Category Archives: Travel

Views of Falling Water

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Speaking of field details…

I don’t know if Frank Lloyd Wright was being disingenuous in accommodating a tree among the beams of his entry walkway or not. I imagine his respect for the tree was genuine because there’s no mistaking his love of the site expressed in the interaction of the house with the rock boulders in the landscape. Take a look at the natural rock formation in the photo below.

This photo was taken from one of the bedroom decks looking down toward the living room. From the living-room deck looking back toward the kitchen, it is the rock formation on the right.

Instead of blasting the rocks away, the architect accommodated them inside the house in a number of places. You can see them as you head down the narrow stairway to the basement and in the basement itself.

The exterior wall of the kitchen sits directly on the natural rock. Dressed rock is added sparingly to make a good fit.

Windows extend below the counter down to the floor so that from inside the kitchen there is no mistaking the relationship between the house and its landscape. (The copper tray below the counter is sitting directly on the floor–the part of the natural rock that is inside the kitchen.)

In the living room, the part of the rock inside the house is revealed as the hearthstone.

More than any other single feature, I think, the use of living rock as the house’s central hearth reveals the architect’s deep love of the site landscape.

Views of Falling Water

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I can’t say that field details are the best part about Falling Water, but they sure are great.

A field detail is a part of the structure that responds to a particular feature of the site, as opposed to those details drawn up as part of the design. It shows a great tenderness on the part of the architect toward a natural feature–the willingness to bend or alter the building out of pure respect and appreciation for what’s already there.

The walkway to the front door, for example, is shaded by an arcade of non-weight-bearing beams. I can’t be sure, but here is what looks to me like a field detail of one of the beams.

The tree looks a bit young, since the house was built in 1936-39. I’d guess that this detail was built to accommodate some other, older tree that has since passed along to the Great Tree Heaven in the Sky; and the owners ay have replaced it with a similar but younger tree to preserve the meaning and sense of the detail.

Isn’t this in fact the most eloquent evidence of a reciprocal love affair between the building (architect/owner) and its natural environment? The love in this detail moves me to tears.

Views of Falling Water

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Cantilevers

One of the hallmark features of Falling Water is its cantilevered reinforced-concrete decks, which fly with apparent weightlessness over the rushing water.

After Wright completed the drawings, the client–meaning the guy who not only paid the bills but also planned to live in the house–took the drawings to a professor of engineering at, I believe, Carnegie Mellon. The professor studied the drawings and warned that the decks would fall down. Fortunately, Frank Lloyd Wright managed to convince the client otherwise, and the house was built as designed.

In particular, the deck off the living room was the one in question (the lower deck in the first picture). Here are some views of it.

Years later, structural analysis revealed that the decks were in fact deflecting, with the far ends having sagged about eight inches. Post-tensioning was added to stabilize the structure. The deck has come up a little and is no longer sinking.

A graduate student later analyzed one of the upper decks and revealed that it, too, was beginning to deflect. His calculations were confirmed on site, and that deck too has now been stabilized.

Looks like Falling Water is here for the long run. Thank heavens!

Views of Falling Water

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Falling Water is so exquisite, one has to wonder, How did Frank Lloyd Wright ever come up with the idea for it?

I believe that the idea was all around him in plain sight. Horizontal striations dominate the Western Pennsylvania limestone rock that abounds on the site, contrasting stunningly with the vertical trees of the forest and the rushing water.

Wright’s unique genius–which cannot be overstated–was to see how this forested horizontal structure could manifest as a house.

Can you see the likeness? Here’s one little creature that seems to.

Views of Falling Water

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I just returned from a trip with my mom to Falling Water, the well-known Frank Lloyd Wright house in Western Pennsylvania whose decks are cantilevered over a waterfall. You know the one.

Yes, that one. Most people have seen this view, but the amazing thing about Falling Water is that every view of the house, from its setting and relationship with its surroundings down to even the smallest interior detail, is beautiful.

Because I went on the so-called “In-Depth Tour,” which allows participants to take photographs, I am now sorting through and organizing a deluge of photos, and so I’m temporarily suspending the “Views from Golden Grove” series while I plow through these photos. I am truly privileged to be able to share some of them with you over the next few posts.

Enjoy!

Airport Security – the Ice Pack Saga

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Dan and I are just crazy about Maryland crabcakes. And it turns out, not surprisingly, that the best place to get Maryland crabcakes is, well, Maryland. And the best place in Maryland that we’ve found so far is the G&M Restaurant in Linthicum, conveniently located just a mile or so from BWI airport.

I used to bring crabcakes home all the time before security cracked down on bringing liquids in carry-on luggage. Then it got more complicated. With the ice packs, I’d have to check a bag, and I never want to do that, not if I can avoid it. Sure it’s the money (the crabcakes are expensive enough!), but it’s also the extra time at the airport waiting for the checked bag. And what if the bag damaged? What if it’s lost?

So, we were out of crabcakes and I decided it was time to find out just exactly what the TSA’s rule is regarding a material that is a liquid when at room temperature but is frozen solid when being carried through security. There is nothing about this on their Web site, so I wrote to them and asked. A response came promptly. Here is what they said:

“TSA permits regular ice, frozen gel packs, and dry ice in checked and carry-on baggage.  Frozen items are allowed so long as they are solid and in a “frozen state” when presented for screening.  If frozen items are partially melted or have any liquid at the bottom of the container, the ice/liquid container must meet 3-1-1 requirements.”

So in April I froze up some ice packs and prepared for a trip to Maryland.

“Better bring a copy of that email with you,” Dan advised. And so I did.

Sure enough. When I went through security, they saw the ice packs in my bag. "It's ice packs," I kept explaining. "Frozen ice packs." They ignored me. They pulled my bag out for detailed searching. The person checking my suitcase was a supervisor. “Are you aware of TSA regulations regarding liquids?”

“Yes sir.” I whisked the TSA email out of my pack. “They say it’s okay to carry on a frozen ice pack”

He read it carefully, frowning. Finally he figured out what I had done wrong. “You have to declare this kind of thing so that we can check it. I checked it. It’s okay. You want to pack up your things?”

And so I was able to carry my ice packs aboard and to bring my crabcakes home. Yesterday I went through the exercise again. I packed three ice packs, two thicker, newer ones, and an older one that was nice and thin, good for slipping into the suitcase. All solidly frozen. I put them in ziplock bags and “declared” them separately as I’d been instructed. And it turned out that the older ice pack has some air in it, so that even frozen it’s just a little squishy, not perfectly solid.

“This one’s not frozen,” the security agent said. “It’s squishy. What’s it for?”

“I’m going to be bringing back crabcakes. Also frozen.”

“This one’s not frozen.”

“Yes it is. I just took it out of the freezer half an hour ago.”

“It’s supposed to be only for medication.”

“That’s not true. I wrote to the TSA about this and I have an email from them that puts it in the category of foodstuffs. They said I could bring it as long as it’s frozen.”

“This one’s not frozen. It’s squishy.”

“It’s frozen. Really it is. There’s just some air in it. I took it out of the freezer less than an hour ago. Been in there for a week.”

“Well, I’ll let you on with it this time, but if it’s squishy it’s not frozen.”

I am effusively grateful. “Oh, thank you so much.”

Gaahh! These frozen ice packs just don’t mix well with airport security contractors. I wonder what adventure awaits me on the way home.

Views near Golden Grove

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Okay, today I am cheating. There–I’ve admitted it. If a person admits she is cheating, is it still cheating?

I am writing this post from Florida, where it has been unseasonably cold. It is still far less cold than the seasonable weather in New England, though, so I am not complaining. I’m actually quite cheerful about being here, where the days are bright enough for sunglasses, and the sun doesn’t set until about 5:30pm.

Here is a Florida picture (not Block Island!) from last Thursday at about 6pm. This picture was taken looking out over the intracoastal waterway from Lake Park, Florida.

Yes, the water really was that pink!

Cruise Day 15: Our wonderful staff

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The Serenade of the Seas is steaming (or actually jetting) toward San Diego, and on this last full, crowded, chaotic day of the cruise, I’d like to write about our wonderful staff. With pictures.

If only Royal Caribbean could distribute more widely the magic that their staff has on board Serenade of the Seas, they could make the world a significantly better place. Here are people who are away from their families and their friends and their homes for months at a time. They must be sad and lonely at times, and yet they always have a smile and a friendly greeting for everyone. They come from all over the world, all different backgrounds and cultures and religions, and yet they work together as a supportive team.

May I present some of the warmest, most smiling people in the world:

Wayan, from Bali, Indonesia makes sure that our cabin is always perfectly ready for us, down to a full bucket of fresh ice.

Wayan

Our wait staff—Remi from Mumbai, India is our personal hero in the dining room. We’ve set him particular challenges, such as metamorphosing “Surf and Turf” into a double-lobster “Surf and Surf”, and he has always accomplished them. Remi is supported by the lively Liodela from Colombia and our competent head waiter Puran Singh from New Delhi. I’ll show Remi and Liodela first.

Remy & Liodela

Puran Singh

Jehiny from Colombia and Keisha from Trinidad and Tobago are our baristas. After only one day, they had us all figured out. They knew exactly what Dan drinks, down to the extra shot, the skim milk, and the sugar put in before the coffee. And they knew, even when I came separately, that I had been with Dan and drank what he did.

keisha & Jehiny

When it comes to a cocktail, we’ve become particular clients of Dijanna from Bosnia. She was only 11 years old when there was war in her homeland–a sad story, but she is not a sad person, at least not for us. She has been on the ship only two months so far (and is still smiling). Dijanna has gone out of her way to make sure we and our mothers have seats together in her section.

Dijanna

Possibly the very most helpful person on the ship has been Rahim in Guest Services. Rahim is from Lyons, France. He has a smile as wide as the whole Centrum and is always ready with a cheerful hello. He has helped us deal with a difficult situation involving a cigar smoker upwind of us who has made our balcony largely uninhabitable, and with a number of smaller questions and issues as well. Rahim never loses sympathy, patience, or understanding.

Rahim

Aren’t those great smiles? Dan and I surely wish these people and their companions well. RCCL is lucky to have them aboard.

Cruise Day 13 (Puerto Vallarta, Mexico): Art

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It’s hard to go to Puerto Vallarta without thinking about art. The town is full of art. For example, you can find shops that sell objects of art still being made according to ancient tribal techniques. These decorative items are made of beads pressed into beeswax on paper mache.

tribal objects in shop

You can also find strictly made-for-tourists art for sale at reasonable prices on the way back to the ship. This seriously talented young man creates detailed scenes entirely by fingerpainting! I wonder what he was like back in kindergarten.

small IMG_3353 fingerpainter

One thing my mother likes in Puerto Vallarta is the formal sculpture along the beach. She made sure that I photographed some of them. (Hi Mom! Here are some pictures for you!)

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merman and mermaid

sail sculpture

I like these sculptures, too. But even more, I like the street art: crumbling walls painted in strange glyphs that evoke other, impossibly distant civilizations. Like some of the best graphic-novel art, these paintings evoke moods for which we have no words.

small IMG_3324 painted wall

small IMG_3325 painted wall 2

small IMG_3326 painted wall 3

small IMG_3328 painted wall 4

And what else I like about them is their universality. This could be the street art of an ancient Mixtec culture. Or the street art on Beta Centauri 4. Or then again, it could be the street art of San Francisco.

mural in San Francisco

Cruise Day 11 (Acapulco, Mexico): Not in the Rain

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“It never rains in Acapulco.” This is the first thing our tour guide says as we start our tour. So please just pay no attention to any umbrellas you might see in these pictures.

Despite an innate predisposition against organized tours, we have signed on for a tour arranged by an acquaintance of my cousins Steve and Henny.

steve & henny

Like us, Steve and Henny are on a cruise that is transiting the Panama Canal. But they are on a different cruise line (one, I might add, that unlike ours provides umbrellas for its guests), and they are traveling from west to east. Incredibly, we are both in Acapulco on the same day. We are in a van with a total of twelve passengers in addition to our driver/tour guide. Whatever we want, he will accommodate us.

We all want to see the cliff divers, who put on a breathtaking show. We huddle under umbrellas, but the divers don’t mind the weather. Hey, they’re going to get wet anyway.

cliff divers of Acapulco

Acapulco divers diving

Other than this, we all want different things. In a tour that lasts from about 10am till about 4pm, some of us want to stop for lunch. Others refuse to eat anywhere in Mexico but on their ship. We have been promised the crafts market, but most of the tour members don’t want to go there. A few do, one of us (guess who) very much. And so, in the end, we get the standard tour, minus lunch, and with an early return to the ship for the non-market-goers.

In addition to the divers, here’s what’s on the tour:

There’s a big, famous cross on a hill, which is not only wet but also cold and windswept.

There’s the sad, rundown Casablanca Hotel, which houses a gorgeous but rundown Diego Rivera mural as well as a view that is second to none.

rundown Hotel Casablanca

small IMG_3217 mural

small IMG_3212 stunning

small IMG_3215 view2

(In this last picture, you can see our cruise ship, the Royal Caribbean Serenade of the Seas, and our cousins’ cruise ship, the Celebrity Mercury, back to back at the Marine Terminal.)

There’s the Los Flamingos Hotel, made famous by somebody famous—Johnny Weismuller, I think—and his movie-star cronies of the day. It too has a lovely view of the bay. It also has a lot of drenched semi-outdoor spaces.

Despite its gorgeous setting and the magnificent views, Acapulco on this wet tour seems reluctant to let go of a past long gone. The city seems to be weeping.

On the brighter side, there’s the Las Brisas Hotel, a fancy hotel all in pink and white, also with a stunning view. And gorgeous bathrooms.

And there’s a whimsical mosaic wall by Diego Rivera that just can’t be beat.

diego rivera wall

The tour van crisscrosses back and forth across the main downtown area, which is completely jammed with traffic. The—how shall I say this?—wetness in the air doesn’t help. Stopped at a traffic light, I catch sight of a strange structure inside a parking garage; the concrete columns appear to be coming to life.

concrete structure comes to lifeIf only they ever got any rain here, I could imagine this structure might leaf out.