The Chicago Traveler

• The annual German festival Mayfest is stuffed with plenty of brats, beer, and bands. The official opening ceremony on Friday features a traditional keg tapping and May Queen crowning. Prost! (May 29-June 1)
• The 24th Annual Chicago Gospel Music Festival is three days of more than 50 performances on three stages in Millennium Park. (May 30-June 1)
• Foodies can sample dishes from more than 50 chefs from local restaurants at the 16th Annual Great Chefs Tasting Party at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel & Towers, hosted by the United Cerebral Palsy Association of Greater Chicago. Participating restaurants include David Burke’s …read more

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Gas prices are getting ridiculous, and they’re affecting everything from airplane tickets to the cost of food. Fortunately, Chicago has plenty of attractions you can enjoy for little to no money. Just a walk down Michigan Avenue can be a tourist’s delight.
This week, the b5media Travel & Culture Channel is celebrating a Theme Day, featuring the photogenic side of our blogs. With that in mind, I present a few fantastic photos of eight great places you can visit for free here in the Windy City.
8. Lincoln Park Zoo
7. Millennium Park
6. Tribune Tower
5. Oak Street Beach
4. Grant Park
3. Buckingham Fountain
2. Chicago …read more

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This season of the Bravo network’s Top Chef was filmed here in Chicago, exposing competing chefs from all over the country to all the culinary treats the Windy City has to offer.
This week’s Quickfire challenge required each of the chefs to create a dish using no more than five ingredients (excluding salt, pepper, sugar, and oil), either from the Top Chef pantry or purchased at Chicago’s Green City Market.
The Green City Market is a farmers’ market held outdoors from May through October on Saturdays and Wednesdays. It’s great for top chefs along with amateur dabblers, featuring a multitude of products …read more

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Founded in 1868, Lincoln Park Zoo is among the oldest zoos in the country, providing entertainment and education for free to visitors of all ages. The winding paths in this 35-acre attraction lead to a multitude of indoor and outdoor exhibits, all located just off Lake Michigan. Open year-round, the zoo is also dotted with numerous shops and restaurants, so there’s always somewhere heated or air-conditioned to step into.
Now, aside from the penguins, vultures, giraffes, polar bears, monkeys, lions, seals, bears, snakes, swans, flamingos, antelope, eagles, rhinos, brown bears, tigers, otters, bats, ducks, geese, zebras, owls, ostriches, wolves, tamarins, takin… …read more

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