Destination Chicago: Lions Can Experience Culture, History and Science in the Windy City

by Brett Rush

HOG Butcher for the World,
Tool Maker, Stacker of Wheat,
Player with Railroads and the Nation’s Freight Handler,
Stormy, husky, brawling,
City of the Big Shoulders…

-Chicago, Carl Sandburg, 1916

American poet Carl Sandburg’s “Chicago” captured the essence of a city in search of its identity in 1916. One year later, Lions would embark from this city on a journey to define themselves through compassion, diligence and a commitment to the greater good.

Now, the City of Big Shoulders welcomes Lions home for the 90th Annual Lions Clubs International Convention in July. As the convention offers Lions the opportunity to share in friendship and camaraderie, the city offers a multitude of world-renowned cultural and historic destinations. 

John G. Shedd Aquarium
One of the world’s largest indoor aquariums, the Shedd Aquarium has been entertaining marine biology enthusiasts since it opened its doors more than 75 years ago. Nestled along the lakefront, the aquarium houses one temporary and five permanent exhibits.

Visitors can explore a bevy of aquatic habitats in the Waters of the World exhibit, which introduces onlookers to marine environments such as rivers, oceans, islands and lakes and local waters. The aquarium’s Caribbean Reef exhibit, a 90,000-gallon circular habitat, puts visitors face to face with eels, rays and parrotfish while offering the chance to pose questions to a diver during feeding time inside the habitat.

Art Institute of Chicago
Home to some of the most recognizable artistic works in the world, the Art Institute of Chicago boasts a permanent collection that spans more than 5,000 years of human history. From an ancient Grecian coin depicting the goddess Persephone to Edward Hopper’s 1942 masterpiece, “Nighthawks,” the AIC houses a laundry list of works by the masters—Van Gogh, Picasso and Monet included.

The AIC’s special exhibitions also offer visitors the rare opportunity of an in-depth look at specific artistic themes. During convention, Gallery 202A will explore the impact of Japanese prints on late 19-century European artists as part of the Institute’s Silk Road exhibition, a year-long examination of the confluence of cultures created through the overland and maritime trade routes linking China and the Mediterranean Sea.

Field Museum of Natural History
The Field Museum of Natural History is the anthropology buff’s destination in Chicago. The museum is home to a collection of biological and anthropological artifacts from around the globe exhibited in a series of habitats and displays. From priceless ancient Egyptian artifacts to the fully furnished reconstruction of a Pawnee earth lodge, the museum’s diverse collection of artifacts offers visitors a unique look at the world they live in.

Head over heels for dinosaurs? Rendezvous with Sue, the world’s largest, most complete and best-preserved Tyrannosaurus Rex fossil yet discovered. Standing 13 feet tall at the hip and 42 feet from head to tail, Sue continues to awe onlookers 16 years after her discovery near Faith, South Dakota.

The Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum
Opened in 1930, the Adler Planetarium drew large audiences during the 1933 World’s Fair and continues to welcome throngs of visitors today. Journey through the history of astronomy by viewing one of the world’s largest collections of astronomical artifacts, or embark on a journey through the heavens in the planetarium’s interactive StarRider Theater. Visitors can even take a virtual tour of the international space station, or calculate their weight in the Martian atmosphere.

Sears Tower
What’s a visit to the Windy City without a trip to the top of the country’s tallest building? Standing 1,730 feet from antenna to ground level, the Sears Tower stood as the tallest building in the world from 1973 to 2004. Visitors to the sky-deck on the building’s 103rd floor can see four states on a clear day and can feel the building sway on a windy one. Six roof-mounted robotic window washing machines give the building’s 16,100 windows a thorough cleaning.

Museum of Science and Industry
Housed inside the only in-place surviving building from the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, the Museum of Science and Industry takes visitors on a journey through human innovation. Located in Chicago’s south-side Hyde Park neighborhood, the museum is home to the U-505, the only German submarine captured during World War II. In 2000, the Museum also created and hosted the largest display of relics from the wreck of the Titanic, the largest passenger steamship in the world at the time of its sinking in 1912.

Visitors to the museum also can tour a coal mine, an old-fashioned trolley, a space shuttle and a Boeing 727, or step aboard the first diesel-powered, streamlined, stainless-steel train, the Pioneer Zephyr—a free tour is offered every 20 minutes. The museum is also home to the Henry Crown Space Center, which includes both the Apollo 8 and Mercury Atlas 7 space capsules.