Chicago

State: Illinois

Population: 3 million

The Windy City, as it's known, is situated on the southern tip of Lake Michigan. That's why, even though it's in the Mid-West, Chicago has beaches...24 kilometres of them, in fact. It also has some of the U.S.A's most spectacular skyscrapers, including the 100-storey Sear's Tower -America's tallest.

Originally built in the 1840s, Chicago was badly damaged by a huge fire in 1871. Then, during the first half of the 20th century, it developed a reputation as a violent city dominated by gangsters like Al Capone.

It's still a tough, exciting place today, but over the last 30 years it's also become one of the great centres of American culture. It has dozens of theatres, museums and concert halls, plus one of the world's top art collections (at the Art Institute of Chicago) and one of its finest orchestras (the Chicago Symphony Orchestra).

BOSTON

State: Massachusetts

Population: 600,000 (city centre) 4 million (city centre + surrounding area)

Boston is the centre of America's 'brains industry', with over 70 college or universities in the greater metropolitan area. It stands on the Charles River and is one of America's most historic urban centres with a 3-kilometre 'Freedom Trail' in the downtown area. This is a route marked by painted red lines connecting places which played an important part in the lives of the early settlers. For example? Well, there's...

(a) Faneuil Hall (pronounced 'Fannel') where politicians held meetings and made important speeches.

(b) the oldest house in America - the Paul Revere House™¹⁰.

(c) the Tea Party Ship. This is a reconstruction of the Beaver - one of three English ships attacked by American settlers in Boston Harbour just two years before the War of Independence.