Completed Himeji Castle today. It was a team effort, with Dwight building the top three floors. There’s a surprising amount of detail, including ancillary buildings and a walled courtyard. It can be opened to reveal an interior. I’ve taken this low-angle photo to highlight how the vertical tapering of the main building creates an illusion of extra height. Click through to see how tapered it is.
Category: Place
What’s 365 Feet Long and Hangs in the Post Office?
A couple of weeks ago, I mentioned this impressive light fixture, but didn’t include a photo. Today, I happened to walk past our post office and snapped this picture. This 365-foot-long fixture was installed when the lobby was built in 1933, and it was reportedly the longest in the world at the time. I’m a big fan of indirect lighting, so I really appreciate this fixture.
Walking Between Raindrops
Walked in a general northeast direction until rain started, as forecast. Took a bus back.
Revisiting Himeji Castle
Back in April the cherry blossom (sakura) would be late at Himeji Castle, providing an opportunity to check out the most visited castle in Japan before the crowds of sakura season. I arrived early in the day, my hunch was correct, I was able to walk straight in and explore without the usual crowds. Afterward, I ordered the LEGO model. It’s an engaging alternative to our usual fall-back at this time of year: a jigsaw puzzle.
On My Foraging Walk…
My walk took me to three supermarkets: Seward Co-op, Whole Foods, and Trader Joe’s. Along the way, caught a glimpse of these unique buildings. On the left, built in 1965 for Northwestern National Life, the building is sheathed with beautifully matched-up marble. On the right, built in 1972 for the Federal Reserve, the building hangs from 24 cables connecting two concrete towers, much like a suspension bridge.
Driven to Discover*
Explored the University of Minnesota West Bank Campus with a friend. Although I live next door to this campus, I saw things new to me. We could spend days going through this directory. For example, the University, incongruously, has the world’s largest collection of Sherlock Holmes materials. On the left, a snow shovel, often accompanied by a box of Ice Melt, is a common sight at building entrances in this northern clime.
Frozen Expanse
On my walk, the view upriver from the Franklin Avenue Bridge. At this point, the Mississippi is slow-moving, so it’s frozen from edge to edge. Beyond the Interstate 94 bridge, downtown Minneapolis stretches out to the left, and the University of Minnesota Medical Center is on the right. As I walked, the temperature was slowly rising, bringing snow once I was safely home.
Christmas at Dayton’s
On a downtown walk with a friend, we explored the repurposed Dayton’s department store, now a mixed-use building. The first floor hosted Christmas pop-up shops, while the basement showcased exhibits from the Minnesota Sports Hall of Fame. My baseball-loving friend got to reminisce and I enjoyed the backstories.
A Tale of Two Light Fixtures
On my walk, I dropped off mail at the downtown post office. Here I am looking at one end of the art deco lobby, built in 1933. Behind me stretches a 365-foot bronze light fixture, a full city block long. Recently, Channel 5 local news reported, without attribution, that Joseph Stalin, upon hearing about this, ordered a longer fixture for a Moscow train station. Click through for pictures of the light fixture.
Halfway There
On our Sunday morning walk we noticed that half of Stone Arch Bridge had reopened after months of restoration. This gave us a chance to take in a much-photographed view of Downtown. In the distance, barriers block public access to the rest of the bridge while that half is restored.