Showing posts with label art. Show all posts
Showing posts with label art. Show all posts

Friday, October 11, 2019

24 Hour Girls’ Getaway in Chicago, Part 2

It was a very comfortable night at the Hyatt Centric the Loop in Chicago.

We were able to take our time in the morning and I was excited to find out my friend and fellow writer, Kristine Hansen, was in town. We met for breakfast at Cochon Valent Brasserie, just downstairs from the hotel.

Their blueberry pancakes were loaded with fruit and as delicious as everything always is there.

My Joan picked something up to eat and relaxed in the room. and we met up to head over to the Art Institute of Chicago.


I have been to the Art Institute many times. I try to check out all of their special exhibits as well as some of the smaller ones. The exhibition that brought me here this time was Manet and Modern Beauty. 

Edouard Manet was a late 19th century painter known for what was a modern style at the time. He especially flourished when painting women.

The collection, the first of its kind in 50 years, was well worth a trip, but we decided to spend some time looking around. I stopped at some of my favorite classics, including Edward Hopper’s “Night Hawk” and Georgia O’Keefe’s “Cow’s Skull with Calico Roses.” We also saw a temporary exhibit dedicated to artist Jeanne Spring.

Before we left the museum, we stopped to take a look through the powerful display, “The AIDs Crisis Is Still Beginning.” It included newspaper clippings from around the world, showing the history of the crisis. George Bordowitz, I want to Be Well (after 1977 Ramones song) artist 30 years, spent half of his life with AIDS Professor at University of Chicago. Many pieces were from his own collection.


We checked out of the Hyatt Centric Loop. I wish we had been able to check out the Aire Rooftop Bar, but it had been closed before we got back the night before and hadn’t opened yet when we left. Next time!

We chose a very unusual place for lunch. Pinstripes in Chicago is a welcoming place for families or adults to have a lot of fun at, while enjoying good food. Think Chuck E Cheese for gourmets!

You can start here with the activity, food, or drinks. Unfortunately, we didn’t have the time for the fun, but we did get to watch other people.

Pinstripes has bowling, even offering shoes for rent. There’s also bocce ball.

As for the food, we loved everything we had. The Stuffed Mushrooms were served warm and gooey, just out of the oven, and were stuffed with goat cheese, spinach, and zucchini.

For the main course, the wood fired oven, which is visible to guests, looked to good to pass up and we ordered pizzas.

I had the Eggplant Flatbread, which had pistachio sprinkled on top for extra flavor, and Joan went for the Margherita. We had plenty left to take home.

Joan agreed with the popular opinion that the Strawberry Shortcake, served in a jar, was fantastic.

Pinstripes Chicago has a full bar that includes many local beers, a selection of wine, and handcrafted cocktails. I sipped a Riesling while Joan thought the Limoncello Martini was great.

Sunday, April 22, 2018

Art and Food in Lafayette, Indiana

My friend Jaimee and I had arrived in Lafayette, Indiana, the previous day for a quick getaway.

It had been a few years since I was here and I had no idea how much there was to see – and eat.


We woke up in our spacious two-bedroom accommodation at the TownePlace Suites by Marriott Lafayette .

Although the hotel offers a big complimentary breakfast, we already had plans for brunch at Town & Gown Bistro.

Town & Gown is much bigger than it looks on the outside. It has two floors and they were both full of patrons.


Matt O’Neill, former innkeeper and chef at Walden Inn, and author of “Seasons at the Walden Inn,” has made a name for himself in this city.

It was easy to figure out why after we finished eating. 
Chef O’Neill uses fresh and local ingredients and puts his touch on common brunch items. 

Jaimee raved about her eggs benedict, and I thought the house-made corned beef hash was fantastic, as were my latte and eggs.

After we finished eating, we headed downtown for our art-filled day.

The first stop was at L.E. Originals, where Linda Elmore gave us a demonstration on how she makes her beautiful beads.




It was very interesting and I enjoyed looking at all her designs in the shop. 

Among them are the beads she creates from photographs, something she is awaiting a patent on.



Linda gave us each a bracelet with one of her beads before we headed down the block to Artists’ Own.

Artists’ Own is a cooperative for Indiana artists. 



Within the large space, they sell everything from stained glass to pottery, paintings to handmade clothing. 

We looked around at the vastly different items for a while before purchasing a few things and heading out.


I was very impressed with the Art Museum of Lafayette. It’s an art haven for the community.

Although we saw a few exhibits (they change often), I liked learning about the classes they gave for adults and children, as well as summer camps. 

We even took a look into the pottery studio.





We had lunch at a popular spot downtown, RedSeven Grill

Jaimee got a Sex in the City cocktail to start (Blue Curacao, Peach Schnapps, Chambord, Grey Goose Vodka, and pineapple juice) and we shared an appetizer of Chicken Pot Stickers, which were delicious.

For main courses, Jaimee loved the steak-filled Black and Blue Salad. 

I had a bowl of their homemade tomato bisque and some of their very tasty Pecan Chicken Rollups.

We didn’t have dessert at RedSeven because we knew or last stop of the day was at a bakery, however, we were still too full to do any sampling. 



Sweet Revolution Bake Shop graciously packed up a box filled with goodies, which we thoroughly enjoyed over the days. 

Although I usually favor chocolate treats, their vanilla cupcakes and light and airy French macaroons are out of this world. 


The Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie is also a must-try.

The Bakery, led by pastry chef Sarah McGregor-Ray, who has partnered with brother Jonathan McGregor, was known in the neighborhood for years at the local Farmer’s Market.

They opened this busy shop last summer. Don’t go to Lafayette without making a stop there. 

Check for the best hotel prices in Lafayette now at TripAdvisor. 

Tuesday, August 15, 2017

King Tut and Dinner on the River in St. Louis

It was a beautiful summer day and my friend Betty and I were heading to St. Louis.

We were going to spend the afternoon at the St. Louis Science Center before taking off on a Gateway Arch River Cruise for dinner.

We decided to leave the car in the lot by the boat and take an Uber to the museum and back. 

The cruises left right below the Gateway Arch and we had quite a view from that spot.

The St. Louis Science Center is located within Forest Park. Like the other museums there, it is free to the public.

We didn’t realize that the museum closed at 5:00 pm so we couldn’t see it all, but we had enough time to go through the main thing we came for:

The King Tut Exhibit.

With our tickets we received our recorders for the guided audio tour. 

I really didn’t know what to expect since it had been many years since I had seen anything on King Tut. 

This exhibit was so much more than I ever expected.

It is set up so that you are walking in the steps of archaeologist Howard Carter when he discovers the King Tutankhamun site in 1922. Nothing else like it had ever been found.

The exhibit then takes you through the tomb and the artifacts, including the mummy cases and tomb treasures. 

It consists of lots of gold in every shape and form.

Betty and I were both amazed at all of this splendor, created thousands of years ago with minimal tools.

The King Tut Exhibit is open at the St. Louis Science Center through January 7, 2018. There is a charge for this exhibit, but it is definitely worth it.

We had some time before the river cruise and we had Uber driver take us around Forest Park. 

I had been to the Art Museum and the Zoo, but hadn’t spent any significant time in the park since I was a kid.
Our driver had us back at the boat in time for the cruise. We had not had any substantial food all day and couldn’t wait.

The tables were reserved and the buffet was set up when we boarded. There was a banjo player and Betty and I each order a glass of wine and began to relax.

Dinner on the Gateway River Cruise included a beef carving station, chicken, fish, vegetables, potatoes, fruit, and pasta salad.

We helped ourselves to full portions and the food was very good.


The dessert was a choice of Red Velvet and Chocolate Fudge cakes. I had a little of each and they were both delicious.

It was a beautiful night and the ride along the Mississippi River was wonderful. 

We went outside to catch the sunset and watch the boat get ready to dock.

Dinner cruises, which you can reserve on the website, run through October and start back up in April.

The one-hour sightseeing cruises go until November and start again in March.


Thursday, July 21, 2016

Introduction to Grand Rapids and LaughFest

I had been to Grand Rapids only once, for a short trip. I was happy to return with my friend Lisa to explore the city and attend my first LaughFest.

The annual event is in honor of Gilda Radner, a former comedian best known for her role on Saturday Night Live. Radner, who was married to fellow actor Gene Wilder, died in 1989 of ovarian cancer.

The Michigan native is the namesake of Gilda’s Club, which helps those affected by cancer. LaughFest raises money each year for this worthy cause.

Lisa and I checked into the largest hotel in the city, the Amway Grand Plaza, Curio Collection by Hilton.

The hotel is quite opulent and the service was great from the start. Our room had a great view of the river.

We quickly got settled in and headed downtown to the Grand Rapids Art Museum.

As we walked the few blocks to the museum we could see that the entire city was ready for LaughFest.

Signs and logo products were everywhere, especially the art museum where the official headquarters was.

We spent some time going through the museum, which had quite a lot of art from Michigan artists as well as additional exhibits from around the world.

Lisa and I returned to the hotel for dinner at The Kitchen by Wolfgang Puck. We found both the cocktail and food menu of small plates to be quite eclectic.

We ordered a Passionfruit Cosmopolitan and a Wolfgang Puck Margarita, and sat back trying to narrow down the menu. 

We ended up with a well-rounded group of small plates: Gnocchi, Kale, Roasted Mushroom Truffle Pizza (our favorite).

For dessert, we shared a Crème Brulee and a Chocolate Molten Cake.

After dinner, we left the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel and headed to our first LaughFest event, comedian Anjelah Johnson at the Fountain Street Church.

This church is best described by the headline of their website, “Fountain Street Church is about deeds more than creeds.

About liberation more than salvation. About justice more than righteousness. If these principles strike a chord with you, please visit us.”

It is spectacular – especially the art and stained glass -- but it was a bit strange for some people having it used for adult comedy!

Lisa and I just enjoyed Anjelah’s show, which was quite good.

It was only about 9:00 when it finished and we decided to head over to The BOB for the Chris Farley Tribute Night.

The LaughFest event was over by the time we arrived, but we checked out this large restaurant, with multiple bars and stages for live music.

We wondered over to one of those bars at The BOB and were enamored with a drink on the menu: Not Your Father’s Float.

Although I’m not a beer drinker, I do love hard root beer and Not Your Father’s is my favorite.

Fortunately, we only ordered one because the huge concoction not only included the root beer, but also had Pinnacle Whipped Vodka, vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, and chocolate sauce!

It took us a while to get through it. We decided we needed to burn the calories so we walked back to the Amway Grand Plaza by Hilton. It was a busy today, but the next was going to have even more for us to do in Grand Rapids.


Sunday, June 5, 2016

Enjoying Galena

My friend Cortney and I had arrived in Galena the afternoon before and were really enjoying the area. For day two, we had a full schedule and we were up early to take it all in.

The Goldmoor Inn is an incredible property on the Mississippi River. Their spacious rooms and suites include a freshly cooked gourmet breakfast each morning.

While the chef makes one breakfast each day, they are flexible for special needs and allergies.

Our first breakfast consisted of warm scones, fresh fruit, juice, coffee, and a delicious omelet.

We took a ride to nearby Stockton, a small town within Galena/Jo County. We were first stopping at NorthWest Design Glass.

Northwest Glass is owned by Pennie, Daryl and Drew Groezinger.  They sell unique glass jewelry, ornaments, and other décor.

We browsed around the shop while Pennie finished up some work. She then gave us a glassblowing demonstration, which I don’t think I’d seen before.

After the demonstration, Cortney and I headed to downtown Stockton. It’s a quaint little town.

We had lunch at Stella’s Cafe. There were lots of locals, who you could tell come in there all the time.

The food was warm and comforting on the cool day. I had cream of chicken soup and pesto garlic bread with tomato, while Cortney went for the crabmeat egg rolls.

For dessert, we both devoured the red velvet cheesecake and chocolate torte.

Before we left Stockton, we went across the street to Sweet Alice’s. The bakery and candy shop is owned by the same family that owns Stella’s.

They have some great candies and cookies there, and we took some samples to go.

We drove back to the Goldmoor Inn for some rest before a long night. I was surprised at how curvy the roads in Galena are. It was certainly not what I was used to in Illinois.

We headed to Blaum Brothers Distillery for a tour of their operations, which they call “Handcrafted American Spirits from Grain to Bottle.”

They take fairly large groups through the distillery throughout the day to see their state of the art equipment and taste their vodka, gin, bourbon, and moonshine.

We had arranged the trip to coincide with Night of the Luminaria and Living Windows, two events that take place in Galena on the same night each December.

We were going to try to see as much as possible. We also wanted to stop in some of the wine tasting rooms along the way.

We parked at the end of downtown Galena and began walking through the streets. There were a lot of people, but it didn’t seem over crowded.

Many of the stores participated in the Living Windows displays. They ranged from characters acting out scenes in costume, to people baking, and even a couple getting married in a window!

The streets were closed to traffic and there were carolers walking and a belly dancer.

We passed some interesting places, such as Mean Bean Roaster, where you could design your own blend of coffee, and Timothy’s Table Bulk & Specialty Food Store, to which we returned the next day to get bags of Lucky Charm-like marshmallows.

Cortney and I also stopped at Galena Canning, where they offer endless samples of jams, jellies, salsas, and more, before going to the wineries.

We spent the longest time at Massbach Ridge. They had a large with some wines we really liked including their Seyval.

Dinner was at One Eleven Main. They are known for using many in-season ingredients and even have a board when you walk in listing some of what you’ll see on the current menu.

We started with a glass of moscato and the Beer Cheese Fondue. I had the duck for dinner and Cortney went for the pasta with shrimp. For dessert, we shared their Chocolate Roll.

After dinner, we took the Night of the Luminaria TrolleyRide. In the spring and summer months, the trolley takes you around Galena. 

For this special night, the tour includes some of the spots that are most lit up.

Our trolley driver had told us the best place for cocktails in town is Miss Kitty’s Grape Escape and we had to see for ourselves.

There was live music and we both liked the atmosphere and the spectacular three-page cocktail list. There were martinis, hot drinks, beer cocktails, and plenty of sweet libations.

Cortney went for one of the fruit martinis and I went for Death by Chocolate (Hot Cocoa, Kahlua, Chocolate Vodka).


We stayed for a bit before getting a cab back to the Goldmoor Inn. It had been quite a day in Galena and we had one more to go.