Chicago is known worldwide as the "windy city." This is entirely due to the fact that the streets are lined with massive skyscrapers and the wind blowing off Lake Michigan is always diverted throughout the maze of urban towers, focusing it and intensifying it. These Massive buildings are for different purposes. Some are business related, but you will find that many of them are outstanding attractions for the avid vacation traveler. Another nickname for this grand urban jungle is "the city that never sleeps." There is always something going on here for the visitors as well as the native citizens.

The First American Planetarium

One of the many fun filled attractions that are located throughout the city of Chicago is the Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum. This grand establishment is renowned as the first planetarium in the United States. It was originally constructed in 1930 and has had millions of visitors since those early days.

Riding the Stars

One of the excellent exhibits that you will find here is the Starrider Theater. In this massive auditorium, the watchers will experience a variety of different shows that go deep into detail on space exploration. When you are watching these shows, you actually get the feel that you are in a real space shuttle, blasting through outer space and seeing the stars from a point of view that most people never get, that of the astronaut. This will absolutely thrill your senses of sight and sound.

A Blast-off from the Past

For the history buff as well as the astronomy junky, there are a number of exhibits and collections here from all throughout the history of the study of the stars. There are antique books penned in quill and ink from times long past when man thought that he could read the future through the practice of astronomy. There are over five hundred antique instruments that ere used in olden times to measure the movements of the stars, to navigate with them, and so much more. Some of these awesome old tools date as far back as the twelfth century!

Kids in Space

Though this doesn't sound like it would be all that great of a time for the children, the Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum actually takes great care to insure that the children have fun here too. They realize that our modern day children will be the astronomers, astronauts and scientists of tomorrow's generation. With that in mind, they offer a great many exhibits that are made just for the kids. Not look and learn stuff, but actual hands on interactive exhibits, things that kids can really get real knowledge from while having fun at the same time.

If you are looking for that one vacation spot that has it all, an attraction on virtually every single street corner, you need look no further than the extremely fun-filled city of Chicago in Northern Illinois and make the most out of every second of your vacation time.