One of the most notable features of Wrigley Field is the Ivy that covers the brick outfield wall. The type of Ivy is known as Boston Ivy (also referred to as Japanese creeper, Grape ivy, Japanese ivy, and woodbine). Planted in 1937 by then manager Bill Vecck, the Ivy was his way of helping to cushion the brick wall for players when they crashed into it–undoubtably the ivy does not really help in cushioning the crash but adds that extra character to the already beautiful Wrigley Field.
Today is the start of the Chicago Cubs Convention. In honor of that this weekend, I thought I would post a few pictures of the Friendly Confines, starting of course with the iconic marquee. Over the years, the marquee has changed from blue to green to red and even purple for a short time… but regardless of the color, Wrigley will always remain a landmark for the city of Chicago, and moreover the world.
With the sun in the perfect spot, this light tower at Montrose beach cast a shadow across the sand. A great summer day.
How peaceful and symetrical the office building looks late at night after the workforce heads home.
The Trump International Hotel and Tower. Also known as just the Trump Tower, stands 1389 feet tall, which makes it the second tallest building in the U.S. after the Sears Tower. It opened in early 2008 and construction finished in late 2009. The building is host to a 4-5 star restaurant, Sixteen (located on the 16th floor), 339-room hotel, condos and retail space with a parking garage.
Ramar the silverback gorilla at Brookfield Zoo sits and pouts alone in the West Africa exhibit. With his legs up and arms crossed he so closely resembles a human.
The best view of Chicago–the entire city. One of my favorite places to go and capture the always evolving skyline. The best part is that you never get the same view twice. You’ll see throughout the year that I have many pictures from this view and none of them are the same.
What can I say? This is just a great view of the city. The Kinzie Street Railroad bridge is one of the 45 bridges that cross the Chicago River in the city. The Kinzie Street Railroad bridge is a single leaf bascule bridge and at the time it was built is was the world’s longest and heaviest bascule bridge. Since the number of companies that used the bridge was severely declining and in early 2001 left no traffic using the bridge, it is now permanently locked in the open position. On December 1, 2007 the bridge was one of 12 historic Chicago railroad bridges to be designated as a Chicago Landmark.
Built in 1921, with it’s first performance being “The Sign on the Door”, the Chicago Theater is known as “The Wonder Theater of the World”. It was the first large, lavish movie palace in America and became a prototype for all others that followed. Due to economic factors, the theater became obsolete and was closed in Sept 19, 1985. On Sept 10, 1986, after a full restoration of the theater, it reopened with a stunning performance by Frank Sinatra.
Today the Chicago Theater hosts a wide variety of tourists and well-known performers such as Van Morrison, Aretha Franklin, Harry Connick Jr., Dolly Parton and many more. The vertical “C-H-I-C-A-G-O” sign, nearly six-stories high, is still one of the few such signs in existence today. The sign and the marquee are landmarks along State Street in Chicago.
In the city well known for it’s temperamental weather there is always opportunity to capture a glimpse of mother nature’s fury. As I was driving down Lakeshore drive one day during a wind storm I was lucky enough to have a camera with me at the time. I pulled off at North Avenue Beach and spent a few hours trying to capture the fury of the waves crashing into the shore.
You might remember seeing this lightning photo from my "Day 181: Lightning Strikes" post. It was chosen to be the main screen in the Gameday Central App.
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Showcasing Chicago One Image at a Time 