Well, yes, I was in Chicago this weekend for IML. Suffice it to say that the Hyatt was a corporate nightmare; I was unable to post because the "Business Center" was closed for the holiday weekend. I actually participated very little in IML activities (except for a party with 7 German skinheads in my room, but that is probably another topic), so let me record my impressions of The Windy City...
I haven't been to Chicago for any length of time since the 1970's, except for a quick DCI Tour, so I was totally taken aback by the changes... The city now has the appearance of a set out of Brazil. I stayed in the new and refurbished East Side, all poured concrete and steel and glass, with strange gardens that were empty due to the holiday. On the plazas were gangs of skateboarders being chased by building security... Perhaps someone could explain the plethora of double antennae on the tops of many buildings. They do resemble horns. Perhaps they are a tribute to the cows that once passed through the stockyards. Or maybe something more dark and sinister...
I did venture, of course, to some of the more ruined sections of town and also visited the museum because I had never seen Edward Hopper's "Nighthawks" up close. Was surprised by the Kandinsky's there. Who knew?
And who invented the gawd-awful term Chicagoland? Sounds like a Daley-ism to me.
I will probably return later in the summer and will want to see some of Chicago's night life. And I won't be staying at the Hyatt.