Weekends at UIUC - The School of Molecular and Cellular Biology

Weekends
at UIUC
The University of Illinois campus is located
between the two adjoined communities of
Urbana and Champaign. Urbana-Champaign
offers residents and visitors a broad palette of
cultural opportunities combined with the ease
of small-town life. Manageable traffic, safe bicycling, and walking-length distances combine with a low cost of living and minimal
crime to make a highly livable experience.
The Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District
offers numerous convenient bus lines—free
to students—serving campus and the twin
cities. Five community and university radio
stations offer a consistently fresh experience
scanning the FM dial. Trees and parks proliferate. The University offers innumerable
programs and groups serving international
students and many specific ethnic backgrounds. Champaign-Urbana has a thriving
international community, on campus and off,
with a wealth of ethnic groceries and restaurants. And there are many opportunities to
enjoy culture, entertainment, Big 10 sporting
events, and the nightlife.
URBANA Quaint downtown
Urbana is a hub of community life. The area is
home to the twin cities’ best used bookstore
Priceless Books, the renowned Urbana Free
Library, the Common Ground Food Co-op,
the Independent Media Center, the Farmer’s
Market, the Station Theater, two supermarkets, a fitness center, and a variety of pubs
and restaurants. Many renters choose this
side of town for its convenient access to grocery stores, as well as the pleasant walk to
campus along quiet, tree-lined streets.
CAMPUS The campus area is
dense with taverns and a wide variety of restaurants. The Illini Union Bookstore, in addition to textbooks, has an excellent selection
of general books, school supplies, and other
merchandise. That’s Rentertainment, an independent video rental store, stocks a thorough selection of mainstream, independent,
and foreign films. The Krannert Art Museum
and the Krannert Center for the Performing
Arts offer year-round exhibitions and performances for patrons of the arts. In addition to
the campus recreation centers (with tennis,
basketball, and racquetball courts, weight
lifting, cardio machines, and swimming
pools), the campus also has an ice skating
rink. The Illini Student Union hosts a bowling alley, a pool hall, and video games. For
those who enjoy the outdoors, there are
botanical gardens, the expanses of Orchard
Downs, and the spectacular Allerton Park to
explore.
CHAMPAIGN
The sprawling city
of Champaign is on the rise. Its cosmopolitan
downtown has an array of chic clubs and
restaurants, as well as an eclectic shopping district with book and record shops,
boutiques, and vintage stores. Downtown
Champaign, by virtue of its many venues,
is the center of the local music scene and
home to its largest music stores. Yearly the
city features festivals in West Side Park,
street fairs, and events showcasing local
artists. It is in this neighborhood where the
most distinguished nightlife is to be found.
In north Champaign (accessible by car or
bus) there is a dense shopping district surrounding Market Place Mall, with larger chain
stores of all kinds.
LIVE MUSIC Multiple venues
support a thriving local music scene and
provide regular stops on the tour schedules
of many musical acts. Clubs such as Champaign’s Cowboy Monkey and Highdive,
Urbana’s Canopy Club, or the University’s
Foellinger Auditorium and Assembly Hall
have hosted innumerable national and international musicians. Champaign-Urbana
also has its share of acts (birthplace of
Hum, Poster Children, Alison Krauss and
REO Speedwagon, among others). Aspiring
musical artists and their enthusiasts will find
themselves in their element.
THEATER Performances of
plays ranging from traditional to avant-garde,
from canonical to local, can be enjoyed here.
Performance spaces include the University’s
Krannert Center for the Performing Arts, the
student-run Armory Free Theater, Urbana’s
Station Theater, or Champaign’s Parkland
College Theater. All of these venues offer
productions year-round, including classic
plays as well as first-run productions.
FILM Multiplex theaters
and small art house theaters, as well as many
on-campus screenings, offer films for every
taste. Cinephiles will especially appreciate
the independent theater houses: Boardman’s
Art Theater—featuring first-run foreign and
independent films—and the grand Virginia
Theater, which offers limited screenings of
classic and contemporary films, as well as
being home to Roger Ebert’s Annual Film
Festival. The Canopy Club offers “brew and
view” nights where classic movies can be
enjoyed with beer and pizza. The university
often hosts screenings of art films, documentaries, and films of special interest.
OTHER CITIES
On the other side
of the prairies surrounding the twin cities
can be found some of the most cosmopolitan
metropolises in the midwest. ChampaignUrbana is conveniently situated less than
three hours from Chicago, Indianapolis, and
St. Louis. Cities such as Iowa City, Madison,
Cincinnati, Minneapolis, Memphis, Nashville,
and even New Orleans are also less than a
day’s drive away. Many of these destinations
are served by the Amtrak’s famous City of
New Orleans line, which stops in downtown
Champaign on its way between Chicago and
New Orleans. Willard airport is a convenient
option for those wishing to travel longer
distances.
Produced by William Gillespie,
School of Molecular and Cellular
Biology Communications Office,
University of Illinois,
Urbana-Champaign