This short guide is intended primarily for those who have limited
experience living in large US cities. Any participant not local to
Chicago may find some of the info useful, however. Some of what
follows represents my (Jared Wunsch) personal opinions, and is not
necessarily endorsed by my employer or coorganizers.

Safety:
Chicago, despite a tough reputation, is by and large a surprisingly
safe and pleasant city to explore as a visitor, and I encourage you
all to take advantage of what both Evanston and Chicago have to offer.

The parts of Evanston near Northwestern and the parts of Chicago that
you are likely to visit as a tourist are as safe as any large city in
the US or Europe, which is to say you’re unlikely to get into much
trouble as long as you avoid walking around by yourself late at night
(please don’t do this even in bucolic Evanston). The violent parts of
Chicago are mostly concentrated on the south and west sides of the
city, and you are unlikely to end up there by accident. The area
around the Chicago/Evanston border (e.g. near the Howard El stop) can
be a little bit sketchy late at night, and you should exercise some
caution there.

If you like (somewhat depressing) data, you can explore these issues in detail here:
https://www.chicagotribune.com/data/ct-shooting-victims-map-charts-htmlstory.html

At any event, I do by all means recommend exploring the downtown and
near north areas of Chicago: you can take the CTA (the “El”/subway) or
the Metra (commuter rail) to get there. Unless you’re experienced, I
suggest not riding the Red Line alone late at night, but it’s fine
during normal hours.

Health:
Healthcare in the US is excellent (for those with the means to
pay for it) but complex. This note assumes that you have some form of
health insurance that will at least cover emergency medical treatment
in the US: if this is not the case, you should remedy this
immediately, as a need for serious medical treatment could result in
crushing bills.

The main thing to know if you are accustomed to medical care under
single payer health-care systems is that emergency room treatment at a
hospital is for serious emergencies only. If you are indeed
undergoing life-threatening medical problems, you should certainly go
to the nearest hospital; in Evanston this would be North Shore
University Hospital at 2650 Ridge Ave. This is an excellent hospital
and they are required to treat you if you show up at their door; the
ER is open 24/7. But you should know that the bill for such treatment
can be high: the copayments alone, even if you have excellent
insurance, can easily be over $1000 if any kind of medical imaging or
procedure is involved.

A much better option for problems that are not acutely time sensitive
is to go to one of the many walk-in clinics that proliferate in the
US. Northwestern Medicine Immediate Care, at 1704 N. Maple Ave., for
instance, is open 8am-7:45pm every day, and can treat most routine
ailments (and refer you to more specialized care if it is necessary).