The Windy City is mighty pretty

The convention centre at McCormick Place, Chicago If you're an ophthalmologist travelling to international conferences, you'll know all about Chicago. The convention centre at McCormick Place is hosting the 2016 American Academy of Ophthalmology meeting from October 15 – 18. The centre is comprised of four state-of-the-art buildings with  11 exhibition halls providing a combined total of 2.6 million square feet of exhibit space and  attractsclose to three million visitors annually. Of course, the centre isn't just for eye doctors, although over the years it has become a regular host to AAO and ASCRS conferences. When the AAO moves out of the centre on October 18th, work will begin on getting the centre ready for  the American Society of Anesthesiologists annual meeting which takes place from Saturday October 22nd to  Wednesday October 26th. As my colleague Leigh Spielberg once observed, a large conference centre is like the Olympic Village that’s always built in the Olympics’ host city. with  a collection of like-minded individuals  separated from the rest of the population, separated from friends and family, and the rest of the world. What makes McCormick Place special is that its on the doorstep of downtown Chicago. Even the best convention centres can become claustrophobic so its a big relief at the end of the day to walk out the doors and rejoin the real world. And Chicago is as real as it gets. As Doris Day observed in that wonderful musical Calamity Jane, the windy city is mighty pretty, with its towering skyscrapers and wonderful bars, restaurants , shops, museums and art galleries. The ESCRS/EuroTimes team flys into Chicago on Thursday and once we arrive we'll keep you posted on everything, or almost everything, that moves inside and outside McCormick Place. So let's get in the mood by listening to another great song about Chicago, "My Kind of Town". And each time I leave, Chicago is Tuggin' my sleeve, Chicago is The Wrigley building, Chicago is The union stockyard, Chicago is One town that won't let you down It's my kind of town Songwriters: CAHN, SAMMY/VAN HEUSEN, JAMES

Tags: AAO, ASCRS, Calamity Jane, Doris Day, ASCRS 2016