# Making a road trip to Chicago to see a Cubs game. What should I know? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 23, 2013, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-a-road-trip-to-chicago-to-see-a-cubs-game-what-should-i-know/656451 "2013-04-23T00:39:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![crucible](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/5f8ce5/32.png) [@crucible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crucible)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2013, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-a-road-trip-to-chicago-to-see-a-cubs-game-what-should-i-know/656451/21 "2013-04-25T19:54:49Z")
> [@Cheryl44](#): > > Don’t listen to the suburbanite. Yes, there are parts of the city you shouldn’t go into alone or on foot. They’re not all on the South Side. > > Put your wallet in a front pants pocket, pay attention to your surroundings and you should be fine. > > Big caveat though–if someone is in front of you boarding a train and stops right before they enter, either turn and walk away or knock them down. There’s going to be someone right behind you putting their hand in your pocket as you stop to not run over this person. The violence and muggings information is from a relative who works in the city. the aquarium rip off is mine alone. Unbelievable rip off for so little actual value. Parking around $40, admission after standing in line for an hour…another $80 for two people. Then they charge you admission to go to the ponies? don’t they make enough on the bets? I hit a 60-1 longshot by accident though and made up for almost every other ripoff. you described exactly what happened to my relative boarding the train after a Cubs game. As he went through the turnstile, he realized the man in front had delayed him only so the man behind could grab his wallet and run with it. ---
**Author:** ![Cheryl44](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@Cheryl44](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheryl44)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2013, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-a-road-trip-to-chicago-to-see-a-cubs-game-what-should-i-know/656451/22 "2013-04-25T20:25:57Z")
I love the Shedd, but residents of the city pay discounted admissions for museums that are on park district property. I don’t look at the fish much–it’s just a great building. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2013, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-a-road-trip-to-chicago-to-see-a-cubs-game-what-should-i-know/656451/23 "2013-04-26T18:03:08Z")
> [@crucible](#): > > the aquarium rip off is mine alone. Unbelievable rip off for so little actual value. Parking around $40, admission after standing in line for an hour…another $80 for two people. Then they charge you admission to go to the ponies? don’t they make enough on the bets? I hit a 60-1 longshot by accident though and made up for almost every other ripoff. Ponies? Bets? I don’t remember much horse racing at the Shedd, but it’s been awhile since I’ve been. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2013, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-a-road-trip-to-chicago-to-see-a-cubs-game-what-should-i-know/656451/24 "2013-04-26T19:11:09Z")
> [@epbrown01](#): > > Really? Despite living close to the park I’ve never gone to a game, but friends that have consistently report most attendees don’t even watch the games. Tough to imagine people would care that much what you’re wearing… Those aren’t mutually exclusive. Baseball attendees who have no appreciation for the game can also be the most vocal/obnoxious. Are the White Sox in town while you’re here? That’s a cheap ticket for a better team. The stadium isn’t as storied, but it’s perfectly comfortable and reachable by the red line. What kind of food do you like? Chicago has nearly everything. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2013, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-a-road-trip-to-chicago-to-see-a-cubs-game-what-should-i-know/656451/25 "2013-04-26T22:23:35Z")
> [@](#): > > Making a road trip to Chicago to see a Cubs game. What should I know? If the Cubs have _any chance whatsoever_ of winning the Series, they will lose. DAMN THE GOAT! ---
**Author:** ![rogerbox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/76d3ee/32.png) [@rogerbox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rogerbox)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2013, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-a-road-trip-to-chicago-to-see-a-cubs-game-what-should-i-know/656451/26 "2013-04-26T23:48:46Z")
The area around U.S. Cellular field is absolutely horrible (I would know, I’m from there) but is very close to the Redline. Before and after the games it’s pretty safe to go home in the crowd of other people heading back up north on the train, but you do NOT want to be hanging out there late and miss the safety of the herd, trust me. ---
**Author:** ![SSG\_Schwartz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@SSG\_Schwartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SSG_Schwartz)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2013, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-a-road-trip-to-chicago-to-see-a-cubs-game-what-should-i-know/656451/27 "2013-04-27T02:30:21Z")
> [@jnglmassiv](#): > > You can bring [food and sealed soft drinks](http://chicago.cubs.mlb.com/chc/ticketing/groups.jsp?loc=faqs) into the park. If you know you will want peanuts and water, bring them in, even if you buy them right across/on the street. Make your rowmates jealous with your awesome carryout from a local restaurant. Bring napkins! > > If you go for a hot dog at the park, I recommend walking to the concessions level and finding one of the dog booths with grilling onions. They have DIY condiments, too. Thanks, Mrs. Schwartz always has to have water with her and a $7 bottle of water seems extreme here in KC. I will remember to bring sandwiches and keep my wallet in a front pocket. Thanks, SFC Schwartz ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2013, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-a-road-trip-to-chicago-to-see-a-cubs-game-what-should-i-know/656451/28 "2013-04-27T06:06:27Z")
> [@rogerbox](#): > > The area around U.S. Cellular field is absolutely horrible (I would know, I’m from there) but is very close to the Redline. Before and after the games it’s pretty safe to go home in the crowd of other people heading back up north on the train, but you do NOT want to be hanging out there late and miss the safety of the herd, trust me. I think that’s a bit overstated. I work at IIT, right across the expressway from Comiskey, and often walk around the campus at night. It’s a lot safer now that Stateway Gardens have been razed. I would have agreed with you fifteen years ago, but not now. ---
**Author:** ![rogerbox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/76d3ee/32.png) [@rogerbox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rogerbox)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2013, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-a-road-trip-to-chicago-to-see-a-cubs-game-what-should-i-know/656451/29 "2013-04-27T06:11:36Z")
To be quite honest I forgot to mention that I haven’t been home since 2005, but my grandmother says it’s only gotten worse, but we lived on the other side of the Dan Ryan so I was just generalizing. Shouldn’t have done that. What I said about the herd is true, though… (Also I still call it Comiskey and refuse to call it “U.S. Cellular”, but we’re talking about out-of-towners. 😉 ) ---
**Author:** ![crucible](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/5f8ce5/32.png) [@crucible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crucible)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2013, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-a-road-trip-to-chicago-to-see-a-cubs-game-what-should-i-know/656451/30 "2013-04-27T14:14:38Z")
50 years ago, my young wife and I attended a Sox double header against the KC Athletics, a gaudy, fast young team. I happened to have a Chevy (55) that didn’t require a key to operate it. It took a key to lock it, but, in my youthful stupidity, I forgot to take the key with me. A young man was standing nearby as I parked the car, and I told him, “Please watch this car for me, I’ll pay you $2 when we come out”. Of course, it was gone, and not recovered for a week. Police found 12 young men who, during the week, took rides in the car and managed to drive the 54" wide auto between two 52" steel posts. Oddly, when the car was recovered, the cheap tape recorder I had hidden under the seat was no longer there. Imagine! Within a day, though, police called to tell me that a 12 or 13 year old had turned the recorder in at a local station. The tape was full of a young man singing pop songs, and maybe some of his own device. He was very, very good. All of the boys were released to their parent’s custody. I’m sure they all became sterling citizens, perhaps even politicians and preachers. But, I will say, I never felt, at that time, any sense of insecurity or personal danger. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/making-a-road-trip-to-chicago-to-see-a-cubs-game-what-should-i-know/656451.md?page=1)