The Glass Balconies on the Skydeck at Sears Tower in Chicago: A Must See

While on a recent trip to "The Windy City," Chicago I visited the Sears Tower for the first time. I learned during my visit that the tower was being renamed Willis Tower in honor of its new tenant, Willis Group Holdings. The name change became official July 16, 2009. During my visit to the Skydeck I learned what it feels like to look through glass from 103 stories high to the ground below.

The Skydeck at Sears Tower recently opened a few glass balconies called, "The Ledge," for visitors to stand, crawl, and/or lay on for a new view of the city below. The balconies are constructed of 1 and 1/2 inch glass and are meant to hold 5 tons. Personally I am not a fan of heights and am prone to anxiety attacks, and was leery of walking out onto the balcony. I stood back and watched children partake in the experience and even witnessed a woman overwhelmed by the fact that she herself placed both of her feet on the glass.

I chose to go onto the glass backwards and hold onto the wall where the glass balcony connected to the building and I didn't look down from this vantage point. To me it was enough that I managed to stand on the glass. I had looked down before stepping on to the glass and then walked away, letting my fear of heights get the better of me.

My boyfriend however chose to walk out onto the glass to take pictures. He described the experience of standing on the glass and looking down as feeling as if he had vertigo.

I appreciated the view from the Skydeck itself more so than the view from "The Ledge," as the glass balconies are called, just for the simple fact that I felt much safer standing on material that I couldn't see through as opposed to standing on glass. I also appreciated the scope of the city that I could see while looking out from the Skydeck 103 stories high than what I could see from one of the three balconies currently open for visitors.

So, if you will be visiting Chicago and want to experience the unexpected, visit Sears Tower Skydeck's, "The Ledge," for an unbelievable experience.