ktravula – a travelogue!

Browsing the archives for the Observations category.

Art Chicago II

IMG_1907IMG_1913IMG_2066IMG_1937IMG_1985IMG_1914IMG_1948IMG_1967IMG_1959IMG_1939IMG_1964IMG_1969IMG_1902IMG_1958IMG_1986IMG_1976IMG_1972IMG_1980IMG_1981IMG_1978IMG_1977IMG_1974Most of the art works, scruptures and wall reliefs in this collection were shot at the Art Institute of Chicago at South Michigan Avenue. It was our first stop early on Friday morning since the Sears Tower refused to open to visitors on time.

The Art Institute has a collection of world’s most notable

collections of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art. At one million square feet, according to Wikipedia, it is the second largest art museum in the United States behind only the Metropolitan Museum of Artin New York.

“The collection of the Art Institute of Chicago encompasses more than 5,000 years of human expression from cultures around the world and contains more than 260,000 works of art. The art institute holds works of art ranging from as early as the Japanese prints to the most updated American art.”

One of its most famous paintings is this one, best known perhaps to addicts of the ABC tv show, Desperate Housewives.

Art Chicago II was published on November 17th, 2009, with the tags , , , , , , , , under the adventures, Art, Fun, Observations, Travelling category. There are currently 3 comments on this article so far.

The Sears Tower

IMG_1894No visit to the city of Chicago is complete until one reaches the pinnacle of this building, standing on the glass ledge that sometimes bobs with the wind, and looking through the floor to the street 1,353 feet (412 m) below.

Well, it’s no more called by that old and adorable name, The Sears Tower. Now it’s just the Willis Tower since March 2009 – a tribute to the new owners. However, the experience of going up the whole flight of floors to the observation deck at the top of America’s current tallest building is never any less exhilarating. The experience includes a historical tour of the city’s architectural, human, historical and cultural landscapes, and before we got to the top, we had learnt so much more about the city and the influences of its most famous citizens and residents including Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Harrison Ford, Kanye West, Jeniffer Hudson, Ernerst Hemingway, Louis Armstrong among many many others.

Here’s a new ad campaign that plays on the height of the building in relation to the height of some of the city’s famous figures.

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Ask me. “Forget feet, miles or kilometers… the Sears Tower is actually 226 ktravula’s tall.” Go figure.

The trip to the top of the SkyDeck Observatory was not without its thrills, and today I discovered why it was such a thrill to step onto the glass ledge and look down even though we had an illusion of protection from the outside world. Who was the evil genius that came up with the idea of a glass observatory at that kind of height above the ground? We eventually gathered for a few seconds of fright and took the group picture, before we stepped off and headed out through the other way.

IMG_2033Standing on the glass ledgeI will remember this visit to the 103rd storey of the world’s fifth tallest building mostly because of the way the city/investors take maximum advantage of the landmark for their own financial gain. According to the displayed statistics, the building receives 25,000 daily visitors, and it only has 149 staff members. Considering that the amount spent by each visiting tourist is about $50 or thereabout, it is definitely a good long-term investment, along with returns from several other similar buildings in the city, one of which is the John Hancock Building. One could only wonder how much of returns these buildings/structures would have brought to Chicago if the rights to host the Olympics had been given to them. Now, at places around the city, one could still see little torn posters of the city’s Olympic bid: Chicago 2010.

The Sears Tower was published on November 16th, 2009, with the tags , , , , , under the adventures, Fun, Observations category. There are currently 1 comment on this article so far.

Art Chicago

IMG_1933IMG_2071IMG_2212IMG_2342IMG_2343IMG_2222IMG_2251IMG_2355IMG_2283IMG_2294IMG_2259IMG_2301IMG_2223IMG_2214IMG_2298IMG_2269IMG_2315IMG_2323IMG_2094IMG_2125These photos are some of the over five hundred shots that I was able to take on the streets of Chicago. On the first day, I took almost three hundred. Their locations vary, from the Union Bus Station the Sears Towers, Congress Parkway, Navy Pier, Shedd Acquarium, Chicago Arts Institute to Lake Michigan, Michigan Avenue, Buckingham fountain, and Grant Park.

I can’t put them all up at once, that’s for sure. If there’s something else beside the presence of a sense of order and perfection, it’s the picture-perfectness of the much of the city. Well, downtown. I am fairly sure that on the South side, famous for a level of violence, it might not have been the same. However, I hope to visit those not so perfect areas one day in the future. My initiation into this city could not be complete with only a view of its picture-perfect sides.

Enjoy the photos.
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Art Chicago was published on November 16th, 2009, with the tags , , under the adventures, Art, Fun, Observations category. There are currently 4 comments on this article so far.

Just Signs

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Just Signs was published on November 15th, 2009, with the tags , , , , under the adventures, Art, Observations category. There are currently no comments on this article so far.

Chicago

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  • Indian guys with ear pads and who don’t smile back.
  • Freezing fingers.
  • Uniformed Chauffeurs in front of really tall buildings.
  • Two second eye contact.
  • Puerto Rican Salvation Army volunteer who doesn’t get annoyed when he insists that he’s not from Mexico.
  • Busy-looking pedestrians with carry-ons, heading nowhere, heading somewhere.
  • African-American Salvation Army volunteers who dance, who ring bells, who sing while selling two dollar leaflets.
  • Tall building that block the morning sun.
  • Two jokes from a street vendor:
  • 1. “Here’s the secret to playing golf: Wear two socks just in case you get a hole in one.” Ah-ha!
  • 2. “Q: What’s Beethoven’s favourite fruit? A: Banananana.”
  • An Art Institute with endless exit corridors that lead into one another.
  • An art institute with exits that pass through a gift shop.
  • Museum officials who speak French.
  • Bennigans Grill and Tavern with 15 mins waiting time.
  • Senseless arguments on the differences in champagne and white sparkling wine.
  • Exhilaration on the Sky Deck overlooking the famous city.
  • Problematic calculations on tipping.
  • Slow Africans at traffic go lights.
  • Grant Park.
  • Traffic lights.
  • Tourists with the slowest feet.
  • Impatient Africans at traffic stop lights.
  • A city that never stops demanding.
  • The Magnificent Mile.
  • Cold Wind
  • Fast-moving feet.
  • Pedestrians that keep walking even when the sign says “stop”.
  • Road signs that read “West” when it means to read “East”.
  • White working-class women with iPods earplugs who text while crossing the road.
  • Tax on food purchased at restaurants which doesn’t include tips.
  • Waitresses who smile.
  • Old white men who don’t acknowledge greeting nods.
  • Old black men who seek eye contact.

It’s Chicago, the windy city. It’s Chi-town, birthplace of Hillary Clinton in the land of Lincoln.

It is Chicago, a city on the Michigan Lake. It’s Chi-town, home of the president. A city of lights and lightening warmth. A city that sleeps with its eyes wide open.

Chicago was published on November 14th, 2009, with the tags , , under the adventures, Fun, Observations, Soliloquy, Travelling category. There are currently no comments on this article so far.