Chicago Neighborhood Named One Of Coolest In World

CHICAGO, IL — A community on Chicago's Lower West Side has been named among the '12 coolest neighborhoods around the world' by Forbes. Contributor Ann Abel put together the guide to inspire people to explore outside of the most "tourist-trodden neighborhoods" into areas where "local life is really happening." Abel said she consulted with some of her favorite travel experts for the roundup.

Chicago's Pilsen neighborhood made the cut, thanks to its "hip" galleries, decades-old public murals and rich culture, Forbes said. Abel consulted with Melissa Biggs Bradley, founder of the travel website Indagare, who called Pilsen "a nest of cutting-edge culture and art.”

“It’s been fostered by successive waves of Eastern European and Mexican immigrants, in addition to local artists and students, who have molded this fascinating area over the past century and a half."

Biggs Bradley noted the National Museum of Mexican Art in Pilsen, with its 10,000-piece collection showcasing the work of Mexican and Mexican-American artists.

She also mentioned the neighborhood's "trendy" bars, art studios and a "growing number" of performance venues.

Up-and-coming neighborhoods were also named in Barcelona, Amsterdam, Cartagena, Johannesburg, Tbilisi, Panama City, Saigon, Athens, Seoul, Cape Town and Washington, D.C.

Image via Google Maps Streetview