Thursday, October 29, 2009

Artsy Ventura

Living on the pacific coast with over 800 miles of coastline in California makes for a lot of seaside towns. Each one offers something unique and charming in it's own right giving us lots of opportunity for exploration. It's a daunting task to visit them all but not impossible. Believe it or not we had never stopped to visit Ventura on any of our many trips up north. I read in the paper that Ventura was to host their annual art walk last weekend so off we went on Sunday. We arrived just about noon as the morning marine layer was rising from it's slumber over this quaint little town. Sure, Ventura is sprawling like every other southland town but the downtown area is a well-preserved slice of days gone by, flanked at either end with gorgeous parks and nestled in by the beach to the west and a stunning hilltop City Hall in the Beaux Arts architecture to the east.

We started the day at the Savory Cafe & Bakery. The ambiance itself could be described as sort of old world European furnished with antiques and other warm touches mashed with a laid back beachy vibe in an indoor-outdoor California style. We shared a large Tuscan table in the middle of the restaurant with other folks where they offer, amongst other savory dishes, create-your-own crepes with a litany of ingredients to choose from - I picked prosciutto, basil, caramelized garlic, and gruyere - and it was delish. Hand-cut pommes frites with a creamy garlic dipping sauce is sure to tantalize your palate.

As usual we didn't plan very well but it was all new and interesting to us so we just meandered around as we fancied. The Art Walk features stone-workers but other works like glass, paintings, photography, iron works, jewelry, wood-work and more were on display as well. Many of the downtown merchants use their shops and showrooms to host the artists' work and others open their studios for the event. There's a thrift store or antique mall on each block and Damon hit them all. It was late in the day when I decided to venture off on my own to discover the "art".

My favorite thing was a trio of metal works in a roots & branches nature series. At $1500.00 it was more than I was willing to invest at this time in history but I covet the simplistic design yet painstaking execution of the metal worker. I was also drawn to various stone carvings made from California materials in organic shapes. A wood carver was showing exquisite boxes he'd made from a variety of local woods beautifully constructed with precision. It was a wonderful day discovering new artists and another lovely California beach town.

Monday, October 12, 2009

Crisp, Clean, Green - Chicago!

I had the welcomed opportunity to visit Chicago to celebrate my dad's University graduation held at Navy Pier. I had been before many years ago and couldn't wait to return. But with so many places I haven't been and wish to go repeat visits require a compelling excuse.

A friend recommended a fantastic hotel in a perfect location right on the river at the Southern end of the Magnificent Mile. Vistas of the newly built Trump Tower and historic Wrigley and Chicago Tribune buildings filled the sight line from our room's window. As a destination city weekends are very busy and this was no exception since Chicago was hosting the marathon, one of the biggest worldwide because they do not limit the number of entrants. There were 45,000 runners just adjacent our hotel so we awoke to cheers audible 28 stories in the sky as they passed. And it seemed like every one of them was trying to get atop the (former) Sears Tower on the day that I was! Consequently, I didn't wait the 2 hours it would have been to view the city and Lake Michigan from the glass floor sky deck of the newly named Willis Building.

Unfortunately I arrived in Chitown with the flu. As the weekend progressed so did my cold. What misery being in a gastronomic mecca like Chicago with no taste buds! I did pig out on Chicago style pizza though and boy does it live up to its reputation. My dad wanted to see Jersey Boys, the musical story of the Four Seasons that's gaining accolades nationwide. In general I hate musicals but since the weekend was devoted to my dad I begrudgingly went along. The story itself was not captivating but the music was fantastic. Those songs were the soundtrack of my youth and it really took me down memory lane. The lead playing Frankie Valli was a replica of his distinctive, signature high-pitched voice.

The highlight of the weekend for me was the river architecture tour. It was a frigid 31 degrees on the uncovered vessel. Traveling along the Chicago river the guide gives a history of the skyscrapers that loom over the city putting into context the building, the era and the architect and the relationship they share with Chicago. It was a gorgeous sunny day, albeit cold, in this lovely lakeside town so my brother and I decided to venture down to museum park and visit the Aquarium. I thought it was a complete rip off, besides the fact that I have a problem with wild life held in captivity after having been in the wild. But we had an adventure anyway, met some really nice people and saw first hand why Chicago is considered one of the greenest cities in America.

Chicago has a public transportation system that's both efficient and effective- the metro, the "L" trains, buses and cabs - all reduce the carbon footprint in a city of nearly 3 million. In addition it takes top marks for being the best biking city in the US. Miles of lakefront bike paths equipped with bicycle cafes, repair centers, parking spaces, etc. really encourage this mode of transport/sport/exercise. One of the most obvious things I noticed was the flushers on toilets - up for water waste, down for solid - really cutting down on the amount of water used.

While I didn't get to do everything I wanted in Chicago, no matter what you do it's a good time in this vibrant, energetic city warmed by old fashioned mid-western hospitality.