Period 4

9/15/15

As I enter the neighborhood of Hyde Park, I notice it begins on 47th Street. As I continue to make my way through, I come to the area called the Kenwood mansions. Here I notice it is very peaceful, and I can sense the community in this area immediately. There are very large homes so far in every direction I look. The people of Hyde Park are quick to say that Barack Obama lived in this area before leaving for D.C. Muhammad Ali used to live around here as well, and Louis Farrakhan still does. That immediately set a tone for what types of homes I would come across while in the Kenwood mansion area. As I walk from block to block, I quickly notice this neighborhood contains many African Americans of the professional class. The thing i observed most  about the past few blocks is that there seems to be a wide mix of architecture around—from very old, pretty homes, to very new, also pretty, looking homes. It seems as if each house was built from a different decade, and some go back to being built about 200 years ago whereas others were built this year.

Now making my way south, I am coming towards 53rd Street it seems. Here is a totally different vibe than the Kenwood mansion area. It seems much louder, more crowded, and there are many commercial stores located all over. I first see food places like Starbucks, Chipotle, Kilwins, Five Guys, Pizza Capri, Giordano's Pizza, A-10, Z Berry, Subway, Red Mango, Native Foods, Ja Grill, McDonald's, Porkchop and many more. There are young kids that seem to be walking in groups coming from school, but there are also some middle aged people walking around. Most people think of this commercial district area as the loudest, most vibrant and busiest area in Hyde Park. There are also stores like Akira, Ulta and Villa, which sell high-end clothes and cosmetics, which adds even more liveliness to the community.

Still heading south, I am now passing by the University of Chicago which is a huge university that is located between 57th Street and 60th Street. Not only is it a university, but there is also the University of Laboratory Schools (Lab School) that is a preschool through high school. The University of Chicago and the Lab School are separate things, but act as if they are one by using the large area, (about 5 blocks) for both places. I then quickly notice how the Lab school is not a very diverse place in terms of race, but it is said to be one of the top private schools in the country. Walking around the campus, I notice a newer looking building and soon discover it is the new elementary school. As I walk inside and examine the walls, it seems much more modern and new compared to the middle school and high school buildings. After examining the high school and noticing how small it was, I was then quick to see another new building connected to the High School. This building seemed to be new as well, and I later found out it was in fact new. The building is named after George Lucas, (creator of Star Wars) who gave lots of money to Lab School, so they then decided to name the new arts wing after him. Overall the University of Chicago and Laboratory School area are very gothic in terms of style and architecture. I say this because of how old the majority of the buildings are.

The last area of Hyde Park I am covering is all the areas towards the direction of the lake. The next big thing I see is the Museum of Science and Industry. This area seems to be a lot more open, and there are many families as well as university students on this street. From the view of the Museum, you can see many parks outside as well as the lake. Coming out of the Museum, still heading south, I hit the 57th Street Beach. Over here, it is also very lively during the summer time. On the beach there are all types of people from all different types of places. Continuing north, I hit an area called The Point. Here there are tons of rocks that are used as stepping stones to get into the lake. As I pass this very long wide area of just rocks surrounding the water, there are all different types of people over here as well. I immediately see a wedding going on, people having fun in the water and some people even barbequing on the nice sunny day. The feeling I am getting on The Point and at the beach is very comforting, and you can feel the sense of community/togetherness around you.

As I reach the end of Hyde Park, I realize how racially diverse it is as well as economically diverse. I encountered people from different countries, people who spoke different languages, and witnessed some very small apartment homes but also some very large homes. Hyde Park is special because the feeling you get when you are in it is a sense of community. It feels like a real neighborhood and its own place.