Table of Contents
Indianapolis
Chicago
New York
San Francisco
Las Vegas
Lexington
Seattle
Los Angeles
D.C.
Minneapolis
Dallas
Philadelphia
On Sunday, May 30, more than 300,000 spectators from around the world will gather at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the 88th annual Indy 500—the world’s oldest and largest car race and the largest single-day sporting event in the United States. In addition to the race, fans can get $5 general admission tickets for all practice days (which start May 9), and $10 admission to qualifications, May 15 and 16, and Carburetion Day, May 27. On race day, grandstand seats—which must be purchased in advance—are $40 to $90. (To see the track seating map, go to www.indy500.com/trackmap.) General admission tickets for the infield are $20 and can be ordered through the IMS Ticket Office at 317-492-6700 or purchased in cash at the gate. While you can usually arrive at the track after 8 am and be parked and seated by the time the first checkered flag is dropped at 11 am, fans seeking the best spots in the infield typically camp outside the gates before they open at 5 am. Race-goers can reserve parking for passenger cars, recreational vehicles, or a spot for tent camping by going online at www.indy500.com/camping/ or calling 317-492-6410 before May 14. Dan Vielhaber, a Speedway history buff from Beech Grove, Indiana, maintains a Web site (www.indyspeedway.com) dedicated to helping fans navigate the Indianapolis influx and race weekend. Here are a few of his tips: 1 Good items to pack: sunscreen, cash, a hat, earplugs, binoculars, cameras, seat cushion for the bleachers, lawn chair for the infield, spare roll of toilet paper, cooler, satchel, cell phone, comfortable closed-toed shoes, food, and beverages. 2 Concession stands line the infield and outskirts with track food favorites. Nab a good spot in a short line when the race is on and everyone’s in their seats. 3 Anyone planning on bringing sodas or beer must pack cans—glass bottles aren’t allowed at the track (nor are illegal substances). Pets are permitted (but not recommended) only in the infield. 4 During race weekend, shuttles start at 6 am from the RCA Dome, Indianapolis Zoo, Indianapolis Airport, and bus shelter at the corner of Illinois and Market streets. 5 The hotels in Indianapolis and the surrounding counties are snatched up quickly. To check availability or make a reservation, go to www.indy.org/indy500hotels or call 800-926-8276. 6 The race lasts roughly three hours. If you want to avoid slow traffic, consider leaving a little early. For more race information, go to www.indy500.com or call 317-492-6700. The Need for Additional Speed Those not content to watch from the sidelines can pick from three Circle City alternatives and supplements to race weekend—all within a 30-minute drive of the track, and all guaranteed to get the adrenaline going. Whiteland Raceway Park (317-535-7291, www.whitelandraceway.com): Home to the state’s fastest, 45-mph karts and the country’s oldest kart racing track, the park drew visitors from 28 states and 12 different countries last year to negotiate the 10-turn, half-mile course in real racing karts. Roughly 25 minutes from downtown, the park is off the I-65 South Whiteland exit. Track Attack (317-890-1519, www.trackattack.com): Want to burn rubber in a full-sized race car? Sign up for individual or group lessons on Track Attack’s half-mile, 6-turn course, located on Indy’s east side at 2525 N. Shadeland Ave. IMAX (www.imax.com/racing): Head to White River State Park in the heart of downtown for NASCAR: The IMAX Experience 3D, the first-ever 3D motor sports film, shown throughout spring and summer in a theater with 12,000 watts of 750 horsepower sound and a movie screen eight stories high. —Elise LeBlanc
Dinosaurs Invade Indy's Children Museum
After three years from conception to completion, Dinosphere will open for visitors to immerse themselves in the sights, sounds, and feel of a 65-million-year-old environment. Molded cement walkways help capture the period’s "tropical, high desert," while ancient insects chirp over the speakers, and real, harvested plants mimicking those in Florida’s Corkscrew Swamp intersperse the exhibit. Seats from what was previously the Cinedome have been removed to make way for a three-story, 13,000-square-foot exhibit with surround sound and IMAX-type screen projecting images of a Cretaceous sky from sunrise to sunset, with a thunderstorm in between. Visitors can navigate through crawlways to a Discovery pod, where they can get an up-close look at fossils of such pre-historic beasts as the T-Rex, triceratops, Gorgasaurus, Maiasaur, Hypacasaurus, Leptoceratop, and the 10-inch Oviraptorid "Baby Louis"—the Museum’s celebrated, fully articulated dinosaur embryo. A knowledgeable staff is at the ready to answer questions. On the third-floor art gallery, John Lanzendorf, "paleo expert" and advisor from Chicago, has loaned his extensive personal collection of hundreds of dinosaur toys, as well as almost 300 original works of art from world-renowned paleontologists. The Paleo Prep Lab gives visitors a chance to watch paleontologists at work. Inside the lab is a sandbox for delicate fossils, an artifact toy collection, and television monitors for close observation. The museum isn’t just a static history lesson: There are plenty of activities, interactive learning stations, and an area where visitors can draw, paint, and sculpt their own dinosaurs. Children 10 to 18 who are interested in getting hands-on experience with preparing fossils can dig into the junior paleontology program. Dinosphere is included with the price of a museum admission ticket ($11.50 adults; $6.50 kids 2—17), as are all of the activities in the exhibit. —EL
Serious jazz fans will be in their element, but the festival plays something for devotees of blues, roots, rhythm & blues, and gospel, too. And special, kid-friendly attractions, including an instrument "petting zoo," make it a perfect outing for families. Festivities begin Friday at 5 pm and carry on until 11 pm. Saturday includes a full 12 hours of music, from 11 am to 11 pm. Food court offerings, from Cajun pizza to barbecue, offer finger-licking sustenance throughout the day. The festival concludes with Sunday performances that last from 11 am to 8 pm. Other name acts include: the John Scofield Trio, Solomon Burke, Brad Meldau Trio, Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra, and Seven Pleasures. Tickets are on sale at Ticketmaster locations (317-239-5151), and at the city’s RCA Dome box office (no service charge here). A three-day pass is $35. For single-day visits, advance tickets are $15, $25 if purchased at the show. Kids 14 and under are free. Parking is available on the IUPUI campus. —EL
Printers Row
In this digital age, when everything is measured in gigabytes or nanoseconds, it’s nice to know that there’s still a place saturated with the smells of paper and printer’s ink. In Chicago, this storied neighborhood, nestled under the shadow of the Sears Tower, is where much paper and printer’s ink was first bound together. At the turn of the century, the Printers Row neighborhood was a haven for printing businesses, but today it isn’t just for bibliophiles. Printers Row is a place where foodies find comfort, where classic blues musicians wail long after midnight, where a cold beer is just a corner bar away. Still, Printers Row is best-known for books, and no time more so than June 5-6, when The Chicago Tribune Printers Row Book Fair convenes. This year marks the 20th anniversary of this, the third largest book fair in America, featuring upwards of 200 booksellers. Copious literary programming awaits—author talks, books signings, children’s events. Confirmed authors for 2004 include Jules Feiffer, Elizabeth Berg, and Stuart Dybek. The best place to start is at historic Dearborn Station (47 W. Polk St.), Chicago’s last surviving 19th-century rail terminal. The Fair’s largest literary events hold court here, from 10 am to 6 pm, and admission is free. Even if you miss the fair, stop in at the alluring bookstores in Printers Row, open year round. Prairie Avenue Bookshop (418 S. Wabash Ave., 312-922-8311) boasts more than 12,000 titles centered on architecture and design. With its Mies van der Rohe furniture and old-time jazz playing, this is an inviting nook in which to spend an afternoon. Authors often convene at Kasey’s (701 S. Dearborn St., 312-427-7992) for a cold beer or three, reinforcing that age-old stereotype about writers and booze. When lunchtime beckons, Standing Room Only (610 S. Dearborn St., 312-360-1776) is a health-conscious, affordable eatery, serving up deli fare, including vegetarian wraps, scrumptious salads, and mouthwatering turkey burgers. Bar Louie (47 W. Polk St., 312-347-0000) serves spicy Cajun and hearty American entrees. The full bar stocks a deep list of cold beer. For dinner, the hip and streamlined OYSY (888 S. Michigan Ave., 312-922-1127) is sushi paradise, with more than 50 selections of sushi. For a lighter snack between book browsing, take a load off and enjoy a fresh-brewed coffee at Gourmand Coffee & Teas (728 S. Dearborn St., 312-427-2610). The new beverage rage, an import from Asia, is Pearl Tea (also called "bubble tea" or "boba"). These sweet and refreshing milk teas come in a rainbow of flavors from watermelon to taro and are loaded with large marbles of chewy tapioca pearls that funnel up through extra-wide straws. Enjoy them at Charming Woks (601 S. Wabash Ave., 312-939-0966). Those tired of book browsing often visit The Museum of Contemporary Photography (600 S. Michigan Ave., 312-663-5554). An exhibit by photographer Shimon Attie, entitled "The History of Another," which uses ancient Rome as a backdrop, runs through July 2. When you’re all done with your day in Printers Row, the odds are good that you will have at least one keepsake to remember your day—what else, a book. 101 NEIGHBORHOOD
—Sam Weller
From May 2—8 performances take place at multiple theaters across the city, and feature more than 70 performers and groups. In addition to the paid performances, the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs sponsors a series of free events over the course of the festival. City-sponsored events are held at the Chicago Cultural Center (78 E. Washington St., www.ci.chi.il.us/Tourism/CulturalCenter/), and include performances, films, and an awards ceremony. —Jason Rothstein
Soldiering On
Opened in October 2003, the Pritzker Military Library (610 N. Fairbanks Court, 312-587-7917, www.pritzkermilitarylibrary.org) comes at the optimal time. There hasn’t been this broad an interest in the U.S. army and the concept of the "citizen soldier"—the nonprofessional military, including the National Guard and Reserves—in decades. At the end of 2003, more than 80,000 National Guard members and reservists were serving in Iraq—their largest battlefield presence since World War II—and thousands more were on active duty. At the Pritzker Military Library, visitors inclined to honor the nation’s bravest this Memorial Day, or any other time, can not only browse more than 9,000 volumes of books focusing on the citizen soldier and U.S. military history of the 19th and 20th centuries, but discuss the tomes with those who wrote them. Each week, the library invites military historians, biographers, authors, and journalists including Geoffrey Perret, Joe Galloway, and W.E.B. Griffin to discuss their writings and viewpoints in the intimate surrounds of the library’s atrium. In addition, its monthly Front & Center public affairs forum, moderated by Peabody-award-winning broadcaster John Callaway, focuses on critical issues related to the military and society, such as the future of U.S. intelligence in the war on terror. All events are free of charge, although reservations are recommended. (Each program is broadcast live and archived on the library’s Web site, which includes a schedule of upcoming events.) The library, just east of the Mag Mile, is open to visitors by appointment only, 8:30 am to 4:30 pm, Monday—Friday. Members (registration is free) can access the library’s card catalog at its Web site; borrowing privileges are reserved for "associates" at an annual cost of $100.
In addition to the books and public forums, the library features an extensive collection of periodicals and 20th-century recruitment and war posters. The vast majority of the library’s content comes from the private collection of retired Col. James N. Pritzker, Illinois Army National Guard, a citizen soldier himself. —Paul Rogers
Albert’s Cafe & Patisserie (52 W. Elm St., 312-751-0666). The pastry chef at this Gold Coast coach house makes the cakes that LeClair decorates. Stop by for a lunch of French favorites, from soups to, of course, sweets. The Left Bank (2206 N. Clybourn, 773.929.7422). LeClair heads to this boutique for jewelry, clothes, and all things Parisian. Sure to please any Francophile. Textile Discount Outlet Fabric Store (2121 W. 21st St., 773-847-0572). Her fashion designing days may be over, but LeClair can’t resist the floors and floors of fabric bargains at this Pilsen warehouse. "Wear comfortable shoes," she cautions.
—Jane LeClair
Chicago is home to two of the country’s oldest and most loved art fairs, and a certain rivalry exists between them. Fortunately for natives and visitors alike, they take place a week apart, eliminating the need to declare an allegiance. The first is the 57th Street Art Fair (entry at 57th St. and Kenwood Ave., 773-493-3247, www.57thstreetartfair.org) in the Hyde Park neighborhood on the city’s south side. Founded in 1948, the 57th Street Art Fair draws more than 100,000 visitors annually, and that crowd is expected June 5—6, 11 am—6:30 am. Considered the oldest juried art fair in the Midwest, this free festival boasts more than 300 exhibitors selected each year by a panel of collectors, critics, curators, and artists. Supplementing the array of artworks, pottery, and jewelry to peruse and purchase are numerous food vendors drawn from both the local community and other parts of the city. It is possible to find parking a few blocks away, but the fair is well-served by city buses and Metra trains.
In case you’re visiting from out of town and worried that you might fall in love with that 275-pound sculpture that won’t fit in your carry-on, rest assured that most exhibitors are happy to arrange shipping. —JR
City Sights: \
Sights. Sustainability means high quality, locally grown and raised meats, produce, and flowers, with an emphasis on organic goods. The city’s best chefs, including Frontera Grill’s Rick Bayless, are Green City supporters, so it doesn’t hurt to eavesdrop to see if you can learn a great new recipe. Tastes. In addition to the fresh fruits and vegetables, several vendors make meals from the goods on sale at the market. The crepes, filled with your choice of Green City toppings, and the hamburgers (made from beef raised humanely, of course), are favorites. Expect to wait in line. Hours. 7 am to 1:30 pm. Directions. The Chicago Green City Market is north of LaSalle Street in Lincoln Park along the path between 1750 N. Clark St. and Stockton Dr. This location is usually best accessed on foot (a nice walk through the park) or by the Clark Street bus. But parking is available for $3 in the lot off Stockton Drive. —ML If you are a collector of art and antiques, then you probably already know to book a flight to Chicago the second weekend in May. If you are an aspiring collector, consider yourself warned. Navy Pier (600 E. Grand Ave., 312-595-PIER, www.navypier.com) hosts two of the country’s most interesting art and antiques exhibitions. AntiquesChicago (312-337-6441, www.antiqueschicago.com) is just two years old, but already attracts the most prestigious antique furniture and textile dealers, thanks to the influence of co-founder and former HGTV star Leslie Hindman. The show runs May 8—11 in the Grand Ball Room and Lakeview Terrace. Art Chicago 2004 (312-587-3300, www.artchicago.com) will display the finest modern and contemporary art for the 12th year in a row May 7—10. Look for more than 200 international galleries in Festival Hall. —ML
It’s Saturday night in Chicago, the country’s blues capital. The room is narrow, dimly lit, with cracked plaster walls and a burlap-bag ceiling. Knee-bopping patrons perch on the edge of their chairs. Except in this club, one notices that patrons’ feet don’t always reach the floor. That’s because in the Blue Chicago Store’s "Down in the Basement" club (534 N. Clark St. 312-661-1003, www.bluechicago.com), the primary people listening to the live blues band perform are kids. The smoke—and alcohol-free venue is the only one of its kind in the city, opened in 1998 by the store’s blues-loving owners to introduce youngsters to the genre. Shannon, who has fronted the house band since the Basement’s inception, always gives a blues history nugget before each song, so patrons walk out knowing the father and mother of the blues (W.C. Handy and Ma Rainey), as well as greats’ names like Pinetop Perkins and Sunnyland Slim. What’s more, aspiring musicians can get on stage and jam with the band during the second set (around 9:20 pm), be it on guitar, bass, drums, or vox. The Basement is open Saturdays from 8 pm till midnight, perfect for a pre-Mother’s Day or Father’s Day fete. Kids 11 and under are free; adults pay $5 (or $7, which also provides admission to Blue Chicago’s 21-and-over venues at 536 and 736 N. Clark St.). —Karla Zimmerman
A Tisket, A Tasket
While picnicking used to mean slaving over homemade finger food, a number of epicurean markets aim to make dining al fresco a breeze, even if you’re hotel-bound. Whether you’re headed to Ravinia Festival (847-266-5100), the outdoor, picnic-friendly music festival, or one of the city’s parks, first visit one of these must-stop food shops for divine munchies. Fox & Obel Food Market (401 E. Illinois St., 312-410-7301) features an out-of-this world charcuterie with prosciutto aged for 500 days, a prepared food section with espresso barbecue sauce-kissed baby back ribs and seven-bean Moroccan salad, a farmstead, small-batch cheese shop, and an artisanal bakery with mile-high apple pie. Trotter’s To Go (1337 W. Fullerton Ave., 773-868-6510) is a casual-chic carryout owned by world-renowned chef Charlie Trotter. You’ll find high-end spit-roasted meats like lavender and honey-roasted Amish chicken, caramelized butternut squash salad with pine nuts and balsamico, and milk chocolate tres leches cake. Conte di Savoia (1438 W. Taylor St., 312-666-3471) has been a Little Italy deli staple for more than 50 years. Snag an antipasto plate with salami, capocollo, provolone, kalamata olives, pepperoni, and crusty bread. Scoop up some house-made tiramisu for the road. Giselle’s (1967 N. Halsted St., 312-266-7880) offers prepared wicker picnic baskets for those on the go. Pick from Niçoise, Tuscano, or Provençal varieties brimming with saucisson, quiche Lorraine or country paté. Or construct a meal with rotisserie-roasted chicken, French lentil salad with beets, goat cheese, and bacon or blueberry blossom tarts. —Jennifer Olvera
New York City to Get Gated Community
And now, the husband-and-wife artist team of Christo and Jeanne-Claude are ready to take Manhattan. Actually, make that gate Manhattan. For the last 25 years, the oversized installation art duo has been working up a plan to erect more than 7,500 saffron-colored gates in New York City’s Central Park (212-860-1370, www.centralpark.org) that, according to their Web site, "will seem like a golden river appearing and disappearing through the bare branches of the trees and will highlight the shape of the footpaths." The gates won’t go up until February 2005 but the park’s neighbor to the east, the Metropolitan Museum of Art (1000 Fifth Ave. at 82nd Street, 212-535-7710, www.metmuseum.org), is showing a preview exhibit of the installation, Christo and Jeanne-Claude: The Gates, Central Park, New York, through July 25. The exhibit walks visitors through the development process the pair went through in planning the gates. Included are drawings Christo first did in 1979, preparatory studies done over the last 20 years, and, components of one of the 16-foot-high saffron-colored gates. Seminars and films about The Gates, Central Park, New York City, 1979—2005, as well as the pair’s earlier works, will also be offered. Although the gates are certain to transform Central Park in wondrous ways, spring has a pretty good effect on the park, too. Pair a viewing of the exhibit with a visit to the park in its pre-Christo state. Consider a guided walking tour. Fifty-eight miles of trees and flower-lined pedestrian walkways await. —Jenna Schnuer
City Sights:
Sights. Bring your camera. The open-air market at its summer height of bounty is awash in blazing reds and greens-tomatoes, peppers, and dozens of different lettuces. Tastes. Plan on dining al fresco in Union Square Park, after putting together a meal. Check out Rock Hill Bakery for artisanal breads, Hawthorne Valley Farm for cheeses, Ronnybrook Farm Dairys for chocolate milk and yogurt, and the many fruit vendors for strawberries, cherries, tomatoes, melons, apples, and pears as the season progresses. Chilled teas, juices, and ciders abound, as well as bottled wines from some of New York State’s touted wineries. Hours. 8 am to 6 pm. Directions. Located in Manhattan’s popular Flatiron district, the Greenmarket is an easy subway ride on the 4, 5, 6, N, or R lines to the 14th Street-Union Square station, or a bus ride down Fifth Avenue on the 2, 3, or 5. —Coeli Carr
Make an appointment for the session (about an hour) at the booth, or by phone or online. Facilitators help with the technical aspects and with a list of interview questions. Cost is $10, and you walk away with a CD recording of the interview. A copy will be archived at the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress. But this is just the beginning: StoryBooths are opening across the country. Chicago is next. Stay tuned. —Judith Kirkwood
Through September, more than 130 5-foot heart-shaped sculptures, created by a variety of celebrities and artists including Mark Adams, Deborah Oropallo, and San Francisco Chronicle cartoonist Phil Frank, will be installed throughout the greater San Francisco Bay Area. The artists worked off three different templates, a three-dimensional standing heart, a half heart, and two interlocking hearts, which were designed by Michael Osborne, the prominent artist and designer of the 2002 LOVE postage stamp. The hearts, as would be expected, will punctuate some of the Bay Area’s most romantic spots, including Union Square, Yerba Buena Gardens, Telegraph Hill, Stern Grove, the Embarcadero, Twin Peaks, and Golden Gate Bridge’s Vista Point. But dozens of other sites throughout the city and Bay Area will beat faster, thanks to the works of art. Volunteers are serving as walking tour guides for visitors, and maps to the locations of the individual sculptures are available online (www.heartsinsf.org). If a heart becomes broken during the exhibit? Don’t worry. Local chocolate-maker See’s Candies will take the sculpture to a repair facility and get it back in action. And should you feel that you’ve left your heart in San Francisco with one of these whimsical wonders? Plan a return trip in November when 20 sculptures will be auctioned off. Organizers hope to raise more than $1 million in support of programs and services provided by the San Francisco General Hospital Medical Center, such as the Women’s Option Center and the Bay Area Perinatal AIDS Center. But plan ahead: These works of art will not fit in the overhead compartment. —ML The Japanese optical illusions known as "trick art" are at home in Las Vegas, a place that plays all sorts of games with the eyes. The Trick Art Museum (Stratosphere's Tower Shops, 702-471-1060) opened in January as the country's first and only such outlet. This isn't art you're likely to buy for the home: Most trick art makes the larger-than-life subjects (often animals) appear three-dimensional, as though they emerge from the walls. Visitors love to strike silly poses with the images for photos. —Megan Fernandez
—Apryl Chapman Thomas
City Sights:
Sights. Don your walking shoes. The market boasts close to 300 commercial tenants, including cafes, restaurants, fish mongers, butchers, and specialty food shops. During peak growing season, more than 100 farmers bring their produce to the main market arcade, where the crafts-people also have their booths. Tastes. Stroll and nosh is a good rule to follow. Or try some of the market’s on-site restaurants, like Maximilien (81A Pike St., 206-682-7270) for French cuisine and Pink Door (919 Post Alley, 206-443-3241) for Italian. Hours. Officially, 9 am to 6 pm and, on Sunday, 11 am to 5 pm. However, many cafes and eateries open earlier and stay open much later to serve evening diners. Many individual vendors also set up early. Directions. Pike Place Market is just a 15-minute walk from the city’s downtown, including most hotels, so visiting on foot is best. Head for the First and Pike entrance, under the public market center sign. —CC
Dining:
Though the plywood premises seem austere, purity is the real goal. Unlike plywood, purity does not come cheap, with checks ranging from $40 to $120 per person. The contract-grown northern California rice skips the threshing and milling processes producing polished and dried white rice. Instead, rice arrives in West L.A. still moist and surrounded by its outer hull or bran. Every day a new batch is hulled, even though fresh and moist means less shelf life. Instead of sugar, salt and vinegar dominate. Forget powdered wasabi, though they have it. The sushi man’s dream is grating the more expensive fresh wasabi (the Japanese version of horseradish) between the rice and raw fish. May is Mori’s fourth anniversary, proving that traditional is not passe in L.A. Open for lunch and dinner every day except Sundays. —Joel Grossman
The official unveiling of the National World War II Memorial (800-639-4992) will stretch over four event—filled days this Memorial Day weekend, with the centerpiece of the celebration being the National World War II Reunion. Part history lesson, part nostalgia, part party, the reunion is expected to attract more than 800,000 visitors to its series of themed pavilions on the National Mall to learn, reminisce, and honor a generation that fought against tyranny and won. The Wartime Stories and Veterans History Project tents will present discussions with veterans, speakers and exhibits that showcase first-hand accounts of those who served in uniform and on the home front. National Archive and Library of Congress experts will counsel veterans and their families on how best to preserve documents, medals, and memorabilia of the era, as well as personal histories. Big bands will perform at two pavilions and military artifacts and equipment will be displayed throughout the site. Organizers promise hands-on activities relating to the WWII period for "children of all ages." The memorial itself (located on the National Mall between the Lincoln and Washington monuments) combines granite and bronze with waterfalls, fountains, and the historic Rainbow Pool. A series of 24 bronze bas-relief panels along the ceremonial entrance depict America’s war years at home and overseas. Fifty-six granite pillars connected with a bronze sculpted rope represent the bonding of all the states and territories that fought in the war. And a field of 4,000 gold stars on the Freedom Wall represent the 400,000-plus Americans who gave their lives in battle. GOOD TO KNOW The National WWII Reunion takes place on the National Mall between 3rd and 7th streets May 27—30 from 11 am to 7 pm. The event is free and open to the public. Tickets are not required. (The formal dedication of the National World War II Memorial on May 29 does require tickets, but none are available.) The Mall is best reached by Metrorail (202-637-7000), as parking is limited. —PR
City Sights:
Sights. Brighten up your hotel room with one of the huge array of blooms—from cut flowers to the potted variety. Craftspeople also have booths: Check out local handmade candles, jewelry, and Dunlaoghaire aromatherapy soaps. Tastes. If the assortment of farm-raised produce doesn’t whet your appetite, visit one of the high-volume, hot-food vendors whose facilities dot the perimeters of the market. A sampling: roasted corn on the cob, bratwurst, and Vietnamese fare. Hours. 6 am to 1 pm. Directions. Grab a cab: It is about a 10— or 15-minute taxi ride to the site. Visitors who prefer to stay in the heart of the city can explore the Nicollet Mall Farmers Market between 5th and 10th Streets on Thursdays and Saturdays. —CC
—ML
Because man cannot live on cheese-steaks alone, chocolate is just the thing to satisfy the sweet tooth, and curiosity, of museum-goers. The exhibition is in addition to the museum’s four floors of permanent interactive exhibits and activities and runs through Sept. 6. Willard Whitson, the museum’s director of exhibits, says chocolate isn’t just a tasty treat. "The history and the culture of chocolate is educational as well as entertaining," Whitson says. The exhibit will encompass the history of the sweet treat, from the lush rainforests to ancient Maya (where chocolate was a bitter beverage), from the Aztecs (who used it as money) to Europe, where sugar (thankfully!) was added. From there, visitors can follow chocolate on its journey through the Industrial Revolution to today’s global marketplace. Along the way, visitors will have opportunities to see, hear, smell, touch and, of course, taste chocolate in its various incarnations, whilst sitting on chairs shaped as peanut butter cups. If that weren’t tempting enough, the museum will sponsor numerous tie-in events throughout the summer. Area chefs and confectioners will be on hand for cooking demonstrations, while experts will discuss the need to conserve the rainforest habitat. —Mary Lebeau
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Adrenaline will surge again this spring in Speedway, Indiana, when revving engines and screaming tires will hit the pavement with fervor matched only by the cheers of loyal racing fans.
On June 11, the Indianapolis Children’s Museum (3000 N. Meridian St., 317-334-3322, 
One long, sultry summer weekend of sound will lure throngs of jazz and music lovers to numerous stages in downtown Military Park and the IUPUI Library Lawn. The Sixth Annual Indy Jazz Fest (800-344-4639, 
The written word still reigns in this South Loop neighborhood.
Since the movement began here with the Compass Players (forerunner to The Second City) and Nichols & May in the 1950s, Chicago has been the capital of improvisational theater. Celebrating this title, the city now hosts the annual Chicago Improv Festival (773-935-9810, 
New Pritzker Military Library offers insight into battle and those who fight.
"The program’s scope is designed to bring military issues to the general public in a way they can understand and relate to," says Edward Tracy, executive director.
Brides bust out all over in June, and no one knows that more than Jane LeClair, the city’s premiere sugar artist. A former fashion designer, LeClair traded in cotton and silk for sugar and chocolates two years ago, and is now called on to create centerpieces and cakes for Chicago’s matrimonial elite. Between weddings and Mother’s Day, she doesn’t have much free time this time of year, but we asked LeClair, a south side native, where she’d go with an afternoon to herself. Bring your toothbrush—she has a sweet tooth.
Artistic Confections (112 E. Oak St., Third Floor, 312-286-3122). This is LeClair’s new Gold Coast Street parlor, open for tea parties, by appointment. If you aren’t fortunate enough to be invited to a wedding where one of her sugar sculptures is the star, book a Mother’s Day tea and tasting with massages and manicures available from the Marilyn Miglin’s Beauty Institute, located on the first floor.
In most cities, there is some annual event that marks the official beginning of summer. It’s the arrival of art fair season that convinces a lot of Chicagoans that it is again safe to don short sleeves and eat street food (preferably served on sticks).
The Old Town Art Fair (entry at Orleans and Wisconsin, 312-337-1938, 
Chicago’s neighborhoods have countless city-sponsored farmers’ markets, all with affordable, locally grown produce. But the real foodies—locals and visitors—head to Lincoln Park on Wednesdays from May 19 through October 27 for the city’s only sustainable green market.
Music veteran Gloria Shannon, 67, belts out hard-luck song after song in her gravelly voice, from a repertoire that covers everything from mojo malfunctions to failed relationships with her "Big Fat Daddy." Her band—a guitarist, bassist, and drummer—unleashes a flurry of riffs, rolls, and licks behind her.
After months of biting wind, boots-required attire, and indoor hibernation, locals will take any opportunity to get—and stay—outside. Visitors to the city can take advantage of the popular picnicking pastime, too.
They’ve wrapped the Reichstag. They’ve surrounded islands off Florida with hot pink material. They’ve decorated valleys in California and near Tokyo with 3,100 brilliant blue and golden yellow umbrellas.
Manhattan boasts dozens of farmers markets. The verdant jewel in the crown is the year-round Saturday Greenmarket Farmers Market at Union Square, a gathering of farmers, as well as food, meat, baked goods, and beverage producers.
Want to make sure Grandma’s coming-to-America story is preserved for your great-grandkids? Look for the soundproof StoryBooth at Grand Central Terminal (43rd St. and Lexington Ave. entrance between tracks 13 and 14, 212-941-8553, 
There were the cows in Zurich and Chicago, fish in New Orleans, and even Labrador retrievers in Sun Valley, Idaho. The latest in the trend toward free, themed public art sculptures snaking through a city is Hearts in San Francisco (415-651-1811).
Just an hour west of Lexington is Bardstown, better known as the "Bourbon Capital of the World." Once home to 22 operating distilleries, Bardstown is still the stop for folks who can’t get enough of the smooth stuff. The Oscar Getz Museum of Whiskey History (114 North 5th St., 502-348-2999) documents the drink’s past, including a display of an 1854 E.C. Booz bottle, the brand from which the word "booze"’ originated. Heaven Hill Distillery (1064 Loretto Rd., 502-348-3921, 
Located in the historic Pike Place district, this renowned city treasure is open 362 days a year. In operation since 1907, it wends its way through 22 buildings.
At the edge of a West L.A. retail thoroughfare and across the street from auto garages, a saloon, and self-storage rentals, Mori Sushi (11500 W. Pico Blvd., 310-479-3939) is minimalist from its plywood furnishings to its sushi rice. Chef/owner Morihiro Onodera, whose hobby is making pottery and flatware for the restaurant, aims to please his own traditional Japanese aesthetic and taste buds, eschewing the sweet sushi rice so popular with Americans. You either love it, like painter Edward Moses who left behind a few canvases on the walls, or go elsewhere.
Nearly 60 years after World War II ended, the United States will dedicate the first all-inclusive memorial to the 16 million people who served in the United States armed forces and the millions more who supported the war effort back home.
The Minneapolis Farmers Market (312 E. Lyndale Ave. North), Minnesota’s largest open-air, covered market, is located near Glenwood Avenue in the northern part of the city. It is open seven days a week from late April until Christmas Eve. But it is Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays when the place really comes to life.
For the 18th year, Maverick Stadium on the University of Texas at Arlington becomes home to the very best in Scottish entertainment and culture at the Texas Scottish Festival and Highland Games (
Hungry for a learning experience? Visitors to Philly can get a taste of the sweetest tour in the country beginning June 12, when "Chocolate," an exhibit devoted to our favorite indulgence, opens at the Academy of Natural Sciences Museum (900 Benjamin Franklin Pkwy., 215-299-1000).