Last day in Chicago

Not our last morning, though, so it was a difficult decision: Banana-Nut Waffle or Blueberry Pancake.  I guess the pancakes will be tomorrow’s choice    Needless to say, the Corned Beef Hash fan has no such dilemma.

The hotel usually has a large flower arrangement in the lobby, but right now, there’s a Gauguin-inspired display.

Alongside the large vases of (real) mangoes and leaves, there are some interesting painty plates.  This is my favourite.

Closely followed by this one.

Don’t ask how I know they are “real” mangoes*

Just opposite here, there were some lovely reflections this morning.  Far more interesting than a party, even if there was a hummus dip on offer

We had a clear plan for this morning.  As usual, though, it involved a walk along the Magnificent Mile.  Lovely!  (though actually, that photograph is of the view down Rush Street and not of the Magnificent mile at all…just thought I’d better admit to that <g>)

The Architecture Tour boats on the river were full on this warm Sunday morning.

Our target for this morning was the American Writers Museum (no apostrophe!)

Brand new for this season, Mary had read an article and thought it worth following up.

First stop was the Children’s Room, where displays of Charlotte’s Web and Little Women proved great reminders that some of our favourite books were written by American authors.

Around the corner was a lengthy timeline, with almost too much information to take in on a single visit.  Opposite was a wall of a hundred authors, highlighting their principal works.  The museum was almost completely interactive, so these boards were there to be turned to find out further information.  Above is the “box” labelled Dale Carnegie, How to Make Friends and Influence People 1936.   Some boxes played music when opened, others had a short video or a photograph to illustrate a point.  Of course, there wasn’t time to open every box, so we chose those which piqued our interest most and thanked heavens that there was only a few other people there, so we could do as we liked.

Thankfully, I had one or two favourite American authors and didn’t feel too ignorant!

So I focused on those I knew and did my best to extend my knowledge as I went along!

As we went long the timeline, we kept hearing a rousing chorus but couldn’t work out where it was coming from until we came across this.  So we stopped and listened a couple of times!

We enjoyed a diversion in the form of a display about Jack Kerouac’s On The Road and thought we should write our own Road Trip novel.

Actually, there might have been inspiration in some form here?

The photographs certainly had a ring of familiarity about them!

Perhaps the most fun was on the interactive screens, one of which was an electronic version of the magnetic poetry. 

My challenge was a preponderance of prepositions and one, single adverb (carefully)

In particular, I liked the display of local authors, hanging on a kind of clothes rail.  I made a note of that one as a potential starting point for a future exhibition!

Having done with the museum (which we enjoyed and felt able to linger as long as we wanted) we crossed over to the park and joined the crowds in the sunshine.

I was the only one brave enough to venture under the Bean, since it was shoulder to shoulder under there, as you can see.

Enough of the crowds and the heat, then, we escaped the park and headed into the Loop, in the hope of finding a cold drink in a cool place.  Thank you Dunkin Donuts.

It was a slow stroll back to the hotel then, past the old Marshall Fields department store on State Street.

We found amusement in the windows of the hotel with the window seats and matching cushions in every window.

We joined the crowd by the tall building bearing the President’s name and the “Real/Fake” installation in front of it, taking a picture along with them all.

I made a short detour to check out Guppy Bags at the Patagonia Store** a little further up Michigan Avenue and returning to the hotel, reflected on our days in Chicago.  We love this city!

Tomorrow at this time, we’ll be at the airport, going our separate ways after another ace trip.  But hey, there’s still one more breakfast at Tempo to look forward to and who knows what we might find to do tomorrow?!

* I might have given one a squeeze

** As a means of following through the NFWI resolution agreed in Liverpool last month

Hotel Art

It’s ages since I did an “hotel art” post, but the Palacio Nazarenes in Cuzco inspired me to post a few photographs which may inspire you, too.

 

Now, I like to see original work in hotels rather than “art by the yard”, but for this once, I’ll make an exception!

(The Palacio Nazarenes is possibly the first hotel we’ve visited with an “artist in residence”.  This gentleman was sitting at his loom in a corner of the cloistered courtyard, weaving a tapestry from a photograph of the original.)

He had no English and I had only a few words of Spanish, so details are sketchy.  I know he’s using cotton, dyed with natural plantstuffs but what I don’t know is if he created the smaller version which hung along the wall from his loom.  Anyway, it was fascinating to watch him work, even if he did seem slightly uncomfortable with me looking over his shoulder!

Most of the art around the hotel was original in every sense of the word.  I loved the spontaneity of this border, the life and energy of those curves and the slight irregularity of the pattern.

I left this photograph uncropped to illustrate how high on the wall this little cupboard was hung and the asymmetric painted detail on each side.  I wonder what was kept in there?

Because, the hotel has been created by the renovation of a 16th century Carmelite convent and although I am sure that their faith and devotion was fulfilling enough, I can’t help but think that these beautiful wall paintings must have been as much of a delight to them as they were to us.

The details continued throughout the hotel and, in this case, into the adjoining lobby.

Though I don’t think the Carmelites would have had much use for decorative sugar swirlers, do you?  Perhaps a small piece of soap or a reel of thread may have been of more practical use.

There were some corners we didn’t discover until it was almost time to leave.

But there were others which we noticed the minute we stepped inside!

I approved of the choice of reading material in the gift shop, too!

But my favourite picture hung in our room.  I was so desperate to get a good photograph of it and failed miserably – all ten pictures that I took have dreadful reflections and sad to say, this is the best.  I loved the shape of the figures in the watercolour, the postures and the spirit of the little band, making its way across the fields.  Somehow, they look so Peruvian.

It was a wrench to leave, even though we really were ready for home.  I hope we’ll be able to return there someday and that, when we do, we find the same warm and friendly people waiting for us.

Still, it was so good to climb into our own bed last night!

14 years on

We are back in Hong Kong.

The TurboJet brought us over choppy waters from Macau and as we turned the corner, the city came into view.  Before the handover, this was somewhere that featured on several of our itineraries, being the stopover of choice on any trip downunder.  In those days, we’d be able to peer into the apartments of Mong Kok as the plane came into land at the old Kai Tak airport.  A couple of days ago, the final approach to the new airport was equally spectacular but with none of that nail biting thrill and adrenalin rush (?terror?!) but it was even better to see the spectacular harbour from ground level this morning.

Our spacious and very stylish room here in Kowloon overlooks the harbour too, and as I sit here typing, my eyes are drawn to the illuminated skyscrapers on the island opposite

Not a bad view to get a sense of place, is it?

This hotel is furnished in a more contemporary style than the previous one, and the foyer art is definitely in keeping.  No china dresses here, but instead a rather peculiar and eclectic set of chandeliers which I have yet to work out.

This afternoon, we took a walk along Nathan Road, which hasn’t changed much in the years since we were here.  No sooner had I mentioned the old “copy watch” sellers than someone approached us and muttered “Copy Watch?” in my hero’s ear!  He then said “Copy Handbag?” to me, but we were not at all interested in either.

We were headed for Pete’s, where Allan was going to chat about having some tailoring done and I wanted to explore the possibility of getting a favourite dress copied.  When my dressing room was built, it took some time to sort out a UV-protecting blind for the skylight and in the intervening sunny days, one shoulder of my favourite pink linen dress faded in the light.  Would they – could they – make me another?

Well, yes they could, as a matter of fact and whilst they were about it, they could make two – a purple one and a pink one.

So, leaving them to get on with it (fitting tomorrow…they don’t have much time) we returned to our hotel, admiring the New Year decoration as we went, sponsored by Liberty of London.  Returning from dinner this evening, I looked again at the “temari ball”

Hmmm.  I think it would be kindest to describe it as “freestyle”.

So good to be here, we are looking forward to spending a couple of days pottering about, revisiting old haunts and discovering new ones.  Hope you’re happy to walk with us, too?  Get the comfy shoes out ready!!

The China Dress

The life sized artwork which stands by the lifts in the hotel foyer is a real talking point.  I love it.

Have a closer look.

The “head” – or is it an elaborate hairstyle? – is absolutely in proportion and crowns an elegant form.  I especially love the collar and shoulder shape.

From the side, it’s easier to appreciate the curves and smooth shapes which have been achieved from these very solid and unyielding fragments.

The whole thing is fitted around a metal armature, the pieces “stitched” together with metal wire or staples.

The pattern and form have been so cleverly managed using the pieces available.

Interest and texture is added with more dimensional pieces down the back.

There are small features elsewhere on the dress, too, making best use of the bases, each with a makers mark.

The hem is nicely finished with the deepest blue border, giving weight and balance to the overall figure.

If only it would fit in my suitcase.

Before we move on…

Let’s talk a little about the Bryce Canyon Lodge, where we’ve stayed the last couple of nights.  It was a bit confusing, because the room layout was identical to the lodge at Zion National Park, but there were certain features of this particular place which I thought were interesting.  You see, the “motel rooms” here have been recently refurbished and since this is the only remaining original lodge in this group of parks, it would appear that particular care has been taken to maintain the original character too.

The original lodge building dates back to the 1920’s when the Union Pacific Railroad brought travellers from the station 100 miles away, in open topped charabancs to stay here.  One of our guides spoke of her father, who had laid some of the stones in this main building.

It was she who drew our attention to the optical illusion of the pattern of the shingles on the roof of each building here – giving the impression of an uneven surface, even though it’s actually completely flat and regular.

Some accommodation is in small log cabins here, but when we booked, we were advised that unless the three of us wanted to be very cosy indeed, two motel rooms would be more comfortable (respectable!) so that’s what we reserved.

Our room (identical to Mary’s) was comfortably furnished, if a little dark by our modern day standards.  In fact, we’ve found many of the interiors here in Arizona and Utah to be dark, especially when outside is so bright.  We appreciated the screened windows and porch, which allowed us to let in some air without the fear of assorted wildlife joining us too – of course, those screens make for a darker room too.

Anyway, the decor of the room was based on the original palette, with local inspiration from nature: blue lupine flowers, wood lichen, sage brush, alder bark and Brigham tea. 

The pattern of the custom made carpet was taken from the 1930’s marketing materials and the blanket was a Pendleton woollen, based on the traditional Indian blankets of the time.

It had been especially made for the lodge, with the distinctive label sewn into one corner.

The chairs were made to a pattern taken from Union Pacific Railroad photographs of the lobby

and the wallhanging (sorry, lousy photo) was made to a traditional pattern by master Native American weavers.  I’m not sure I liked the way it was hung and would have preferred to have seen it straight on the wall, perhaps over the bedhead, but there we are, what do I know!?

The painting in the corner was of a Southern Paiute Indian in full ceremonial regalia.  The Paiutes were the original people of this area and we heard quite a lot about them as we travelled around the park.

Of course, in the refurbishment, all modern amenities were added/updated, so there was a coffee machine and a telephone – but no air conditioning, no wifi beyond the lobby and no TV at all.

We enjoyed our stay there at the Bryce Canyon Lodge very much, but tonight, as I sit in a bright and modern Hilton Garden Inn in Salt Lake City, I will admit to feeling happy to have wall to wall wifi, a bright and modern space to relax in and most of all, be at an altitude which makes breathing and sleeping rather more comfortable than the previous week or so.

More from Salt Lake City tomorrow, when we’ve had a chance to explore a little.  I’ll leave you with the surprising sight we spotted from our car window whilst we were stopped at traffic lights in Orem this afternoon.