Philadelphia: The Global Colonial...

Today marks the weekend that is the unofficial start of summer but with wind, rain and gray skies, I'm not sure we'll be getting much summer, unofficial or not, quite yet.  No matter, time to snuggle up with one of my favorite indulgences...magazines! We just got our housing assignment for Copenhagen and looks like we'll be headed to a house.  Gah! Having spent the last 17 years comfortably entrenched in dorms, apartments and shared spaces, I find the whole concept of a free standing home rather daunting.  Seems kind of grown up too...But I guess I'm a grown up now, so time to figure this whole house thing out!

I came across this Philadelphia home - to close out our Philly week - in the Elle Decor archives.  It's actually from 2003 so no idea if the home is still there.  But this is a Philly Colonial belonging to Keith Johnson, the antiques buyer for Anthropologie and Glen Senk, CEO of Urban Outfitters.  These two gentlemen seem to nail that global mix every time, and while I'm not sure if they have the house, the fact that it looks just as interesting and fresh ten years later is a testament to the lasting nature of their style.  Like their style? Check out their NYC digs too.

Photographed by Simon Upton for Elle Decor.

Philadelphia: The Barnes Foundation

One place I didn't make it to in Philadelphia is the Barnes Foundation.  The Philadelphia Campus of the museum reopened not too long ago in a ridiculously amazing building! Of course the one day I had had the time to go was the one day a week that it's closed (Tuesday).

However, the museum is pretty fantastic with its online presence and you can give yourself a virtual tour of some of the best pieces from its collection.  It features lots of American artists - Charles Demuth and William James Glackens are two that caught my eye for teh colors and feel of their work.  And they're not ones that I had heard of before (I'm sure my mother is sighing heavily at my ignorance right now).

And the collection is rounded out by an incredible amount of Gaguin (top), Modigliani, and Matisse.  And what is up with the Matisse collections on the Eastern Seaboard?  Just last week I checked out the Baltimore Museum of Art with my niece and that's the largest collection of the Matisse in the WORLD. For some reason, I had no idea that this is where the bulk of his work was (again, cue more sighing from my mother).


It's funny - I know sometimes institutions and artists are hesitant to put work up online because they feel like people won't come to see the real thing.  Maybe it's just me but I'm completely the opposite. After seeing and learning a bit more about the museum, it is definitely at the top of my list for my next visit to Philly. 



Philadelphia: 30th Street Station...

What do you do when you try really hard to make that earlier train but miss it by literally 30 seconds? Well, apart from march right back to the ticket window dismayed, there are always pictures to take. Especially at the Philadelphia 30th Street Station...

I have kind of a soft spot for this place...I waited for someone to pick me up here once so maybe it's just memories of younger days...I got the whole twirl upon pick up and everything.  Everyone should be picked up at a station and twirled around at least once I think...

There's kind of a familiar feeling about the station...like you've seen the architecture before.  To some degree, I guess it brings to mind a bit of Grand Central, or the maybe Union Station in LA (which I've been dying to see in person - ever since seeing it stand in for NY in Pearl Harbor the movie (yes, I still love that movie)). But the station was actually designed by a Chicago based architecture firm so it's got a touch of that Chicago art deco in it too (remember the Chicago architecture cruise?)

Actually, in reading up on the station (as one has time to do when they've missed their train), I learned that the reason that the trains in Philadelphia...and NYC...and up and down the NE Corridor are underground was to let trains pass below without everyone getting constant doses of steam and soot that the earlier trains had.  Kind of neat, I never really realized there was a reason for that.  And apparently the Philadelphia was full of all sorts of innovations, most of which make us smile with curiousity now I bet:  

"The station had a number of innovative features, including a pneumatic tube system, an electronic intercom, and a reinforced roof with space for small aircraft to land, and contained a mortuary, a chapel and more than 3,000 square feet of hospital space.^"

It just makes you realize what a hub of life train stations used to be, I guess almost like an airport now. Though I don't know how many airports have hospital space (or pneumatic tubes, email takes the place of that...)

One of the most striking things you notice is the memorial statue, and while I've dashed by it on several occassions, I actually had the time to read the dedication.  It's a memorial to employees of the Pennsylvania Railroad who lost their lives in WWII, specifically inscribing that all travelers passing through the station remember them.  I didn't know how many employees of a railroad could have lost their lives in the war, even one as big as WWII, but it's 1,307 to be exact - and all of their names are listed there.  I can only imagine how acutely that must have been felt by others at the railroad.

It's the very retro and art deco touches that really make this place something to take in - the forged iron taxi cab signs, the uplit platform numbers jutting out, the extremely vertical windows and columns, the long polished wooden benches, and the light fixtures (many of which reminded me of Cafe Bazar in Salzburg which had much of the same feel).  But the station isn't all retro either - the station has several contemporary installations in place around the waiting area.  For as much as the structure is one of the great building of the past, the installations help to ground it in the present as well.

I can only begin to guess how many people have sat on those benches waiting for a train, and on that day, I was one of them.  In the end, an extra hour at the 30th Street Station was an hour well spent.

Philadelphia: Carnaval de Puebla...

So with all the travel in the past couple of weeks, I've been looking forward to sharing some of the highlights from all of the trips.  Starting with Philadelphia - in fact, I think we might even have a bit of a Philly-themed week?

And first up is not so much Philly itself (though there's plenty more of that to come!) but just a touch of Mexico in Philly. In this city, Cinco de Mayo is not just one day, it's ONE WEEK - starting with the Carnaval de Puebla parade that kicks off the festivities.

And we saw the parade while out on a mission to have cheesesteaks, so it's just about as Philly meets Mexico as it gets.  While deciding "wit" or "wit out" (more on that to come too), the sound of horns filled the air...then percussion...the just full on marching band.

We didn't know what the parade was about at the time but according to Philadelphia's Uwishunu:

"The event kicks off Cinco de Mayo festivities, which celebrate the Battle of Puebla in 1862, when Mexican forces in Puebla, Mexico successfully kept foreign invaders out of the country. Thousands of festival participants dress up in traditional costume to represent historic individuals from the monumental battle. Folks dressed in bearded masks, capes, headdresses and other garb reenact Mexican folk dramas from Puebla..."

Maybe it was my perception, but the whole parade stopped for a loooooooooooong time in front of Geno's Steaks -  perhaps to order in english? But probably to make a point.

But I think the neatest thing about the parade was the willingness of all the participants to share it - they knew people were watching and that they likely had questions.  Periodically revelers would stop to take pictures with spectators, they would lets kids touch parts of the costume or try on pieces, and I saw on several occassions paraders stop to answer questions patiently from spectators about what things meant on costumes or what the event was.  It just seemed like even though it was clearly a cultural event for a particular nationality, the intent was to share that nationality with a broader community.

The most fun to watch, of course, are the littlest revelers.  But even with all the bands and excitement, a few still preferred a nap tucked away...

Happy Monday!

 Ahhh, sometimes, it's just nice to be home -and a weekend at home is what we finally got.  I'm looking forward to this this week as well, just more home time before travels pick up again.  We finally got a departure date for Copenhagen as well - last day of July, so let the countdown begin!

In the meantime, links for your Monday!

• Paris…one neighborhood at a time.
• And speaking of Paris, geometric projections that are only proportional some of the time.
• A playlist to get moving by one of biggest fitness crazes out there.
• Poseidon’s beautiful bride.
• The most iconic flats worn by some pretty iconic girls of today   (via Note to Self)
• 100 social media stats. 
• A little girl honors some very inspiring women. 
• Annoyed by having to pay for luggage? Me too.  But that adds up to $6 Billion for airlines. 
• I love blackberries.  And cobbler.  Good combination, yes?
• Like interiors and lifestyles? 15 instagram feeds for you.
• I’ve always thought that people in New York really live like this. 
• When I think of the underwater world, I think of color, but this black and white version can be just as compelling. 
• Glamping in yurts in Norway – adding this to my growing scandi list!  
• I have always been meaning to do a weekend here and now it’s listed as one of America’s Best Little Beach Towns.
• SO excited to give these prints a try, from one of my favorite photo book companies. 
• How a Tokyo Bride becomes a bride…and then how she goes back to being herself after. 
• A notebook case for your iphone.
• A workout done in 7 minutes? You be the judge.   (via Bunny and Dolly)
• Reading to kids when one of their parents is deployed.
• Looking forward to trying some chocolate tarts new to our neighborhood this weekend – hooray for being home!.  
• We might be leaving DC soon but these three new shows are just starting here. 

And what you might have missed last week:

• Sunrise at the Vietnam Memorial
• A necklace that reminds me of North Dakota
• A quick trip to Charlottesville
• Lessons for Clara from Monticello