#normanagatep

[whereiwander]

RAMBLA DE CATALUNYA, BARCELONA, SPAIN (9 October 2017) After having checked into our hotel in Barcelona, we decided that the weather was perfect for a stroll to nearby Rambla de Catalunya. Lined with linden trees whose leaves had turned to shades of amber, the promenade afforded us an afternoon view of easy-going Catalans enjoying their craft beers and tapas under wide-brimmed parasols. A waft of cigar smoke would fill the air occasionally, as would the ringing of bicycle bells to warn pedestrians that the two-wheelers were whizzing by. An added treat during our walk was the sight of two statues by Josep Granyer: the Sitting Bull and the Flirtatious Giraffe.

[whereiwander]

CHIHULY COLECTION, CLEARWATER, FLORIDA (7 October 2017) My brother, dad, and I tried to catch the exhibit last year but arrived at the Chihuly Collection too late in the afternoon to enjoy Dale Chihuly’s kaleidoscopic display of stunning glass sculptures and installations. We had better luck this time, however, when my sister Eileen and I visited the museum at the Central Arts District in Downtown St. Petersburg. A pioneer of the studio glass movement, Chihuly is renowned for his ambitious pieces, crafted in huge scale, and inspired by curious shapes defined by Japanese Ikebana, Indian baskets, Corsican macchia, natural seaforms, and so much more. My favorites though are the remarkable hanging sculptures--the Carnival Chandelier, Azul de Medianoche Chandelier, and Ruby Red Icicle Chandelier--which all bedazzle with hundreds of individual organic shapes, assembled meticulously to form what appear to be frozen fireworks.

[whereiwander]

EPHESUS MUSEUM, SELCUK, TURKEY (13 September 2010) There is simply so much to behold in Ephesus--an ancient Greek city that fell into the hands of the Roman Republic in 129 BC, and today sits in the Izmir Province of Turkey. The Ephesus Museum, however, gathers artifacts from various locations in the region, so tourists like Eileen and myself can view them all in a contained space. The collection includes pieces excavated from tombs, hillside houses, and monumental fountains. Others are from the Basilica of St. John and the Temple of Artemis. There is also a hall filled with objects relating to busts and temples of emperors. My favorites were the Statue of Artemis, the Statue of the Resting Warrior, the head of Lysimiacus, parts of the Statue of Emperor Domitian, and some ancient colored glass bottles presumably once filled with perfume. In Ephesus, one should certainly visit the Ancient City, the House of the Virgin Mary, the Artemis Temple, and the Basilica of St John. Eileen and I did all that (though we did not enter the Artemis Temple, which we saw only from our vantage point at the Basilica of St. John). The museum, though, was a welcome treat to cap a most fulfilling day. Now where’s that Turkish coffee?