I’m Annoying Chicago Girl.

And I’m not the only one–there are hundreds of us, walking around with that know-it-all smirk on our faces. We grew up here, and our families still live in the area, which of course makes us all-knowing about this great city of ours. We’ve been riding the El since birth, we boast. Need directions to a mall? Any mall? We’re glad to show off. Er, help.

But a few weeks ago, I became Sheepish Chicago Girl.

The conversation with my roommate began typically enough. I was complaining about my daily ride to work on the El–“Would it be so difficult for them to let me park my car there?” I griped–when she piped up.

“Freshman year I used to ride the El by myself around the city,” said my roommate, a Houston native. She would make a day of her trips downtown; she walked around without knowing where she’d end up.

For once Annoying Chicago Girl had nothing to say. I’d never ridden the El for fun, I had to admit. I used to it to go to work, and on those rare instances where I knew parking would be unavailable. I realized that, for the most part, I don’t treat the El as a 24-hour resource, that serves the needs of the nation’s third-largest city. At best, I treat it like an occasional convenience — one I never really considered that convenient.

It turns out I’m not alone in doing so.

An informal survey of Northwestern students reveals an apathetic attitude toward the El — like I did, you find it, well, just there.

“I don’t go on the El much because I don’t have a reason to go,” said Taylor Raack, a Weinberg junior. “I might go in for special events.”

But as my roommate can attest, you don’t need a reason to ride the El. The city is out there, and there are five branches of the train, waiting for you to explore.

Just in putting together this 16-page guide, we found a myriad of places to wander. There are the traditional venues to haunt when your favorite band comes to town (Page 13) and the stops to make on your way home via Midway Airport (Page 14).

But don’t just take our word for it. Read this guide, then be your own. Before you leave this city, discover a place you can’t find anywhere else.

Annoying Chicago Girl’s orders.