How many times a week do you feel pulled in many directions? Do those directions occasionally lead you to unexpected places?
As Content Managers for the International Relocation Center, our work exposes us to all aspects of living in a particular place. Sometimes we find quirky or fascinating gems as we track down the answer to a relocation question. And while we have to be disciplined with our time, that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy the bits of knowledge that come our way as a result of our research.
Enter this tidbit platter of random finds about one of my favorite U.S. cities – Chicago:
WorldChicago
A non-profit whose motto is “Citizen diplomacy, one handshake at a time,” WorldChicago is the city’s official host of U.S. government-sponsored visitors, facilitating professional and personal interaction for international leaders during visits to Chicago.
They also arrange Professional Fellowships, month-long exchanges where foreign visitors share and learn skills at Chicago companies while living with a Homestay host for full cultural immersion rather than remain isolated in hotels.
Lead pipes
A Johns-Hopkins study of lead exposure in children highlights the fact that Chicago has more lead pipes than any other U.S. city. Lead pipes were banned by the federal government in 1986, but Chicago building specs required them up until that time. Newcomers may have water tested to make sure their drinking and cooking water is safe.
Architecture
Widely recognized as home to the world’s first skyscraper, Chicago boasts architectural wonders from a stunning array of periods. After the great fire of 1871, the city rebuilt quickly and soon buildings rose from stone and iron instead of wood. The 10-storey Home Insurance Building was completed in 1885, pioneering early skyscraper engineering with steel beams. Today, you can see everything from its own innovative Chicago School and Frank Lloyd Wright’s Prairie style to Art Deco, Postmodern, and Late Modernism. An architectural tour – whether walking or boating on the Chicago River – is a great way to see the city.
Olympic athletes
One hundred years ago, 20-year-old Johnny Weissmuller broke the 100-meter freestyle swimming world record at the 1924 Olympics in Paris. Romanian-born, he moved to the U.S. when he was seven months old and lived in Chicago from age four. Stricken with polio at age nine, Johnny took up swimming on the advice of his doctor. He would go on to win three gold medals at the 1924 Olympics and two in the 1928 Olympics in Amsterdam. He is also famous for playing Tarzan in a 1932 film and would star in many more movies for the next 25 years.
Since Dorothy Hamill is a personal favorite of mine, I’m mentioning her even though she didn’t grow up in Chicago. She was born there, however, then moved to Riverside Connecticut. Winning a gold medal for figure skating at the 1976 Olympics in Innsbruck, she is known for a move known as the Hamill Camel, and for her signature wedge haircut. An ice rink in her town was named for her in 1976. It’s also where my own boys learned to ice skate about 20 years later.
You never know what may spark your interest about a location, or how its tendrils may connect you to the place through time. Read about Chicago – and hundreds of other locations – in Living Abroad’s International Relocation Center.
Written by Ellen Harris, GMS, Product Manager, Content Group
