One of my favorite things I did in Mexico City was see Luche Libre! Founded in 1933, this masked Mexican wrestling league is brimming with over-the-top theatrics and high-flying athletics. I’ve seen them once on tour many years ago and will check them out again whenever I can!
It’s early morning in Mexico City’s Plaza de la Republica! Los Bomberos (the firefighters) don’t have many fires to address with so much brick construction here, so they keep active with their morning drills in front of the Monumento a la Revolución. There’s also a fun group workout happening off to the side!
After yesterday’s Choose Chicago annual meeting concluded, there was a mashup of Chicago Blues and House Music in a gorgeous, architectural landmark! Can it get more Chicago than this???
The music was from Wayne Baker Brooks, Billy Branch, Chip E., and Lori Branch, and the architecture was from Dankmar Adler and Louis Sullivan. I will definitely remember this event!
@choosechicago
@waynebakerbrooks
@bbranch103
@iamchip_e_
@djloribranch
#chicagoblues #housemusic #blues #mashup #architecture #preservation #landmark #chicago #livemusic
Yesterday evening I went on a preview of the new Sunset Live Tour in collaboration with Big Bus Tours and The Chicago Tour Company! On this 90-minute highlights tour, you get spectacular views from the top of a double-decker bus as the sun sets. Our guide, Spiro, was a wonderful storyteller and really made it a fun experience. Get your tickets on the Big Bus Chicago webpage!
One of my favorite attractions at the Desert Botanical Garden is their wonderful Butterfly House. As part of this year’s “Majestic Mariposas” exhibition, we’ll see thousands of butterflies dancing about in the gorgeous landscaping.
See them with me during tomorrow’s (Monday’s) Desert Botanical Garden virtual tour. The interactive live-stream begins at 11:00 am CST (5:00 pm GMT), and the recording will be available to watch for the following 48 hours. Click the link in the bio for details.
See you soon! 🦋
#phoenix #arizona #desert #botanical #garden #virtualtour #livestream #butterfly #exhibit
The moon blocked approximately 94% of the sun today at 2:07 pm here in Chicago. This is what it was like outside of the Sears (Willis) Tower with the eclipse reflected off of it. 🌚🌝
#eclipse #chicago #searstower #willistower #skyscraper #reflection
Today would have been Cracker’s 16th birthday, but unfortunately he recently passed away on March 18. You may have seen this Cornish Rex who was filled with so much personality featured in prior Tours With Mike posts. Cracker was always near me when he was awake, especially when working at my desk, and he was my best buddy. His brother, Peeno, and I miss him a lot. 😿
☘️ Happy St. Patrick’s Day! ☘️
Ride elevated trains with me as I share some background on Chicago’s history of dyeing the river green for St. Patrick’s Day! The river will hopefully still be bright green tomorrow (Monday) when I give my live-streamed virtual tour along the Riverwalk. Click the link in the bio to register for free.
I hope to see you tomorrow! 💚
Flyover Chicago is the city’s newest attraction, I love it, and I’ve already been on it twice! Make sure you experience it next time you’re around Navy Pier.
@experienceflyover
@navypierchicago
#chicago #flyover #immersive #ride #attraction #chicagoboardoftrade #architecture #skyline #artdeco #whatsnew
Puerto Vallarta’s Malecón Boardwalk is a lovely stroll along the beach with lots of great public art and interesting sites. One of my favorite sculptures was the one opening this video, Jonás Gutiérrez’s obsidian and bronze “El Sutil Comepiedras” (The Subtle Stone-Eater). This video continues with a wonderful performance from Los Voladores de Papantla (The Papantla Flyers) and their ancient Mesoamerican ceremony/ritual involving them spinning around a pole upside-down on ropes while playing a flute and drums. I was so happy to get here when they were performing!
I’ve got lots more to show you all on Monday’s Puerto Vallarta Highlights live-streamed virtual tour. Click the link in the bio to learn more. 🇲🇽
#puertovallarta #mexico #publicart #sculpture #mesoamerica #performance #boardwalk #beach #virtualtour #livestream
Art on theMart is the world’s largest digital canvass, and it is currently featuring “Season of Light,” a collection of displays from emerging visual and audio artists from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago! This is a portion of ”Out of the Sea Came Eternity” by Yorgo Alexopoulos, an ethereal display linking together geometry and the natural landscape.
Tonight starting at 7:00 pm CST, I’ll be closing out my Christmas in Chicago virtual tour series with half focused on architecture beautifully lit up for the holidays and then show the first 30 minutes of the “Season of Light” projection. Register for free and then watch the interactive live-stream on Facebook Live. The recording will also be available on the Tours With Mike page for the following 48 hours. Click the link in the bio for details.
I hope you can join this virtual tour focused on skyscrapers beautifully lit up for the season!
@saicpics
@yorgo_alexopoulos
@themartchicago
@loopchicago
#christmas #chicago #holiday #lights #art #architecture #chicagoriver #virtualtour #livestream #facebook
Last Saturday I saw Honey Dijon DJ at Radius, a wonderful event venue that opened in 2020, and it was a phenomenal experience! The song in this video is called “C’s Up” and is Honey’s love letter to Chicago’s House Music scene she experienced while growing up here. This is the chorus laden with Chicago references:
“Let’s ride / Let’s ride down Lake Shore Drive / To the Muzik Box / And the Power Plant / ‘85”.
Honey is also a Grammy-nominated artist for her work producing Beyoncé’s “Renaissance” album. It’s fun showcasing Honey and House Music on my LGBTQ Stories tours, and I look forward to featuring them again on more experiences next year!
#honeydijon #dj #housemusic #radius #concert #beyonce #renaissance #lgbtq #lgbtq🌈 #tour
Making architecture, design, and history fun and interesting through special in-person and virtual experiences
