Posted by Jerry on May 12th, 2007 — Posted in Journal, Travel
Time for the quirkies – what does one notice as an outsider/stranger to a place?
A good place to start is the humble hotel room. We hold these truths to be self-evident: if you hang your wet clothes from a hotel fire sprinkler they’ll get wetter – a whole lot wetter! So it seemed a bit interesting that they felt it necessary to affix the following sign beneath the fire sprinkler over the bed – is there something they’re not telling us?
For sheer iconicity the US fire hydrant – looking for all the world like a cute ‘Bob the Builder’ with its two arms and red hat takes the prize for turning utilitarian design into an innoffensive and proportionally excellent artform.
Also known as a ‘fire plug’ from its origins in the days of wooden water mains, the modern upright cast iron version appears to have been invented by Frederick Graff snr in 1803 for the then newly-installed Philadelphia water works. The ‘Mathews Improved’ dry-barrel model was patented in 1850 and seems to be close to today’s design.
I spend much of my time looking up at architectural details – many based on classical designs, but I also try to look beneath my feet. And here are a couple of examples. The first a standard water main inspection cover
The second a fuel tank inspection cover in a gas station (petrol station)
The US obsession with the discourse of security is entirely understandable, and there is no doubt that this country has adapted well to its perception of threat. As a visitor one is struck by the blossoming of signs aimed at reminding people of the sorts of credible threats that require signage in case you forget and accidentally feel safe and secure.
Are shopping trolleys covered in the “Other” category? 🙂
And not so much a quirkie, I just thought I’d mention that Haagen Dazs chocolate ice cream is simply delicious! – the Tysons Corner Mall has one of their restaurants – yum!
Cheers
Jerry
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Posted by Jerry on May 10th, 2007 — Posted in Journal, Travel
I’ll leave the quirkies for the moment because I made a discovery. Exploring the larger mall at Tysons Corner Center 1 in Washington DC I took a fairly random turn looking for a place to get some food.
It was a bit of a culdesac and I was about to turn back when I saw what looked like a confectionery store – and it was – of an altogether different kind.
The place was called ‘Beadazzled’. Yes, a bead shop – a laaarge bead shop!
So naturally I had to do a reccy for Sharon and, well, perhaps the place had reasonable prices too.
Suffice to say – it’s a surprise (so don’t tell her) I’ll let her open the package when I get home 🙂
Cheers
Jerry
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Posted by Jerry on May 9th, 2007 — Posted in Journal, Travel
There are a number of iconic buildings in Washington DC. The Capitol features everywhere from teatowels to snow cones and there is no doubt about its classical proportions – it is an impressive building.
The Smithsonian Institution began as a private collection and its first building still houses part of the collection – mainly ethnographic material from the Africas. Known as ‘the castle’ this red-brick building still has a lovely proportion to it. And the flower garden is stunning in Spring.
The entrance – part medieval, part romanesque still bears the inscription of the institution’s name.
Sadly, my stated ‘one nice thing’ won’t happen as advertised – the National Museum of American History is closed for renovations and won’t re-open before 2008. So I’ll have to rethink this a bit.
Perhaps I can console myself with some popcorn from one of these delightful stands along The Mall.
Other buildings include the impressive Jefferson Memorial overlooking the Potomac
Are we there yet?
And the quirky side might just emerge tomorrow 🙂
Cheers
Jerry
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Posted by Jerry on May 7th, 2007 — Posted in Journal, Travel
Somewhere over the Pacific at around 3.00AM body clock time and unable to sleep I went in search of coffee. I had watched two movies and despite the gentle rocking of the plane – like riding over the sand where the waves had left tiny ripples – I found myself with a mug of coffee and a conversation with a businesswoman who was also travelling to the US.
After a few inconsequential remarks she says “So, what is your ‘One Nice Thing’?” The way she said it I could hear the inverted commas and the capital letters.
She took my quizzical look as a prompt and said that every time she travels for business she tries to take time out for one nice thing – some way to treat yourself, whether going to a favourite restaurant or a show, or exploring a new musuem.
The reasoning was that when you are old you won’t remember this or that business trip – but you will always remember the one nice thing. It’s a way of building positive memories for the future. What a great concept!
For me it will be to visit the National Museum of American Culture – part of the Smithsonian I have never been to.
What have been your one nice things?
While this is about doing one nice thing for yourself to actively build positive memories, there are other memes along these lines. For example, there is one associated with the concept of doing one nice thing for someone else – working on the ‘pay it forward’ philosophy. This is the concept behind Do-One-Nice-Thing.com. And a version has appeared on 43 things where people aspire to do one nice thing per week/day for someone else. I think it’s a reallly positive meme.
The Classic American Diner
In the meantime, the classic American diner is alive and well and living in Washington DC. I often wondered about the distinctive styling of the diner – with the corrugated metal cladding surmounted by continuous windows and styled with seat booths.
Then I saw the picture on the wall of this particular one that showed the original ‘Dining Car’ – a converted railway carriage – that explains it all in a nutshell. Even though the original rail car has long since been scrapped, the new simulacrum (not fake in a simple way) still references the classic railway carriage of the 1930s.
Cheers
Jerry
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Posted by Jerry on April 2nd, 2007 — Posted in Journal, Travel
Auckland is a harbour city and the architecture reflects several distinct stages of development. There is the late 19th century neo-classical style, such as the Transport Department building
And the outstanding Ferry Building – seen here from Fisherman’s Wharf
There’s the art deco of the 1930s Duckworth Building
And the mix of old and new – neoclassical and in the background a 1970s apartment building and to the right a dramatic sail-like building
And if getting a kinetic sense of height is your kind of sport, then why not jump off the Sky Tower – with a bungie strap attached of course! for the world’s highest bungie jump over dry land. Not for the feint hearted!
The protruding ‘fishing rods’ are the bungie anchor points. But there is a lovely restaurant at the top with a great view over Auckland
And dining is something Auckland is very good at – you can sample Japanese sushi through to delightful Belgian watazooi washed down with a pint of Leffe. You can find the Belgian pub just up this alleyway off Queen Street. The place is well lit and the city is very safe to walk around at night.
Reflecting the nautical theme there is also a good selection of restaurants on Fisherman’s Wharf – a new development to rival wharf conversions around the globe.
It is also home to the Hilton Hotel
My room had a great view of the …er… container handling facility at the wharf. The conference facilities, however, were excellent.
But the architecture is truly diverse, and this one was one of the loveliest buildings in town.
It’s worth walking around the town to get a feel for the place – here is a typical streetscape by night
And who could complain about the public transport when the buses are so expressive!
The weather was perfect and mild for three days – the fourth showed another mood with a decent storm, heavy driving rain and high winds blowing form the south (straight from Antarctica). I watched one person head out at lunchtime with one of teh hotel umbrellas – he re-entered the hotel two minutes later and the umbrella was a mere skeleton! But still the ferries plied their trade – those ferry captains are highly skilled to sail in that weather!
All too soon, the conference was over and it was time to leave. But I think it’s a place I’ll return to before too long.
Cheers
Jerry
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