The City of Chicago

The Chicago Blues Festival is a Chicago tradition for over 20 years. It is an annual event that features performances by top blues musicians. It is held for four days at Grant Park.

The festival began in 1984, a year after the death of Muddy Waters, the father of Chicago blues. Some notable past performers were Bo Diddley, Stevie Ray Vaughan, John Lee Hooker, and Etta James just to name a few.

This years Chicago Blues Festival will be held from June 5 to 8 and will be closed by none other than the legendary B.B. King.

Visit their official website for more information.

The Taste of Chicago is the Midwest's and the world's largest food festival. It is held at Grant Park every year for two weeks, starting from the final week of June. Chicago's best restaurants get to feature their best dishes ranging from family favorites to the exotic. Entertainment is also provided by musical artists on different stages.

This year, Taste of Chicago 2008 will start on June 27 and end on July 6. Admission, as always, is free. Visit the Taste of Chicago's official website for more information.

The iconic Berwin Spindle is up for auction on e-Bay. As of this writing, the sculpture has 0 bids, but its page views is steadily rising. Bid starts at $50,000 plus $100,000 shipping.

The Berwin Spindle is a towering structure of eight cars impaled by a 40-foot spike. It has been featured on popular culture many times including in 1992's Wayne's World.

The spindle needs to be removed to make way for a Walgreens.

See e-Bay auction here.

• Jean-Baptiste Pointe du Sable - "The Father of Chicago," the first settler in Chicago, Illinois.
• William B. Ogden - Chicago's first mayor.
• Jane M. Byrne - Chicago's first and only woman mayor.
• Harold Washington - Chicago's first African-American mayor.
• Ernie Banks - the first Chicago Cubs African-American player.
• Chicago's Mercy Hospital - Illinois' first hospital.
• The Adler Planetarium - the first planetarium in the Western Hemisphere.
• Western Avenue - the world's longest street.
• Harold Washington Library/The Chicago Public Library - the world's largest public library.
• The Chicago Post Office - the only drive-thourgh post office in the world.
• Nabisco - the largest cookie and cracker factory in the world is located in Chicago.
• Keebler - the world's largest ice cream cone factory is located in Chicago.
• Charles Dana - a New York Sun editor that coined the now famous monicker "Windy City."
• The Taste of Chicago - the world's largest free outdorr food festival.
• These Are My Children - first TV daytime soap opera ever aired, making Chicago the birthplace of TV daytime soap opera.
• Playboy - first published in Chicago in 1953.

The Shedd Aquarium, or more formally, The John G. Shedd Aquarium, is an indoor aquarium boasting 5 million gallons of water and roughly 2100 species of marine animals. Opened to the public in 1930, the Shedd Aquarium was once the largest indoor aquarium in the world.

Kids will surely enjoy the aquarium's various exhibits including Wild Reef, Oceanarium, Amazon Rising, Waters of the World, and Caribbean Reef. Some notable animals on display are Beluga Whales, Giant Pacific Octopus, Moon Jellies, and of course Penguins.

Admission tickets go from $8 to $27.50 and The Shedd Aquarium is open from 9am to 5pm on weekdays and up to 6pm on weekends.

The aquarium will hold a Reptile Fest this coming April 12 to 13. Lizards and reptiles will highlight the said event, plus a special presentation about Komodo dragons.

Visit http://www.shedaquarium.org for more info.

www.lollapalooza.com will announce this year's Lollapalooza's lineup on April 7, 2008, although the festival is still a couple of month's away.

Lollapalooza is a music festival featuring all kinds of music and performances that one can think of. It was conceived by Perry Farrell (Jane's Addiction) as a farewell tour for his band. Originally, Lollapalooza tours from city to city, but on 2006 Chicago Park District and Capital Sports & Entertainment signed a deal to keep the festival at Grant Park in Chicago until 2011.
Some Notable Lollapalooza Acts

• Jane's Addiction
• Nine Inch Nails
• Rollins Band
• Primus
• Arrested Development
• The Smashing Pumpkins
• The Ramones
• Rancid
• Weezer

Lollapalooza will be held on August 1 -3 2008 on Grant Park Chicago. For more info visit their official website http://www.lollapalooza.com