Chicago North Side Tour - Lincoln Park

We begin the day in Chicago Downtown's Loop Area (where many big businesses and all the major tourist attractions are located) traveling North on the brown line. The city has many different EL (Elevated Subway) Lines going to all parts of the city; to go North, one could take the red, purple, or brown lines; I prefer the brown or purple lines in the morning because they travel faster and have fewer stops than the red line.

The doors on the inside of and EL train. There are doors on each side of the train, and before each stop, the conductor announces which door will open. Passengers have approximately 30 seconds to one minute to get off and on trains.

The view of the city from the train.

The inside of the train -- right now during morning rush it's fairly empty because I'm traveling away from the city whereas most people travel towards the city.

First stop on my tour of Chicago's North Side: Lincoln Park

In order to get to Lincoln Park, I have to get off at the Fullerton stop on the brown line. Lincoln Park is home to DePaul University, a private Catholic university. It's a wealthier suburb of North Chicago, with many brownstone buildings that have an estimated worth of over a million dollars. The area is fairly "yuppie" with lots of young professionals and students.

The City of Chicago has invested approximate 300 million dollars to renovate the city's brown line; above and below are pictures of the construction. The line is almost 100 years old.

Typical Lincoln Park home.

If you can't tell by now, I like food. I especially like Lincoln Park's diverse selection of food (there's only so many restaurants in Evanston). My first food stop is at Toast, a small upscale diner in Evanston. I order a vegetarian omelet, a side of sausage, and a glass of fresh orange juice. My total comes to $15.00, but the food is plentiful, so the meal feels more like a brunch than just breakfast.

In the U.S., people sell their houses often by getting a real estate agent to find potential buyers for their home. However, in a popular location like Lincoln Park, home sellers often don't have to use real estate agents and instead can sell their houses themselves because the housing is in such great demand that a simple sign like the one above and below will attract many potential buyers.

And the trip continues....

Next stop: Argyle -- the North Side's Vietnamese area