THIS WEEKEND IN CHICAGO – Celebrating Chicago’s Change of Season!

Yep, it’s here! The first day of autumn is this Saturday. Here’s how Chicagoans will be celebrating its change of season!!

The 8th annual BeerHoptacular takes place Saturday (3:00 p.m. VIP/4:00 p.m. General to 8:00 p.m.) at the awe-inspiring Vertiport Chicago (1339 S. Wood St.) on the Near West Side.  As craft beer fans come together to celebrate their love of American beer culture, this year’s festival has more beer, more attitude, and more . . . other stuff!  So, in addition to their 150+ craft beers, fans can enjoy some of Chicago’s favorite food trucks, the annual BeerHoptacular Competition sponsored by Pollyanna Brewing Co., a DJ, a beer bicycle, a live photo booth, and much more!!

Visit Navy Pier (600 E. Grand Ave.) in the Streeterville neighborhood on Sunday (1:00 p.m.-7:30 p.m.) for a cultural experience at the Chicago World Music Festival Meets World Dumpling Festival.  The Chicago World Music Festival concludes its citywide event here with performances by Jupiter and Okwess playing Congolese rhythms, Delgres from Guadeloupe combining Caribbean rhythms with the delta blues, and the Zhou Family Band from China playing traditional wind and percussion music.  The 2nd annual World Dumpling Fest features dumplings of the world from 10 neighborhood ethnic restaurants, along with cultural artists and family activities!!  These global sounds and flavors will take place at the Polk Bros. Performance Lawns.

You know it’s autumn when huge pretzels are here and big steins of beer are flowing again!  So, put on your lederhosen, lace up your dirndl, and dust off your stein to fill it with the best Oktoberfest Märzen this side of the Atlantic at Burnt City Brewing’s Oktoberfest 2018 on Saturday (12:00 p.m.-11:00 p.m.) in the Lincoln Park neighborhood (2747 N. Lincoln Ave.).  They’ll also be serving up plenty of sausage, schnitzel, and sauerkraut to go with your beer stein!!

Bring the kids to the great outdoors of Lincoln Park Zoo (2200 N. Cannon Dr.) in the Lincoln Park neighborhood on Saturday (10:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.) for Fiesta Familiar.  This event brings the very best family entertainment with hands-on activities including coloring, crafts, dance lessons, Lucha Libre (Mexican wrestling), face painting, and much more!  And, you’ll get to celebrate our change of season with the animals!!

Sunday brings us the annual AIDS Run & Walk Chicago to Soldier Field (1410 Museum Campus Dr.) in the South Loop.  This event attracts over 2,500 participants annually and is one of the most visible, recognizable, and longstanding events in the Chicagoland area.  Opening ceremonies begin at 10:25 a.m. and the 5K & 10K runs begin at 10:35 a.m.  The walk begins at 10:50 a.m. and the MillerCoors’ Beer Garden opens at 11:30 a.m.  Finally, the closing ceremonies are at 12:00 p.m. with awards for top runners!  This run is an inspiring demonstration of compassion and action, so come join us!!

As all baseball fans know around here, autumn means we’re nearing the end of another baseball season and heading into the playoffs.  So, come out and support your team this weekend as the Chicago White Sox host the Chicago Cubs at Guaranteed Rate Field (333 W. 35th St.) in the Bridgeport neighborhood!!

Yep – Autumn is Here!!