On Saturday Jon and I headed up to Starved Rock State Park along the Illinois River about an hour north of Bloomington. I was amazed by the rock formations and scenic canyons, which were much more attractive to look at than the muddy, littered banks of the river.
All photos by me, except for the last one, which Jon took.
Filed under: food, rest & relaxation, travel | Tags: Marin County, San Francisco
New Year’s eve began with a trip to City Lights, where M purchased some poetry.
As we waited for the fog to lift, I enjoyed a tasty lunch at a nearby taquería. Tim and Emily were visiting Tim’s parents on the other side of the bay. They crossed the bay and picked us up, and we headed back to Marin County for some shoreline fun. First, we tried to hike to the Point Bonita Lighthouse, but the tunnel through this rock (below) to the lighthouse was closed this day. Still, the area was beautiful.
These green and red ground cover in the foreground of the above photo are called ice plants. It was all over the rocky coastline, and its sturdy fingers were intriguing.
This area of the coast was littered with former military bunkers of varying sizes. They were tagged with graffiti and falling apart, like the one below that stood perilously close to the cliff’s edge. Of course, this setting made for some good photo opps.
Then we headed further north to Tennessee Beach to catch the sunset. A two-mile walk through the green hills gave way to the Pacific. The beach had its own reflecting pool just prior to the shoreline.
The water was so cold — or the beauty so inspiring — that Tim danced a little jig on the beach.
The beach was a mini-cove, enclosed on both sides by rocky cliffs.
More snapshots were necessary.
We washed off our sandy feet as best as possible, then began the long walk back to the car as darkness fell over the valley. Along the way, we spotted an amphibious creature crossing the road and a deer atop a nearby hill.
Tim had the bright idea of sitting down on the sand to air dry his feet before putting his socks back on. Thus, he was rewarded with a wet ass.
We drove further north along the curvy, steep road until we reached the Pelican Inn, which featured a cozy English pub. We enjoyed bowls of lobster bisque and a plowman’s lunch with our pints of ale, then drove back to the city for the evening. After eating a diner dinner, we bar-hopped before ending up atop our hotel for the countdown.
It was a long day, and we were all tired. So, like the responsible 30-somethings we are, we called it a night at 12:15.
Filed under: food, rest & relaxation, travel | Tags: Alcatraz, Muir Woods, San Francisco
The weather has been simply spectacular for this time of year. No rain! Highs in the mid-50s. Sunny. Our tour guide today told us that it’s the finest winter weather he can recall in some time. We’ve managed to remain outdoors most of the trip. Matter of fact, outside of the three hours I spent in Amoeba Records, I don’t think we’ve participated in or planned any indoors activities.
Transportation in San Fran is varied, to say the least. There are cabs (yellow & green) and buses, of course. Smart cars. Shared cars. And cable cars. But also trolleys and bike taxis. It seems for every electric bus there is a non-electric tour bus.
The cable cars are an overrated experience, but I did get my shoes clipped by a taxi’s side mirror while holding on.
At the “turnaround” on the wharf. Push.
Trolleys!
Coit Tower continues to beckon me from our hotel room.
Speaking of Coit Tower, San Fran has a thing for all things tall, slender, and uniquely shaped. The financial district …
… and Chinatown.
Not to mention all those nearby trees in Muir Woods.
They’re tall. Real tall.
And big, too.
It was sunny, but damn if it wasn’t chilly in the forest.
I’ve had some great food here, including peppermint-fudge ice cream, fresh crab and clam chowder, and some very tasty burgers (with relish) from a tiny joint in Sausalito. M is just getting over a stomach virus, and you can tell by this photo how happy she was today to consume any food, especially said burger.
There’s plenty to do down at the wharfs. We found this odd place called the Musée Mécanique, a collection of antique, coin-op arcade machines. The Opium Den was a trip, but I forgot to snap a photo of it. Here’s M getting her fortune read, followed by some video of one of several odd (to say the least) “laffing” dolls.
From the “live entertainment” category, I give you this banjo-playing street musician, who has a fondness for propeller beanies and old-timey music. His set list bounced from “Yankee Doodle” to “Proud Mary” to the theme song from The Beverly Hillbillies. He reminded the audience every couple songs that the name of his band was, indeed, Spare Change.
He was popular with the cable car set.
Next, I give you Alcatraz Island. The scary thing is, it’s exactly as I remember it … from Tony Hawk Pro Skater 4.
Here’s a photo of one of the cells from the 1962 break-out, as recreated in the Eastwood flick Escape from Alcatraz. See the hole in the wall under the sink. It’s interesting to note that the prison shut down less than a year later.
It’s hard to imagine a more scenic prison — on the outside.
Note the landmark in the distance …
Most of the windows inside the joint look a little like this —
except for a few tiny widescreens with a view …
I assume the breathtaking views only added to the psychological warfare conducted on the inmates. As the headphone tour pointed out, this was before the belief that prisoners could be rehabilatated.
Still, good prisoners got to pull a book off the bookshelf.
The old water tower.
Supposedly, the prison did pride itself on offering fine meals. Here’s what’s for breakfast.
Other signs.
During the 30 years Alcatraz was a federal prison, they did welcome Indians. But this graffiti is in reference to a fact that I was unaware of prior to my visit: From 1969–1971, several years after the prison had been closed and the island left to fend for itself, a group of Native American activists seized the island and claimed it for all Indians. It was a largely symbolic gesture meant to pressure the government to return native homelands to tribes. It worked.
A few postcard shots taken from the non-prison side of the island, where Alcatraz’s unique ecosystem is in full affect.
I’m not sure what those funky trees are called. Anyone know?
Finally, here’s some man-made, uh, beauty. Check out this signage from a Union Square restuarant, which dates back to the 1950s.
Filed under: films, food, rest & relaxation, travel | Tags: Frost/Nixon, San Francisco
Sorry, but no pics. There wasn’t much of anything worth photographing today. However, here were the highlights:
1) After getting in at about 2 a.m. West Coast, M and I crashed. Hard. We had flown from Pittsburgh to D.C., then across the country on an uncomfortably long flight. We awoke to a gorgeous view of the Bay, Alcatraz Island, and Coit Tower.
2) We walked a few blocks to get a Viatnamese pork sandwich for lunch from a hole-in-the-wall called Saigon Sandwiches in the “Little Saigon” part of town, not too far from Union Square, where our hotel is located. The sandwiches came on a recommendation from Arun, and damn were they tasty. Better than the Viatnamese sandwiches at the market in Columbus, Ohio. Sweeter, but with a bit more kick, too.
3) We ate them in Union Square proper, where it was odd to see people ice skating despite the 52 degree temperature.
4) M is sick with a bad stomach virus that won’t leave her alone, so she mostly kept to herself in the hotel room the rest of the day. We found the nearby hotel where her interviews will be tomorrow, and hiked up one of the city’s many steep hills to get there. M was out of breath after just a block. I blame it on the sickness.
5) Later that night I hurriedly located someplace to eat, settling on a Lori’s Diner, a touristy ’50s recreation with several locations around the bay area. The tuna melt with onion rings was doable. The orange freeze — orange sherbert mixed with Sprite — was delish. Across the street, I spotted a place I’d like to try before I leave: Tad’s Broiled Steaks. From a distance, it looks like a more authentic dining experience, and it has simply the coolest signage I’ve ever seen on a restaurant. I’ll take a picture later.
6) After dinner, with M out of commission and my friend Jonathan, also in town for the conference, taking it easy tonight, I opted for a movie. Frost/Nixon was just okay, far from the great film I thought it may be based upon the subject matter and the trailer. Frank Langella, who plays Nixon, does a commendable job. But I had a hard time buying into Frost’s character. I just didn’t find him, or his struggles for credibility, to be all that compelling. Frost pulled off a near miracle in getting Nixon, who was backed by an army of shrewd politicos and media types and was himself a wise old man, to own up to Watergate. But on the silver screen, Frost seems like a total hack who more or less lucked into Nixon’s confession, based upon a few nights of hard work. His character seems shallow and too transparent, and by film’s end I didn’t believe in his transformation. As for my ambivalence about the film, I blame the screenwriters, who focused too little time on the actual interviews themselves, missing a golden opportunity to follow their own conclusions — that the close-ups of the TV screen revealed more about Nixon’s character than a thousand words — to the logical end of concentrating more heavily on the heat of the moment. Also, for a film whose protagonist continually battles to resist portraying Nixon in a sympathetic light, Frost/Nixon does just that. By the film’s end, I feel sorry for the guy. Overall, I just didn’t find the film to be that believable, which is sad since it’s not a work of fiction.
This past weekend I traveled to Chicago with M to meet her aunt and grandma, who were in town for the weekend. We took them to see some of the sights and climb the heights.
I had never been to the top of the Sears Tower. Upstairs, I got a chance to pay my respects to this guy …
… while M got to say hello to a personal fave.
When not looking out the observatory, one can look inward and find a Who’s Who of Chicagoans. I found the displays a little odd; I certainly wasn’t expecting to bump into Studs Terkel atop the tallest building in the States. But I guess there are a lot of tourists who don’t have the time to see much of the city or learn a lot about its heritage, so they go to the Sears Tower and get a crash course in Chicago as a bonus.
By the way, if you’re looking for a good book to tide you over before bedtime, Terkel’s Working is an excellent read.
Filed under: rest & relaxation, things at home, travel | Tags: Washington D.C.
My flight last night was delayed to the point where I had to stay in D.C. for another night, which meant a 30-minute metro ride and 20-minute walk back to Chris’ apartment from the airport. Meanwhile, my suitcase carried on without me. Luckily, it was here at the Savoy airport when I arrived this afternoon.
Today I will not walk three miles, I will play with my cat and sleep in my bed, and I will return to the boredom that is unemployment in Champaign. But more importantly, I will get to hang with M.
Still, I will miss D.C. Seven days is the longest I’ve spent in any one city that I didn’t live in in a really long time, and I had a blast. Much thanks to Chris (especially), Mason, and their friends, plus Zac, for making my time in the nation’s capital a lot of fun.
Filed under: food, rest & relaxation, travel | Tags: Library of Congress, U.S. Capitol, U.S. Supreme Court, Washington D.C.
Phew. I had a long day yesterday. It began at the Library of Congress and ended at 3 a.m. at a bar called the Wonderland in Columbia Heights.Today is going to be a lazy day. It’s raining outside, and I’m meeting up with Zac (from American Minor) for lunch. He’s driving in from Virginia. Then Chris and I are going to watch the World Series at a bar in Georgetown. We will not be closing that bar down.
Since I’ve been submitting ISBNs to the Library of Congress for 5+ years, I was anxious to see the place in person. While you can’t go inside the actual library portion without a card, just the lobby itself is a spectacular sight.
One of the odder murals on the walls and ceiling.
The grounds of the U.S. Capitol, which is right across the street from the Library of Congress, were a huge mess due to construction. There were long lines to tour the House of Reps, so I skipped it.
The Supreme Court building is not worth going into, as all you can see is the building’s relatively small and bland lobby (at least in comparison to the Library of Congress).
The pro-lifers were out as usual with red tape over their mouths. (The tape reads: LIFE.) The guy in the background in the red shirt was blaring biblical nonsense from a megaphone. The guy was tapped into God’s politics, though.
Later in the night we went bar hopping. We began at Madam Organ’s, a self-described blues and soul food joint in Adams Morgan. I had meatloaf with a side of cole slaw and fried okra. It was pretty good, but not great. We sat in the rooftop deck, which was largely enclosed, and enjoyed our $18 pitchers of Bass. The bar’s second and third levels had a distinct Mike & Molly’s vibe. The gang …
Then we headed to The Raven, a neighborhood hole in the wall in Mt. Pleasant that Tim recommended. The tiny bar had a great jukebox and more affordable beer. We finished off the night at The Wonderland, where I got my dance on. Good times!
Filed under: art, rest & relaxation, travel | Tags: Smithsonian Hirshhorn Museum, Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C.
Today I headed back to the D.C. Mall for some more art. I completed the National Gallery of Art’s modern wing, then headed to the Hirshhorn Museum of modern and contemporary art, and finally ended up at the Air & Space Museum with an hour-plus to kill.
I wish I could do a slideshow of the art I saw today, but instead you’ll need to scroll down the page. First, some detail from French painter André Derain’s “Mountains at Collioure” (1905).
One of my favorites from today: This massive 1971 acrylic from Chuck Close.
While I wasn’t so into the rest of this large, fractured canvas, I loved this portion of David Salle’s “Coming and Going” (1987).
I also loved German-born Anselm Kiefer’s “Zin Zum” (1990). Here’s some detail.
Another German painter, Sigmar Polke’s “Hope is: Wanting to Pull Clouds” (1992).
Alberto Giacometti’s “Walking Man”.
How cool is it that these museums allow photography? The Hirshhorn was no exception. My two favorite pieces there were a 30-minute film by Peter Fischli and David Weiss, “The Way Things Go,” which you can view a sampling of here, and Doug Wheeler’s “Environmental Light Installation” (1969), which was, to put it mildly, really fucking cool. It’s in a deep white room, which I’m not sure comes through clearly from these pics. Note, the dude in the first one is a visitor, and not part of the installation.
I couldn’t resist. I need a new Facebook photo.
Here’s some more highlights from the Hirshhorn. I really dug Kent Henricksen’s “Absence of Myth (White)” (2007), which features embroidery.
John Jurayj’s “Untitled (U.S. Embassy, 1983, #1)”, from 2005-06.
Check this funky one out. The canvas is wood paneling, and the 2006 piece is by Iona Rozeal Brown. Check out the detail.
A little (big) Lichtenstein …
I found this small sculpture by Klaus Ihlenfeld quite cool.
As was this dangling sculpture from 1966 by Eva Hesse.
Finally, doesn’t this Barry Flanagan sculpture from the Hirshhorn’s sculpture garden remind you of the rabbit mask in Donnie Darko?
After all the art, I took in a short IMAX flick about the sun at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum.
The museum closed at 5:30, so I didn’t get to spend much time there. I wish I would have walked around the Natural History museum instead. Maybe tomorrow.
Filed under: food, rest & relaxation, travel | Tags: 2Amys, Ben's Chili Bowl, Georgetown, U Street, Washington D.C.
I kicked off today’s theme, “the best food in D.C.,” with a trip to Ben’s Chili Bowl on U Street. Everyone and their mother recommended I try this joint out, which was opened in 1958 and is known as the “home of the famous Chili Half-Smoke.” That translates into a thick hot dog topped with mustard, onions, and chili. I ordered one with a heaping side of fries and a Coke for $10 and change.
It was good, but not great. Certainly filling, but I’m not sure that I concur with Bill Cosby that this is an absolute necessity. For starters, the chili wasn’t very spicy, as it’s advertised. The vibe of the joint, however, is all vintage and a lot of fun. Music plays in the main room over a pair of ancient speakers. The restaurant has been owned by African-Americans since its opening, and the walls are adorned with newspaper clippings and what not that speak to U Street’s renowned black culture. (The restaurant is situated next door to the Lincoln Theater, where Duke Ellington got his start.) The decor doesn’t look like it’s been touched since the place’s opening.
After lunch, I walked around U Street, a neighborhood in transition (read: gentrification) after a Metro stop was added. It has a lovely, lived-in feel. Nearby is the Black Cat and a couple other venues. But I was checking out the neighborhood and its architecture. I love olden city housing. Check the repetition…
A block away, however, some diversity is showcased.
I hopped the Metro to Foggy Bottom, walked to the Potomac, then up the hill into Georgetown. First, I should mention that the subway platforms in D.C. that I’ve been to are these massive, futuristic, concrete tunnels. Quite cool to look at.
In Georgetown, I walked along the C&O Canal, “one of the most intact and impressive survivals of the American canal-building era. The C&O Canal is unique in that it remains virtually unbroken and without substantial modification affecting its original character for its entire length of 185 miles.” It was constructed in 1825, and today you can take a boat tour (while being pulled along by horseys).
After checking out the canal, I headed up the hill to Georgetown. I happened upon this building—probably not the most popular one on the block.
Then I walked along the M Street shopping district. But again, I was anxious to see some of the historical, beautiful homes that make the Georgetown area an interesting neighborhood to walk through. More repetition …
This house is, surprisingly, fairly typical for the area.
Student housing in G’Town is a far cry from the UI. Most of it looks like this.
This Japanese mural of a Katsushika Hokusai print was a pleasant surprise.
The breathtaking massiveness of Healy Hall drew my eye from a mile away.
After another long day of walking, Chris and I tried 2Amys pizza, which thankfully was just a block from Chris’ pad.
This was, quite probably, the best pizza I’ve ever had. Widely regarded as the best pizza plenty of DCers have ever had, 2Amys specializes in Neapolitan pizza, cooked in a wood-burning oven and featuring dough made from only soft-grain flour, fresh yeast, water, and sea salt, and Italian plum tomatoes, mozzarella di bufala, extra-virgin olive oil, and fresh basil or dried oregano for toppings. Chris tried this style and loved it. Meanwhile, I ordered the Norcia, featuring tomato, salami, grilled peppers, fresh mozzarella, and grana. The sauce is minimal, but they use a lot of olive oil. YUM!
Tomorrow I’m heading back to The Mall to go to the Air & Space Museum and then the Hirshhorn modern art museum.
Filed under: food, rest & relaxation, travel | Tags: Black Cat, Ethiopian food, Smithsonian National Zoological Park, Washington D.C.
In more ways than I’d care to admit, I’m a lot like a 13 year-old. So it’s odd that over the past 20 years I’ve only once gone to a big old zoo, because animals make me happy. Today I made it twice by going to the Smithsonian National Zoological Park, walking around for five hours, and generally smiling, a lot. (Like in the photo above.)
There were a slew of moms/nannies with kids in strollers, maybe even more of them than animals. When not dodging strollers, I attempted to make sense of the zoo’s map, a losing proposition, and enjoyed the mix my recently stocked iPod produced for me on shuffle. (I’m a BIG fan of my new iPod Classic, especially now that I’ve got more than 35 gigs of music on it.) Here a video (with music), followed by some pics.
At the zoo with …
Lemurs!
Orangutans!
Anacondas!
Great Big Pandas posing for the centerfold (or playing dead, you choose)!
Porcupines!
Pythons!
Lions!
Do NOT get into a staring contest with a gator. You will lose. This dude on the right kept his mouth open for minutes, appearing statuesque.
After the zoo, it was time to eat Ethiopian food.
Food!
Chris and his friends and me!
Then pool at the Black Cat!
More pool at the Black Cat! (Now with less hair!)
Speaking of Black Cats … Sophie, I’ve been untrue. Sorry, but Lilah kind of has a thing for me, and my black bag.
