Where do all the hippy-types live in Chicago?

Hello-
I live in St. Louis right now, but I'll be moving to Chicago hopefully at the end of this summer. I still don't know where in the city I want to live, and I want to end up somewhere that attracts like-minded people. Is there any one neighborhood that is especially populated by "hippies" or especially earthy, liberal types? Also, where are the best vegan restaurants/no-kill animal shelters/head shops located, and are there any other spots that I should check out? I'm gonna be visiting sometime in the next few weeks and I want to know where all the important stuff is before I get there. Thanks!

The N. Side is where you want to be. Along the lakefront is so cool if you can afford it. Try the Chicago Diner for killer vegan food. It is right in the middle of "boystown". Almost all of the great clubs and music places are accessible from either the Lakeview or Bucktown neighborhoods. Yell at me if you need advice, a tour guide, burns, etc Enjoy Chicago !! Peace, Bob

stores: The Alley, Secrets...on Belmont and Clark
for inscense, candles, bongs, leather panties, posters, random stuff

the alley is soooo expensive...
pipesandstuff.com is alright.. i believe it's on clark..
there's also a hippie type shop called somethin amigos.. unsure of the whole name.
generally the whole belmont/clark area is overpriced and filled with rich hipster kids. i don't go over there anymore, unless i want really good thai food.
wicker park i hear is a cool area but also filled with hipsters.
the northside is where it's at.
i would tell ya about the cool bars but you're only 18 so ya can't get in :/ too bad.

Originally Posted by beatlerific

the alley is soooo expensive...
pipesandstuff.com is alright.. i believe it's on clark..
there's also a hippie type shop called somethin amigos.. unsure of the whole name.
generally the whole belmont/clark area is overpriced and filled with rich hipster kids. i don't go over there anymore, unless i want really good thai food.
wicker park i hear is a cool area but also filled with hipsters.
the northside is where it's at.
i would tell ya about the cool bars but you're only 18 so ya can't get in :/ too bad.

All the stores there are part of the Alley..and it's very expensive for clothes n stuff...but for pipes not too bad..you can get good discounts if they like you
If you've never been to Chicago, it's still worth checking it out...

well, i'm not really a fan of the alley though. it's more of a place for metalheads...
and their piercings are EXPENSIVE as hell! yeah, that area is worth checking out.. but not worth spendin well earned money there!

There's a place in Dundee (I think), it's called Igor's

It's a good place to buy your stuff and the prices are not outrageous at all.

- Woodstuck

I don't want to start a flame war, but I would have to disagree with people about hippies being on the north side. In my opinion, there isn't a 'set' area where there's a lot of hippies. What I mean by that is that I can't think of anyplaces that are like telegraph ave. in san francisco.

In my opinion, the north side is mostly (MOSTLY) filled with rich and stuck up people....and kids with no money that want to be something they're not. I hope that kind of makes sense. I'm tired of everybody saying how great the north side is....when all it mostly is-is people trying to be somebody they're not.

I live on the south side, and things are way different down here. I find that people are more humble and down to earth. I would classify the south side more as the 'working' class, so I don't think that there are groups of 'hippies' around. But I do believe that we are more humble down here.

I don't know where-abouts you are looking, but Willow Springs is really nice. It's a suburb southwest of the city. There's the metra that goes to downtown Chicago, forest preserves surround the city... I don't know, I don't live there but it just seems quiet and down to earth there.

shit i lived on the southside and hated it. lots of crime and violence in the neighborhood i was in. i wouldn't recommend going to the southside to someone who doesn't know chicago well.
i love the northside. the neighborhoods are quiet and very family oriented while on the southside, at least the part i was in, all i could hear was gunshots and bums asking for money to buy liquor. however, hyde park is a really nice neighborhood on the southside.
rogers park is actually one of the cheapest places to live in the city!
pilsen is a cool area. ever been around there wiz?
i think there are cool areas spread ALL over the the city. personally, i'm just here for school and can't wait to leave. too damn cold. haha

Well....it all depends on where on the southside you lived. I have been to Pilsen before, and yes, it's a nice place. There's a nice little coffee shop called...god...i forget the name of it now. I was only there once but it was nice. Efebos. Bridgeport is also nice, but there's not much to do there. I live on the far southwest side of chicago; around Beverly and Mt. Greenwood.

I don't know, maybe I have to give the north side another chance. But just the general feeling I get is that the north side is for rich people who just think about themselves. See "Lincoln Park Trixie"...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trixie_(woman)

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=(Lincoln+Park)+Trixie

Also, any city or part of chicago has it's good and bad areas. I don't think it matters if it's north or south...east or west...you just have to use common sense.