Is Chicago boring??

[Luisito80]

Thanks for the replies.

Originally Posted by moguldreamer

"Lots of stores and restaurants etc" is not the opposite of boring.

I wasn't implying it was, I just wanted to know what the busy commercial streets were outside of the downtown area, didn't want to open a new thread. Sorry I should have been more clear.

[Hochita]

Originally Posted by garyjohnyang

Off the top of my head:

• Damen / North / Milwaukee in Wicker Park, and Milwaukee Avenue in general
• Clark / Diversey in Lakeview
• Clark Street in Andersonville
• Halsted Street in Boystown and Lincoln Park
• Armitage and Lincoln Avenues in Lincoln Park
• Southport corridor off the Brown Line
• Devon Avenue in West Ridge
• 26th Street in Little Village
• 18th Street in Pilsen
• Cermak and Wentworth in Chinatown
• 53rd Street in Hyde Park

I'd add Lawrence from Uptown to Jefferson Park as well.

[Master Jay]

garyjohnyang's list is very good!

For me, I'd add the strip of Lincoln Avenue as it goes through North Center and Lincoln Square.

[BigLake]

Originally Posted by garyjohnyang

Off the top of my head:

• Damen / North / Milwaukee in Wicker Park, and Milwaukee Avenue in general
• Clark / Diversey in Lakeview
• Clark Street in Andersonville
• Halsted Street in Boystown and Lincoln Park
• Armitage and Lincoln Avenues in Lincoln Park
• Southport corridor off the Brown Line
• Devon Avenue in West Ridge
• 26th Street in Little Village
• 18th Street in Pilsen
• Cermak and Wentworth in Chinatown
• 53rd Street in Hyde Park

This is a good list. For "vibrant areas" with restaurants, stores, foot traffic, amenities, I would also add:

Randolph St. (Restaurant Row)
Fulton Market
Lincoln and Western in Lincoln Square
Halsted & North in LP though it gets strip mally on Clybourn
Wrigleyville (Clark & Addison)
Broadway & Belmont
Belmont & Sheffield
Taylor St. and Loomis St. (Little Italy)
You might even want to include Roscoe St. in Roscoe Village

I don't think I was too liberal with my assessment. All of these areas bustle, with perhaps exception of Roscoe and maybe Little Italy. There are others areas too.

[Hochita]

That's a cool building there a block up from belmont and Broadway where unabridged books is. I like Broadway all the way to Devon in fact, and Clark from Devon to Howard too.

[Tex?Il?]

Chicago is FAR from boring. Seriously anyone who thinks Chicago is boring as far as what the city has to offer and things to see and do is probably boring themselves.

However, I think there are two major reasons why one might think Chicago comes off as boring compared to some other major cities, even including ones that are considerably smaller.

1. The surrounding region (day or overnight trip radius) has much less to see and do than nearly any other region of the country. That doesn't mean there is nothing, (plenty of hidden gems - there's been many threads on this), but options as far as either

A. Other major cities that have things to see and do that Chicago doesn't already offer (Milwaukee is really the only
city in day trip distance, and has a lot of cool things but is an after thought for most people, all other cities are much
further.

B. Areas of natural scenery and outdoor recreation that other regions offer in greater abundance. (again - yes
hidden gems if you know where to look - IE: Took my girlfriend on an overnight trip to Galena when we were visiting
my family).

2. Compared to other cities - Chicago culture is much more oriented around neighborhoods, communities, etc. and might come across as as segregated/people staying within their comfort zone.

On top of this, a disproportionate number of people in their 20s and 30s in the popular, new-in-town type of neighborhoods come disproportionately from big ten universities are have tight alumni networks. Though these folks may be friendly and welcoming, its easy to understand that people who aren't in those circles might feel left out when they get together to watch their college football games. That's not saying this is the dominant weekend activities of residents, but its dominant enough, where newcomers might have to look harder for their niche.

On top of this, Chicago's economy and job market is and has always been more focused on finance, insurance, commodity trading, and fortune 500 corporate headquarters which emphasize conformity, and precision Compared to many other cities, there is a lower percentage of the workforce that work in creative careers like the arts and entertainment, tech, politics, etc.

Team sports and corporate culture can come across as conformist and boring to many people
I used to, many years ago, post on this forum my thoughts of Chicago as boring as well. I realized it had more to do with the people that I naturally interacted with through social networks. I moved away from Chicagoland 11 years ago to SoCal.

My girlfriend is a Jersey girl who moved to LA a couple years ago, who first majored in music and film in college, graduated with a poli-sci degree, taught herself coding and web development when she realized that career opportunities in the former fields were too few, though worked as a coder/web developer for a non-profit lobbying group in DC, and STILL has dreams of becoming a screenwriter.

I think she is the most interesting woman I've ever met. She opened me up to a world of film and TV that I had no clue about. We recently moved in together, and is the most serious relationship I've ever been in. Could I have met a woman like this in Chicago? Its possible, but I think it would be much less likely.

[ToriaT]

The only cities more exciting in my book would be New York. I do like some smaller places like Vail, Colorado, etc. and some resort type towns, but for big cities I think Chicago is great. European cities are interesting to me because of age of them, places like London, Paris, Rome are very exciting more so than Chicago.

[TheProf]

Honestly, while I admire the effort posters putting in answering this thread, I just wouldn't waste the time. The top heading is absurd (maybe that's the point), and Chicago does not have to justify itself to anyone. While no place is perfect, Chicago included, it's one of the more diverse, bustling and exciting cities in the world.