A couple weeks ago the husband and I went to Chicago with one of our best friends. One of my new favorite cities and another destination checked off my list. Although one that I definitely plan to revisit many times in the future. As usual I did not take nearly enough photos, but I've come to the realization that for me this means I'm so completely in the moment and soaking everything and just being present, which is always my goal when I travel. We were only in the city for one night, and we started planning a bit late in the game. When it came down to the wire and all the hotels were booked or outrageous, we decided to throw caution to the wind. Our plane didn't arrive until 10:30 which means we didn't actually get into the city until nearly midnight, so we rented a locker at Union Station ($12 for 24 hours and it fit ALL of our luggage) and decided to spend all night conquering this foreign city. It was an adventure I will never forget.
Let me say, Chicago is probably the cleanest city I have ever seen, rivaled maybe only by London, and felt completely safe. Their public transportation is AMAZING, maybe even more convenient than the underground? This is undeniably a metropolitan city, home to what was once the tallest building in the world, yet it felt small in scale, and easy to get around and see everything.
Upon our arrival we met a friend of our friend at a great college-y bar called Mother's Too. Beer pong table and steady stream of fun music (including the ghostbusters theme song). After last call we hit up what seemed to be a popular hole in the wall eatery, no tables only a line formed at the counter where they offered burgers, dogs, greek and mexican food. We then made our way to a 24-hour diner (White Palace) where we could hang out away from the cold wind (windy city, hello!). Of course we had to order breakfast even though we had just eaten, we felt bad sitting there for 2 hours and only drinking coffee. It was unfortunate that we weren't hungry, the food was amazing.
By now it was 5 AM, time to head toward Navy Pier at Lake Michigan. Of course by the time we got there it was still about an hour before sunrise and it was even colder being by the water. So we wandered a few blocks to an open Starbucks. We sat in the warmth (and super cozy chairs!) combatting the oncoming sleepiness with coffee, we still had a full day of exploring ahead of us! Our goal was to re-create Ferris Bueller's Day Off, unfortunately the Cubs weren't playing and there was no parade. But next we made our way back to Navy Pier for the beautiful sunrise:
Next up, Milennium Park. Visited the big reflective bean sculpture thing (technical terms), 7 AM is best time to go, there were literally 3 other people there. Usually the tourist photos I see have hundreds of people around. The City is so beautiful from that view point.
After wandering around Milennium Park, catching a glimpse at soldier field, we wandered all over the city. Took the metro to Wrigley Field. Then on to Sears (Willis) Tower. As an engineer, I have a deep fascination and appreciation for skyscrapers. Going to the 103rd floor at Sears is the tallest point I've been (besides being in an airplane). Taller than the Eiffel Tower or Empire State Building. (and yes Bernardo and I leaned our heads against the glass just like in Ferris Bueller). Such an amazing view:
Sears Tower has these very cool (super thick and reinforced) plexiglass boxes called the Ledge at Skydeck. You can literally step out over the streets below. I was super excited to do this, but taking that first step out made my heart race a little!
Woohoo!
After this we hit up the Art Institute of Chicago. Loved the impressionist paintings, they really are so much more impressive up close. Then we just had to partake of some deep dish pizza before making our way to Union Station toward our next destination.
While the opportunity to see priceless works of art in person will always be a cherishable experience, not all of us have the time or money to travel to some of these museums.
The Google Street View of the museum world. Not only can you enjoy virtual tours of some of the best and most famous musuems in the world, but the photography is such high-resolution quality that you can actually zoom in close enough to see individual brush strokes.
{super zoomed in section of Rembrandt's "Return of the Prodigal Son"}
It just so happens that I ended up driving through Beverly Hills and West Hollywood via Santa Monica Blvd twice this week. The first time was at night and I noticed some very large and kind of random neon signs, in the center divider. Hey, it's L.A. right? Nothing here is normal. The second time, was during the day, and it was a bit traffic-y, so I got a closer look at one of these signs and made a mental note of the website at the bottom: neonmona.org.
Remember when I posted about the Neon Boneyard outside Vegas? (Which I still need to make a trip to see!) Well turns out Los Angeles, has their very own Museum of Neon Art.
These neon signs I spotted are intentionally placed, as part of a neon exhibit, along the historic Route 66 (another dream road trip of mine, LA to chicago along the old Route 66, but I digress).
Visit here for a slideshow of all the pieces involved, or just take a little drive through LA! (which I plan to do soon!)
The Getty Villa in Malibu made me feel like I was back in Europe. It's a gorgeous setting, right off the pacific coast highway, tucked on a bluff. It is much much bigger than you think and the little building you see from the highway is not even part of the tour. It is filled to the brim with greek, roman and etruscan pieces, mostly statues, which are mostly of deities, along with metallurgy in the forms of serving platters and goblets and vases. There's also gorgeous roman inspired gardens including an herb/fruit tree garden with over 50 different species (my favorite part!).
The best thing about the Getty? It's FREE. Just make a reservation ahead of time online (our mistake...but the nice man let us in anyway).
This video is amazing!
Footage of the SS Normandie, a grand passenger ship, from 1938. I personally have never seen video of people just doing their thing in the 1930s, only hollywood films. Although the music is a little on the creepy side, the ship looks beautiful, and I miss the days where everyone was so glamorous all the time.
The ship's maiden voyage in 1935 included Ernest Hemingway, Marlene Dietrich, Salvador Dali and Grace Kelly! Can you imagine? I'm pulling the time travel card. Count me in.
The SS Normandie is being featured at an exhibit in New York for the next year, at the South Street Seaport Museum. The exhibit is called DECODENCE and will feature works by the various artists who contributed to the gorgeous design of the ship's interior.
before i decided to study civil engineering i thought about pursuing architecture. buildings absolutely fascinate me. (europe killed me, especially with the buildings that were about twice as old as AMERICA). each one so different and unique and beautiful yet so functional. then i realized my lack of artistic skills and pursued the more mathematical, black and white side of the process. but i still admire architecture immensely. which is why i totally geeked out when i saw these: Lego brand "Architecture" sets featuring a couple of renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright's designs.
The first is "Falling Water" which is located in Pennsylvania. It's open to the public and it has been on my must-see list for a while. I still remember my Papa giving me a calendar of Frank Lloyd Wright designs when I was about 12...which reminds me, I should find that.
The second is the Guggenheim Museum located in Manhattan, New York. I think that puts me at about reason #394875 to visit New York now. I WILL get there some day.
I'm still kicking myself for missing out on the YSL exhibit at San Francisco's de Young. But I have found an opportunity for another amazing fashion exhibit.
Peter Fetterman Gallery in Santa Monica is featuring "the Century in Fashion" until March, and it is on my to-do list. Photographs from as early as the 20s taken by photographers such as the late Irving Penn, with subjects like Coco Chanel will be on display.
Another exhibit is "Lillian Bassman: Women". I'd never heard of her before, but I've seen her images before. She captured the elegance and pure beauty of the 40s and 50s so well. (Gia Caneli writes an excellent post about her work). Lillian Bassman recognized the loss of elegance that came with the late 60s and 70s and became so disenchanted that she almost destroyed all of her life's work of fashion photographs. What a gift to be able to see some that were salvaged years later!
i must admit, the amount of traveling i did in europe in such a short amount of time really left me burnt out as far as museums go. sadly everything became "just another painting/sculpture/etc." now i'm really feeling excited about some exhibits here in CA that i'm discovering.
I just read on blog Trust Your Style that LACMA has just acquired a huge collection of 18th and 19th century european fashion. it sounds like it will be just extraordinary!
sadly this exhibit will not be open until sometime in 2010, so i will have to be keeping tabs on updates!
to read an interview with the curator for more info about the collection, click here.
the description on the website: "In the 1960s Yves Saint Laurent made an indelible mark on fashion with clothing emblematic of the new modernity. Yves Saint Laurent, organized by FAMSF and The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts in collaboration with the Fondation Pierre Bergé-Yves Saint Laurent, explores the designs that made Saint Laurent famous, and his inspirations drawn from art, theatre, history, literature, and nature. This exhibition contains nearly 130 accessorized garments and sketches illustrating the lines, colors, and fundamentals of Saint Laurent’s work. This is the only U.S. venue. A catalogue accompanies this exhibition."
p.s. mcclone construction in shingle springs, whom i used to work for, built the de young! shout out!
p.p.s. i <3 fashion
p.p.p.s. i NEED to visit san fran in general. it has been FARRR too long. plus i need to acquaint myself since i might be living there this summer... ;D
so i didn't bring my laptop home with me, but there really aren't many pictures to post. i spent a lot of time relaxing, doing nothing and being inspired by random things.
i'm not really one for new year's resolutions. if i do make them, it's not very seriously, and doesn't work out. instead i'm going to just fulfill one of the purposes of this blog: to travel more in 2009 -the boy and i are going to take a mini vacation during spring break. ideas so far: big bear, san diego, monterey, bodega bay. i've been to all but the first. but it'll be fun to explore together. i really want to soak in the location. find amazing cafes/restaurants. enjoy the natural beauty. -hopefully this summer will entail a family vacation to the state of washington. seattle and the coastline/islands. (i voted no on cabo or desert. i dislike hot weather, and we've already done a desert trip...cold weather/pacific northwest PLEASE!) -my dear friend goes to UCLA and has been getting around the greater los angeles area for the past 2 1/2 years using public transportation! needless to say she explores much more than the boy and i. so i plan on being introduced to cool places in downtown LA and beyond. first plan: LACMA to see the vanity fair photography exhibit. other ideas include getty villa and getty center, fashion district... she is my shot of culture :D
