The fourth largest city in Mexico, Puebla is a pleasant place to stroll. The city was founded by the Spanish in 1531; before then, the Mexicas (Aztecs) lived in the area now known as the state of Puebla. The historic center with its classic colonial architecture is an UNESCO World Heritage Site. The main streetContinue reading “Puebla”
Category Archives: art
Mexico City
Riding from the airport, so many colorful murals along the highway caught my eye. My hotel was near the city center. As I walked the city streets, I felt like I was back in Guatemala, where I had lived for three years a couple of decades ago. The street scenes were so similar, framed byContinue reading “Mexico City”
A day in Montreal
On a Toronto visit in late September, I drove to Montreal. My brother was invited to a friend’s gathering outside of Montreal, but couldn’t drive, having recently had surgery. So I offered to drive, along views of Lake Ontario, then through hills and forest. We stayed with friends on the west side of Mont RoyalContinue reading “A day in Montreal”
Kites (reprise)
You may know it as the Day of the Dead in Mexico. In Guatemala, November 1st is called All Saints Day. Families flock to cemeteries to decorate graves and visit their ancestors, but the wonderful surprise about this special day is the kites. Guatemaltecas create colorful kites, tiny and gigantic, artistic or whimsical or with sociallyContinue reading “Kites (reprise)”
North of Taos
The Taos Pueblo people have lived in northern New Mexico for more than one-thousand years. The pueblo is a sovereign Native American nation inside the United States, still inhabited by members of the Tiwa tribe. Its well-kept, multi-story adobe structures are attractive and distinctive. Artisan studios and shops show their handcrafted works, open to visitorsContinue reading “North of Taos”
Art of Taos
I headed south to New Mexico, a road trip before the summer events in my little town got in full swing. The desert-colored adobe buildings and its vibrant artist community, similar to Santa Fe yet much smaller and less expensive, steep the area in a warm welcoming atmosphere. For centuries an area of trade betweenContinue reading “Art of Taos”
Boston art day
When I planned what I wanted to see in Boston geographically, it easily fell into three groupings: a history day, an art day, and a waterfront day. I chose two museums to fill the art day, the incomparable Boston Museum of Fine Arts and the unique Isabella Stewart Gardiner Museum. Both were southwest of myContinue reading “Boston art day”
Western Slope towns
A rainy day was a good time for indoor and in-town activities on my recent road trip to western Colorado. We visited nearby Cedaredge, a small town of a little over two thousand people in the shadow of Grand Mesa. Historic Pioneer Town Museum is a sprawling eclectic mix of buildings and memorabilia evoking anContinue reading “Western Slope towns”
Dominguez Canyon
I haven’t taken a long hike in a while, just an hour or so along my favorite well-beaten paths most days when the weather’s good. The friend I visited on this Colorado road trip reminded me to pack my hiking gear. The Dominguez-Escalante National Conservation Area covers a broad area along the Gunnison River, includingContinue reading “Dominguez Canyon”
Grand Junction sculpture
In Colorado, the cities, towns, foothills, and mountains east of the Continental Divide in the Rocky Mountains spanning north to south are referred to as the Front Range. The Western Slope covers the mountains, towns, and more desert-like landscape west of the divide. An artist friend recently moved to the Western Slope and invited meContinue reading “Grand Junction sculpture”