Initially we keep walking. "We're happy to share one, ma'am, " he calls politely and jokingly after us. Even among the disadvantaged, courtesy is paramount in the Windy City.

It takes a couple of days to acclimatise, mind. From the in-your-face helpfulness of shop assistants to the elderly museum volunteers rushing to assist the minute you pause or even look slightly at sea, this is a city where the visitor is king. And, whether the attitude is genuine or simply a sales pitch, it certainly beats what we're used to back home.

We have never been to Chicago before ("a shinier version of New York", the husband dubs it on day two) and have opted to visit in early January. Sheer madness, weather-wise.

When I email an old friend who moved there a decade ago to tell her we are coming, her response is that we are "brave souls" venturing there post-Christmas. As it happens, the expected sub-zero temperatures never arrive and, although it is on the minus scale first thing every morning, the gauge quickly climbs so that, on our last day, it is brilliant sunshine and 10 degrees, making my full-length, furry coat look somewhat ridiculous. Spot the tourist and all thatf But we love this city. In fact I love it so much that after just one day I even stop 'looking for Luca' as we've christened my quest to spot the delectable Dr Kovac from ER, which is filmed in Chicago.

On our first morning we head straight to Lake Michigan, the vast watermass that's right in the city centre. It is only a two-minute walk from Michigan Avenue, the city's main downtown artery, part of which is known as the Magnificent Mile, boasting some of the best shopping in the whole of the US. Meanwhile down on the waterfront at not quite 10am, Navy Pier, one of the city's big attractions . . . souvenir shops, fun fair, IMAX theatre and the like . . . isn't open yet so we walk along the shoreline, marvelling at the sheer scale of the ocean-like lake and take in the skyscraper view of the city from the water's edge. It's simply stunning, one building shinier and more beautiful than the next, each reaching higher and higher as if striving towards some architectural heaven.

We've decided to 'do' the main sights on our first day and so we leave the lake behind and walk, by a different route, back to Michigan Avenue and dive straight into the John Hancock Centre, taking the lift to the observatory deck on the 94th floor. Our ears pop and we feel the lift judder as we pass floor number 80.

It's a Monday and it's January, so we have the place to ourselves. And nothing prepares you for those jaw-dropping views . . . glass windows all around and a vista that takes in not just the city, the lake and all the skyscrapers, but stretches for some 80 miles and affords a glimpse of four different states. And, by the way, forget Sears Tower, the city's tallest building . . . the Hancock wins hands-down in terms of 'wow' factor because of its location and the perspective it offers.

The thing about this city is that it is so manageable on foot. The Hancock is beside the chic Water Tower Place shopping centre and across the road from Border's bookshop. The night we encounter our polite coffee-seekers we're strolling the 15 minutes back to our hotel from one of Chicago's best jazz clubs. You end up using 'The El', the local elevated train system, because you want to, not because you have to.

The shopping is legendary in Chicago and the Magnificent Mile a credit-card magnet.

While most people from Ireland head to New York for retail therapy, Chicago is an attractive alternative with the main stores all close together and even the city's designer street . . .

Oak Street (a Hermes dog collar for your pooch, anyone? ) . . . just off Michigan. As one female marketing guru comments . . . "forget New York, guys. . . just stay on the damned plane another hour!" And the beauty of the shopping is that it is mixed . . . the trendy Apple store with its Genius Bar beside Gap and across the Avenue from a huge shopping mall; Saks Fifth Avenue beside Banana Republic.

And, in the Water Tower Place, there's the uber-trendy teenage mecca, Abercrombie & Fitch, a place that I become very familiar with as I visit every day, complete with list from teenage son back home. I'm so familiar, in fact, that the assistants greet me every time with a "and how are we doing today, ma'am?"

If truth be told we are doing very well, thank you very much, for this is unquestionably a fabulous city. And it's not just the views, the shopping and the people. The art is outstanding, as we discover from a visit to the Art Institute one day (decide what to see before you go or you'll miss the plane home), followed by the Museum of Contemporary Art the next.

Again, we walk. On Art Institute day we cross the Chicago River, a biting cold wind taking us out of the Near North district and into the Loop to a more downmarket shopping district that quickly becomes 'suit' territory as the business sector takes over. Past the Aon building we detour into Millennium Park, a lovely public space that is host to free summer concerts and we ooh and aaah at the modern sculpture and at Frank Gehry's stunning music pavilion.

And music, of course, is at the heart of Chicago for this is a blues and jazz city. So, after a delicious meal one night in Shaw's Oyster Bar we head next door to Andy's Jazz Club, intending to stay an hour or so but are so captivated by the Mike Smith Quintet that we settle in for three hours plus. We later learn that the eponymous Mr Smith was once a stalwart in Frank Sinatra's band. No wonder the Andy's experience is one of the highlights of our visit.

And the other highlight?

On our final night we're walking back to our hotel when, on a whim, we head into the John Hancock Centre and take the lift, not to the 94th floor observation deck, but two floors higher to the bar that's attached to the Signature restaurant. It's jammed but, as luck would have it, a couple vacate a table at the window and we sit down. Far, far below us, the city is spread out like a blanket of stars, the lights of the skyscrapers vying for attention and the array of light stretching to oblivion. We are speechless. It's simply magical.

THE FACTS

Getting there Aer Lingus (www. aerlingus. com) have a daily service to Chicago from Shannon via Dublin.

Flight timings are ideal . . . you arrive in Chicago at just before 5pm and depart for home at 7pm, leaving you free to shop till you drop on the final day!

Staying there Fitzpatrick's Chicago Hotel is perfectly located on East Superior Street just off North Michigan Avenue. It's a comfortable, suitesstyle hotel with a welcoming bar, great breakfasts and a rooftop swimming pool. The John Hancock Centre is around the corner and the lake itself is at the other end of the street. Check out www. fitzpatrickhotels. com for current offers.

DON'T MISS
>> The Hancock 94th floor Observatory (daytime, 10 entry) and the 96th floor bar (after dark, free entry) 875 North Michigan Avenue
>> Andy's Jazz Club, 11 East Hubbard Street (001 312 642 6805 for programme details)
>> The Millennium Park, Michigan Avenue/Columbus Drive
>> Jake Melnick's Corner Tap, East Superior Street (for an experience right out of Cheers)