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Road Trip – Key West

This was the 37th Anniversary of my first trip to Key West, Michael had accompanied friends on their honeymoon and I flew down, it was our 3rd or 4th date! While here we decided to get married, and that happened in August of that same year. I’ve been here about a dozen times since. Why do I keep coming back?

  1. Nostalgia – where we started.
  2. The architecture
  3. The light
  4. The shadows
  5. The colors
  6. The flora and fauna
  7. The art
  8. The only place in the continental US you can be assured of being warm in the winter
  9. The water
  10. The live and let live attitude

I should really start out by saying I write this blog for myself, like a diary, but hear from others that they like reading it, so I share it.

Back to Key West — I visited my favorite spots but found some new ones too!


This was a road trip with stops in Savannah, St Augustine, Vero Beach, and Palm Beach on the way.

I got into Savannah late so the light was nice.

A quick stop in St Augustine.



Then Palm Beach was next. Whether or not I buy anything I love walking down Worth Avenue. Great galleries and it’s beautiful!

I stop at the Laughing Dog Gallery in Vero Beach whenever I’m close. When I owned Carolina Creations we shared some of the same artists.

I’ve been fascinated by railroads, the architecture and the trains themselves, since I was very young. I ride a train whenever I get a chance. Of course Flagler was single handedly responsible for the development of the tourism industry in Florida. By the time I started coming to the keys in 1983 the new seven mile bridge had only been open a year. Before that you drove on the old railroad bridge that had been recycled. Michael had the privilege of driving on the old bridge that goes between Bahia Honda and Spanish Harbor Key. You drove over the top! Yikes! I could have never done that. The new bridge was completed over that stretch in 1980 I think. Michael was also at Sunshine Key when the old seven mile bridge blew up in 1981 extending his stay in the Keys for a while.

No way could I have driven over this bridge! Bahia Honda

I arrived in Key West just in time for the Polar Bear Plunge – which I did NOT participate in!

I love the raku murals at Salute at Higgs Beach.

My favorite thing to do in Key West is to just walk and look at the flowers, the buildings, and the art.

Ate some interesting looking fruit.

There is poetry on some of the side walks, “The Sidewalk Poetry” project was initiated by the Key West Art in Public Places Board in 2012. The goal of the project is to spread appreciation for the Arts through the installation of winning poems on sidewalks throughout the City of Key West. Click here for a map so you can find all 17.

I love people that can “turn a phrase”. Loosely owned is so much more poetic than feral!

Key West isn’t quite as funky as it used to be but there are still some vestiges of it.

Of course the chickens still roam.

And you can’t forget to close the door because you never know who will wander in like this guy.

If you’ve never been here in my opinion the only place to stay is in the historic district since everything you want to see is there. While it is compact you can still wear yourself out walking. There are no parking structures so parking is at a premium. A few years ago, maybe 2017, they started a free bus service called the Duval Loop, you can hop on and hop off, it’s a lifesaver. Michael and I stayed in the Shipyard condos probably 8 or 9 years ago which is part of the Truman Annex, that’s where I stayed again this year. It’s a great location 2 blocks off Duval near the Green Parrot. It’s quiet, there is parking, and it’s gated so the only weirdos that might wander in is someone like the guy pictured above. Of course the weirdos are part of what I like about Key West, both human and animal!


As I said I did several firsts this trip, I’d never been to Fort East Martello Museum. I’d been to the West Martello Fort many times at Higgs Beach, they have a small botanical garden. But the Fort East Martello is larger and very interesting. Robert resides there for one thing. I’d never heard of Robert the Doll. He’s kind of creepy but has an interesting story. Gene and Robert were ‘best friends’ growing up. Legend speculates voodoo played a part in Robert’s formative years, while interviews with those close to the Otto family indicate a great deal of emotional energy was placed upon the doll during Eugene’s lifetime. It is said that young Gene would shift blame when he misbehaved as a child, pointing to the doll and saying, “I didn’t do it. Robert did it”. The story goes that weird things happen when Robert is around. He even has his own website ROBERT THE DOLL.

I had never heard about Carl Tanzler either, a love story that took place in Key West. Reading THAT story is not for the faint of heart.

The museum has displays that talk about Key West’s early years, the cigar industry, the Indians that first inhabited the Keys, and so on. They also have an extensive collection of work by the folk artist Stanley Joseph Papio. He was a welder and created art from the junk he accumulated. Some say it was a way to justify his junk yard on Key Largo. Today he would be called an outsider artist.

Another first was a visit to the Key West Museum of Art & History at the Custom House. Highlights of this museum for me were the artworks by Mario Sanchez. He is considered one of the most significant Cuban American folk artists of the 20th Century. A Key West native, Sanchez worked with wood and paint, mostly creating bas relief carvings that reflect images of earlier times on the island that were never captured in photos.

Right now there is an exhibition that closes soon called Literary History of Key West which tells about 20+ writers who worked here. I learned that Tennessee Williams was a painter as well as a writer. He took up painting as his literary career began to wane. The display of 15 of his paintings are on permanent loan to the museum.


This was my favorite.

And there is an extensive permanent display about Henry Flagler and his building of the Overseas Highway.

I noticed that my favorite directional sign of all time has changed a little since last year. I have photos of directional signs like this from all over the world. One of these days I’ll get one erected at the corner of my house. Two pieces of the sign disappeared since last year, one said “my uncle once killed a squirrel with a gravy boat” and the other “the key west chicken ate my cat”, and his choice for president changed too!

LOVE LOVE LOVE roaming the streets.

My favorite art galleries are Gingerbread Square, Key West Pottery, Art at 830, Cocco and Salem, and Guild. Galleries with New Bern connections include Gallery on Greene, Guild and Inspirations.

Some of my favorite public art around town:

Murals above by Key West Artist Rick Worth
Sculpture by John Martini Key West Artist
Totems by Key West’s Adam Russell of Key West Pottery, my favorite gallery in Key West. Love his work.

Other shots from around town.

It is a small world as they say. I went to visit potter friends at mm17 who were there visiting with other crafts people. We were all telling travel stories, one of the other couples spoke about a recent trip to Mexico.  I said the last time I was in Mexico I stayed in the tiny remote town of La Manzanilla and rode the chicken bus to get around.   

The guy we rented from dropped us off at the house and said I can get you anything you want ________ (fill in the blank). They said Detroit Dave?   I said yes!   They had been there 9 years ago. None of us could get over the chances of that happening. We met the same guy, in this tiny remote town.

I’d never been here before…. yummy!
Louie's Backyard

Last day lunch at Louie’s Backyard.

I have a rule that I follow, never go and come back the same way if you can help it, this applies to anywhere, even the grocery store. So I left the Keys via the Card Sound Bridge and had to stop at Alabama Jacks, the last time I was there was with Michael. The place was packed. Here’s a little bit of history LINK.

Alabama Jacks Card Sound

The end of a beautiful day and a great two weeks! Where to next? Home to get some artwork done then off to Fort Myers.

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Road Trip – Public Art Tour – Chicago

Chicago Wabash Corridor

Chicago turned out to be even better then expected.   I flew in the day before my nieces wedding rented a car and drove to my hotel the Radisson blu AQUA on the Chicago river just a few blocks from the Art Institute.  It was very nice. It wasn’t long before I was snapping photos. Here is the view from my room.

As I walked out of the hotel I could see already one day would not be enough since the first thing I saw was the Architecture Center and I had to pass it up.  I headed for the Bean (officially called the Cloud Gate) and it turned out to be my favorite piece of public art I was going to see in Chicago.  Designed by British artist Anish Kapoor, it is the first public outdoor work installed in the US by the artist. It weighs 110 tons and is forged of stainless steel plates. It reflects the skyline, the sky, and the people standing under and around it.

The Cloud Gate – aka The Bean
Reflections in the Bean – that’s me in my giant coat (it was cold) and hat right in the middle.
More Bean reflections from underneath.

I lived 4 hours east of Chicago from the time I was born until I moved to Colorado in 1983.  Chicago was a weekend trip that I enjoyed many times but haven’t been there since about 1980, not even to pass through the airport.  So the Bean and other things I liked have been in Millennium park for many years, I just haven’t.   

Other things in the park I liked were the Crown Fountains.   Although the water was not shooting out of the persons mouth (it’s turned off in the winter) the changing images were there. Designed by Spanish artist Jaume Plensa the fountain consists of two 50-foot glass block towers at each end of a shallow reflecting pool. The towers projects video images of Chicago citizens, a reference to the traditional use of gargoyles in fountains, where faces of mythological beings were sculpted with open mouths to allow water, a symbol of life, to flow out. 

The collection of faces, Plensa’s tribute to Chicagoans, was taken from a cross-section of 1,000 residents. 

As you can see from the photos it was overcast, typical for locations close to the Great Lakes, you hardly see the sun in the wintertime. And it’s the main reason I don’t ever want to live there again, Summers are beautiful though! The areas surrounding the Great Lakes get a lot of snow due to the “lake-effect.” In case you are not familiar with the term here is the definition. “A meteorological phenomenon in which warm moist air rising from a body of water mixes with cold dry air overhead resulting in (A LOT OF) precipitation especially downwind.”

Skating in Millennium Park with the Bean in the background.

The Ice Rink is sponsored by Hilton. If you show your room reservation you don’t have to pay for skates.

And the Frank Gehry’s BP Pedestrian Bridge is a work of art.  It is 925 feet long and winds from Millennium Park to the Daley Bicentennial Plaza and the entire lakefront park system, across Columbus Drive. It too is made of stainless steel panels. It was completed in 2004. The cost was over $12 million, $5 million of which was donated by BP. Follow the link above to see some aerial views. It’s beautiful.

Then I made a bee line to see Chagalls the Four Seasons mosaic Located in Chase Tower Plaza. The Four Seasons by Russian-French artist Marc Chagall are a series of mosaics that depict the arrival of spring, summer, winter, and fall. It was a gift to the City of Chicago by the Prince Charitable trust.

It is composed of thousands of inlaid chips portraying six scenes of Chicago. The design was created in his studio in France then transferred onto full-scale panels and installed in Chicago with the help of a skilled mosaicist. It was installed in 1974, the roof was added later. This was one of his last mosaics.

Marc Chagall is also well-known in Chicago for his America Windows, which I saw next at the Art Institute.  

While on my way over there  I just happened to pass by the CIBC Theatre where Hamilton was playing and thought I’d step into the box office and see  – “do you have any tickets for tonight?” They had 2 left!  I never thought I’d get a chance to see it. I can’t say enough good things about the cast.  All performed above and beyond expectations.     They were at the end of a 3 year run in Chicago which ended January 5. 

At the art institute I got to see work by some of my favorite painters Monet, Mary Cassatt (I worked with a nephew of hers at the Aspen Times, he was talented too), Van Gogh, and others.  


As a bonus they were having a special exhibit of work by Andy Warhol.    There was an Impressive 400 pieces of his work from sketches to videos to the pieces we all know.   The museum was packed!    

I guess I missed this in art history class but shoes played a prominent role in Warhol’s early career as a commercial artist. “His 1950s advertisements for women’s footwear were well recognized and his fetish for shoes and feet continued throughout his life. “
I was impressed with this gallery at the Art Institute, we knew these folks in Aspen, they were friends
of people we worked for and would come to parties at our house. They were really involved in the Aspen Music Festival, Anderson Ranch and other arts programs.

 I intended to walk the Wabash arts corridor but was beat so got up early the next morning to drive it. 

There are 40 large scale murals along this corridor, I did not see them all but saw quite a few.  “The Wabash Arts Corridor is Chicago’s living urban canvas in the heart of the South Loop neighborhood. Founded by Columbia College Chicago in 2013, WAC has grown to be one of the most expansive, diverse and accessible public art programs in the country. This community driven project weaves the visual, performing and media arts into daily life, immersing residents and visitors into artist-reclaimed public spaces that transform the urban experienceArtists and curators from five continents have left their mark on WAC with murals, performance, installations, actions and large-scale projections that are always free and open to the public..”   to learn more visit. https://wabashartscorridor.org.

This was my favorite of the murals, a whopping seven stories high.

And as I started south I stopped to see Agora (Greek for meeting place), one of Chicago’s most recent installations. It consists of 106 nine-foot tall cast iron headless torsos. The figures are posed walking in groups in various directions or standing still. Internationally renowned artist Magdalena Abakanowicz donated the sculptural group along with the Polish Ministry of Culture, a Polish cultural foundation, and other private donors. Born into an aristocratic family just outside of Warsaw, Abakanowicz (b. 1930) was deeply affected by World War II and the forty-five years of Soviet domination that followed. In her journals, she writes that she has lived “…in times which were extraordinary by their various forms of collective hate and collective adulation. Marches and parades worshipped leaders, great and good, who soon turned out to be mass murderers. I was obsessed by the image of the crowd… I suspected that under the human skull, instincts and emotions overpower the intellect without us being aware of it.” The sculptor began creating large headless figures in the 1970s. Initially working in burlap and resin, she went on to use bronze, steel, and iron. Although Abakanowicz hasfrequently exhibited in museums and public spaces throughout the world— Agora is her largest permanent installation.

On Michigan avenue near the water tower is Starbucks reserve. I like the coffee ok but will never stand in a line longer than 5 people to get a cup of it.   Well LOTS of people in Chicago (and lots of other places will), in fact at this Chicago location they were lined up out the door and half way down a long city block. Turns out this Starbucks https://www.starbucksreserve.com/en-us/locations/chicago just opened this November, is 5 stories high with an open air terrace on the 5th floor, each floor has its own specialty be it beans. brewed coffee a bar a gift shop etc.  NO I DID NOT go in just looked at it from the outside. A pretty impressive sight, 

It’s close to the Water Tower which I’ve always been fascinated with.It’s one of the few buildings that survived the great fire, built in 1869, it held water to regulate the flow in the area and was a water source for fighting fires.

Just before I left Chicago I stopped in the Pullman neighborhood.  I love traveling by train and have done many drawings of locomotives and railroad depots through the years. Pullman of course made railroad cars.    The railroad connection is what got Pullman on my radar but the architecture is what made me seek out the neighborhood.

Hotel Florence, built in 1881, and being restored.

I finally made it out of town and to the purpose of the trip, my great nieces wedding in South Bend.   They make a beautiful couple!  

 I don’t know that I had ever been to south bend so enjoyed looking around the town.  

Notre Dame is there so took a tour of that as well. I had no idea how huge the campus is, they even have their own zip code. 

In the Charles B Hayes Sculpture Garden on campus my favorite piece was by George Rickey who was born in South Bend and has lived all over the world and has sculptures all over the world as well. It’s a kinetic sculpture and moves constantly and very slowly, changing all the time. A note about the park, until this Park was developed this area was a landfill for Notre Dame. George’s son Philip is a stone sculptor and has a large installation about the life of Christ. There is a video where he talks about his sculpture and a little about his father.

Back to Chicago to catch my flight on Monday.   Got there just before dark and had one more thing on my list I wanted to see – the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir. Number one, I didn’t know what a Mandir was, number two I know nothing about the Hindu religion, but again, I was intrigued by a photo I saw somewhere. It was beautiful. One of the things I love about traveling and one reason I do it as often as possible is I learn so much. I’ve got a lot of reading in my future after this trip, the Hindu religion, Alexander Hamilton, some artists work I saw at the Art Institute I wasn’t familiar with, and there is more to learn about Pullman.

I was a little nervous- and wondered if I would be there alone in the dark? Well I was met at the gate by a guard a police man and as I entered then I saw that there must have been 2000 other people there as well!

That night I stayed at the Loews which is right beside O’Hare, a convention center, a large mall, and several top named restaurants.  The hotel and my room were beautiful.    I went to the airport really early trying to complete my global entry card. I signed up for it in the spring but anytime I was in an airport that had an office you could be interviewed in my connection was so tight there was no time. 

When I tried to get an appointment at O’Hare before leaving home, the next available one was in March. So I went to terminal 5 to take my chances as a walk-in.  And it worked out, of course people with appointments have priority so you just have to wait, I only sat there about 45 minutes and I finally got it done. I have never been in that airport and was kind of dreading it but the car rental place was great, the best I’ve seen, the air train is out of commission but the busses ran regularly (we even had a singing driver) , and everywhere you looked there was someone asking if you needed help.  The only negative I saw was that it is a long way down the corridors with no moving sidewalks.

So I’m home again and looking forward to the new year and a new decade and my next trip – Key West.