Down the Road

Photographs and stories by Jim Grey

Chicago all decorated for Christmas

Jim Grey
13 comments on Chicago all decorated for Christmas
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Union Station, Chicago

On our recent long weekend in Chicago, the town was all decked out for Christmas. We’d never been to Union Station before, so we stepped in to see its stunning Great Hall.

Union Station, Chicago

I can’t imagine all the work the city has to put in to wrap so many trees with little lights. The trees are lit on street after street in the Loop.

Lit trees

We walked north across the Chicago River for dinner. The buildings along the river were lit in red and green, and terraces were strung with lights.

December evening on the Chicago River
December evening on the Chicago River *EXPLORED*
December evening on the Chicago River
Looking up at the Merchandise Mart

I live in a small Indiana town that seriously decorates its downtown for Christmas, and it’s charming. But it can’t touch what Chicago has done if for no other reason than its sheer scale.

Chicago Cultural Center

Come back Christmas Day and I’ll show you photographs of the giant Christmas tree in Millennium Park. It’s stunning!

Canon PowerShot S95

Comments

13 responses to “Chicago all decorated for Christmas”

  1. JoHawkTheWriter Avatar
    JoHawkTheWriter

    One of my favorite holiday rituals is spending the weekend downtown. We are less than 25 miles from the Loop, but with traffic, the trip can often take well over an hour. It is a treat to see a show, to shop the Christkindl market, to visit the Art Institute or one of the museums, or just walk along the lake or Michigan Ave. Your photos make me smile.

    Reply
    1. Jim Grey Avatar
      Jim Grey

      We are settling into a tradition to spend a December weekend in Chicago. We drive up from our northwest Indianapolis home and stay in boutique hotels in the Loop. It’s an unpopular time to be there so we get bargains on the rooms. Then we walk all over, doing much the same things you do. Such fun. My wife is from Chicago so this is a form of going home for her.

      Reply
      1. JoHawkTheWriter Avatar
        JoHawkTheWriter

        How lovely. 😊

        Reply
  2. bodegabayf2 Avatar
    bodegabayf2

    Nice night holiday shots of Chicago, a city I have only been to once and know so little about. And I am always impressed with the output of the little Canon digital–regardless of your subject matter.

    Reply
    1. Jim Grey Avatar
      Jim Grey

      That S95 has been a great camera. It does decent night work and that has been so nice to have.

      Reply
  3. susanJOY Hosken Avatar
    susanJOY Hosken

    Jim, thanks for sharing the city of Chicago’s christmas decorations. My city of Melbourne would be all decorated too and we have a famous store that has christmas window displays which everyone loves xoxo susanJOY

    Reply
    1. Jim Grey Avatar
      Jim Grey

      In Chicago the store with the window displays is Macy’s, which was for decades Marshall Field’s. Everybody misses Marshall Field’s!

      Reply
  4. Heide Avatar
    Heide

    I join you in marveling at the hours and hours it must take to string all those lights! The result really is magical though, isn’t it?

    PS: In Minneapolis we used to go downtown to see the displays at Dayton’s, which filled not only the windows but an entire upstairs floor of the store. Macy’s does their best, but everyone here (above the age of 30) misses Dayton’s. Sigh.

    Reply
    1. Jim Grey Avatar
      Jim Grey

      Macy’s took over the department-store world. Here in Indiana they ate L.S. Ayres. The Chicago Macy’s store is the former Marshall Field & Co. I miss both stores terribly. Macy’s just isn’t as good.

      Reply
      1. Heide Avatar
        Heide

        Sadly, I have to agree with you — and with your apt description of Macy’s “eating” other stores, too. Although Dayton’s was still a chain, it had an almost curated feel to it. You knew whatever you bought there had been carefully selected, and would be high quality. Not so much at Macy’s, alas …

        (My goodness, I’m starting to sound like my grandma, ha ha!)

        Reply
  5. brandib1977 Avatar
    brandib1977

    I have never been to Chicago but am now thinking a trip is in store next December! I will be driving the National Road through Indiana next week and am excited to see the sights there too.

    Reply
    1. Jim Grey Avatar
      Jim Grey

      I love the National Road! I hope you’ll check all of the old alignments. Here’s my summary of every one that still exists:

      https://blog.jimgrey.net/2014/03/24/a-survey-of-all-the-old-national-road-and-us-40-alignments-in-indiana/

      Reply
      1. brandib1977 Avatar
        brandib1977

        I will check this out! Thank you! I’m excited because I have no plans or hotel reservations. Instead, I’m going to just drive and stop wherever I please. Here’s hoping for good camera weather!

        Reply

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