Downtown Chicago has many places and events you can go to — to create great holiday memories with family and friends. 

 According to “Holidays in Chicago: Top things to do and see” from https://www.choosechicago.com/articles/holidays/top-chicago-winter-holiday-traditions/ it says, “You can admire twinkling light displays in a historic zoo, lace up your ice skates and glide around beneath The Bean, catch a holiday show in a stunning downtown theatre, or sip hot cocoa while strolling our charming snow-dusted streets.” Until now, mostly everyone likes to celebrate the upcoming holiday (Christmas) and get in the Christmas spirit by walking in the snow, going skating and engaging in other fun activities that you can do in the wintertime. Interestingly, enough, while ice skating and having fun with your friends or family, you can also have a workout in it as well. “Even if you aren’t adopting ice skating as your winter fitness routine, a trip to the rink with your family is a wonderful way to get outside and exercise while also having fun,” it said in the Choose Chicago article. In a random survey of 100 people, 72.2% plan to visit the big Christmas tree in downtown Chicago, 66.7% plan to visit plan to visit the zoo lights (at Lincoln Park or Brookfield Zoo). 

“We would go every year to midnight mass and go to church and go downtown when we were younger, but this year since we are older it’s harder. We usually go to mad Daley Park ice skating, it is cool. Once my daughter is older, I will take her, I do remember ice skating next to the bean,” said english teacher Mr. Brown. 

Brookfield has Zoo-goers that can stroll along the many pathways lit with more than one million twinkling LED lights, including the 600-foot-long Tunnel of Lights with thousands of colored lights all synchronized to music.  

“I think I have been to the zoo lights once before, but I don’t go normally. I have seen the tree downtown in the past, but I won’t go this year. I make Christmas cookies with my family, and we gather for Christmas parties! We try to make cookies every year and decorate the house! I have been in the spirit all month long,” said math teacher Ms. Dorta. 

Many Morton East Teachers and Students plan to visit downtown for the holidays or spend time with their families for the holidays.  

“I plan to watch Christmas movies with my family,” said Morton East junior Aliah Robles. 

“I plan on having a movie night with hot chocolate and bake cookies this Christmas,” said Morton East senior Melanie Carrera. 

Some Morton students and teachers don’t plan on visiting Chicago and will be with family instead. 

“For the most part, I spend time with my family eating meals, watching movies, and just hanging out at each other’s house. The closest thing to a tradition in my family is probably going to Brookfield Zoo for the Zoo Lights festival. We don’t do that every year but have gone many times over the years. It’s been many years since I went downtown for the Christmas tree or ice skating, but I have fond memories of ice-skating downtown when I was younger,” said sociology teacher Mr. Doogan 

“I plan on spending time working and with my family,” said Morton East senior Leonardo Andrade.