKA The Big Easy used to be one of those places I have heard of  
and was stored at the back of my mind.  With the kind of life we're leading in  
Asia, there is hardly any opportunity or eagerness on our part to pay a visit to this  
beautiful southern city.  Well, in June of 1996, I had the good fortune of  
being assigned to work in New Orleans for a week and it truly was an experience to  
remember.  

I was particularly excited for getting assigned to work for the World Premiere  
of Disney's "The Hunchback of Notre Dame," not only was I to travel to the  
United States again after a 15 year wait, I was going to experience the jolt  
of watching a movie with 60,000 people in the biggest indoor screening event in  
history.  Of course, I was there as part of the publicity staff and being all  
of 23 and no idea on how to work on such an event, I was very nervous.  It was  
almost 11 in the evening when I got there, but the Fairmont Hotel where I was  
staying was just a stone's throw away from the famous Bourbon Street and I can  
sense the vibrancy in the air as I checked in.  Weary from my 7 hour flight  
from San Francisco to Houston then to New Orleans, I remember sleeping all the way  
to the morning.  After that it was 10 hour work days and party nights mostly for  
me and the other staff members from Sweden, Spain, Japan, LA, Mexico and the UK.   
Looking back, it was amazing for us to be that oblivious to the big event  
headed our way that weekend.  
    
The only tourist spots I was able to visit were the French Quarter, Bourbon  
Street, St. Louis Cathedral/Jackson Square and the Louisiana Superdome.  New  
Orleans was a settlement for the French in America in the late 1700's, hence  
the name.  And the French Quarter is a remnant of that era where the affluent  
French immigrants inhabited for centuries.  Right now, all it is, is a district with  
interesting architecture, bread and breakfast inns, great New Orleans cuisine  
joints and tacky T-shirt stores.  Nearby is the St. Louis Cathedral and  
Jackson Square. The square serves as the center of the city and is surrounded by many  
historic buildings, in the middle is the cathedral, the oldest active  
cathedral in the U.S.  Jackson Square provides easy access to the famous, mighty  
Mississippi river and houses very amusing street performers and performance  
artists.   

Bourbon Street is also in the French Quarter and only comes alive late at  
night. This is the place where all the action can be found in New Orleans after the  
sun goes down.  Being the only city where people are legally allowed to brandish  
liquor containers (without concealing them in brown paper bags as homeless  
bums often do in movies and TV), you get a lot of drunk people hopping bar to bar,  
strip joint to strip joint.  There are also drug dealer prowling the street in  
search of a customer to buy a joint of Marijuana.   The later it gets, the  
higher the crime rate so it's wise to not stay past 10, or be with a huge  
group of people.  Never stray from the group specially for tourists.  

An interesting incident took place for me while visiting the stores in the  
French Quarter.  I was amazed by the lack of Orientals/Asians in the city and  
dismissed that the old adage of there is a Filipino immigrant in every city in  
the States as false for this one, when the store owner begun speaking Tagalog  
to me.  Never found out how she knew but when I asked her when she moved to  
Orleans from the Philippines, she replied "not long ago, mga 1963!!!"  

The Louisiana Superdome is the largest indoor stadium in the United States.  
Two Superbowls were held there already and Disney was screening "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" for the first time here in the middle of this richly French  
flavored city for the first time to the world.  It was nothing short of spectacular to  
see 60,000 people walk in to the stadium and make human waves with you.  The  
premiere was preceded by a Disney production involving past theme songs of  
Disney features.  The premiere itself was done through 6 giant screens hoisted  
in the middle of the stadium for the entire audience to see.  Movie buffs like  
me live to experience the thrill of having 60,000 other people laugh, cry and  
bewildered by a magnificent picture as this.  

The weather was humid, hot and very much like summer in Taipei.  Then again,  
it was mid-June, right smack into the summer there, too.  The best food I had was  
the Seafood Etouffee at the Andrew Jaeger's House of Seafood at the French  
Quarter.  

I regret never taking time to visit the Garden District or taking a ride on  
one of those Casino boats, but hey, there will be other times.