Financial District, Chicago

This center is all about money, but you can visit it for free :)

The Chicago Fed is one of 12 regional branches of the Federal Reserve System. You will find the visitor's centre on the first floor.

Through a series of videos, interactive games and more, the visitors' center describes what the Federal Reserve does, the history of money and banking in the United States, the evolution of money, and how the Fed adjusts interest rates to influence the economy.

You will have the chance to stand on top of a glassed-in pit of coins and see whether you can spot fake currency in the Counterfeit Quiz.

On the picture you see the Million-Dollar Cube - it weighs more than 2,000 pounds and represents $1 million in bills.

What I found amusing there was that the guide was a Polish woman who was a big fan of one of the Bulgarian sea resorsts - Zlatni piasatsi (Golden sands), she even said it in Bulgarian :)

Price:
Free of charge

Duration:
As much as you like :)

Opening hours:
Working days from 9.00 to 16:15 h.
During the summer, the center is open Saturdays 11am-5pm and Sundays 1pm-5pm.

The Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), was established in 1848. It is the world's oldest futures and options exchange. It merged with the CME under the CME Group holding company in 2007. The building was designed by architects Holabird & Root, It is 605 feet (184 m) tall. This Art Deco building incorporates sculptural work by Alvin Meyer and is capped by a 31 foot (9.5 m) tall statue of the Roman goddess Ceres in reference to the exchange's heritage as a commodity market. Ceres is faceless because its sculptor, John Storrs, believed that the forty-five story building would be sufficiently taller than any other nearby structure and as a result that no one would be able to see the sculpture's face anyway.

Additional information is available at their web-site or at Wikipedia

I love checking out building styles for their artistry and history. Chicago's Financial District has a lot to offer in this area. I had to get a close up look at The Chicago Public Librarry as the embellishments on the top corners of the structure are stunning. From afar they look like Dragons but they're really individual Copper leaf formations.

Didn't get a chance to go in but the building is a beauty to admire!

The building of Chicago Board of Trade was finished in 1930. It was creation of Holabird and Root. CBOT was designated a Chicago Landmark on 4 May 1977.

Going to the CBOT visiting centre is an interesting expirience. Especially if you work in the financial sector as I do. The observation deck that overlooks the trading floor is the main attraction.

Adjacent to the deck is a museum chronicling the Board of Trade's rich past.

Theere is quite nice gift shop there too.

I took this picture the night before my visit there.

Price:
Free

Duration:
It took me about ah hour.

Working hours:
When I was there the Visitors centre was closed to the public. Only organised groups were admited. The visit should be pre-arranged and you will be searched and asked for ID.

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The Loop was a few blocks from our hotel. We enjoyed catching a train, walking through the theatre district, financial district & exploring the inner city.

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I walked around the financial district on the 4th of July...It was like a ghost town. I'm sure it's not like this during the regular work week!

Towards the Chicago Board of Trade. This is the financial district in Chicago. You can't tour the exchange itself, but there is an interesting visitor's center.