farlands | traveling near and far

Okay, I'll admit it.  Omaha, Nebraska surprised me.  With its rolling, hilly topography and murals livening up the still-dormant landscape, the region was lively and intriguing.  We saw enough that made me want to come back for more.  At a 6.5 hour drive from Madison, it can even be an extended-weekend trip. On the way there, thanks to Yelp we stopped in Stuart, Iowa for dinner:  Yelp reviews that caught our eye .  It was a little hole-in the-wall Mexican restaurant, Los Altos, just off the highway and full of lively locals.  One major benefit over stopping at McDonalds, Taco Bell or Subway...a margarita. John/chip, Jeff, Margarita Going to downtown Omaha for dinner that weekend was a revelation.  It was a warm spring weekend, and everybody was out.  The historic downtown area had brick-paved streets: Full-to-the-brim restaurants with lots of outdoor seating, brewpubs, loft apartments: Plus, an unusual empori...

Per the previous post, it wasn't too long after the trip to the art museum when the impending ice storm arrived. After a quick trip to the store it was time to hunker down by the fire. So, how do you do a travel post when you're captured by an ice storm?  Well, by walking.  Carefully.  The next day it had warmed up and the ice was turning slushy, so I went out for a walk.  The neighborhood sights, which I knew well from growing up there, looked different under a glaze of fresh ice and snow. Glazed Pin Oak The only other two people outside After the walk, I took a quick drive up the road to take a look at the Marilyn K. Glick center for glass.  I was intrigued and wanted to stop by for two reasons:  1) I didn't know Ball State had an art glass program, and I was curious because UW-Madison had the first art glass academic program in the country, and 2) The center was named after a woman benefactor, which is still fairly unusual.  Her...

My most recent (and only) time to Naples was a couple of years ago, also for a set of work meetings. That time it was relatively chilly for Florida, with highs in the low 70's and very breezy. This time, things were different.  On the way to drop a colleague off at her hotel, the outside temp registered by the rental car said 91 degrees.  Basically, for three days it was highs in the mid-80's, and lows in the upper 70's.  My ideal Florida weather.  And since when I left Madison it was 13 degrees, and had been very cold for the past two weeks, it was absolutely joyous to be in a warm, sunny place for three days. Most of those days were full of prep work, meetings and events, but you know I always find a few moments of travel bliss, including a 15 min. walk on the beach.  Here are a few memories to keep the summer feeling going a bit longer: Enjoying an Arnold Palmer and the sunset view. Sandpiper Morning on the Gulf. Kindle and some pool re...

This is a gem of a museum in the middle of the Ball State campus.  With nephew Owen as my art partner, we enjoyed exploring the space. The education program gave us an 'I Spy' sheet for an art treasure hunt. Well, more of an 'eye spy' - we hunted down paintings and searched for the right match just using the eyes as the clue.  It was a challenging task! Here is a pictorial of our visit - pictures over words, right? We found it! Japanese fresco (if I remember correctly) Captivated Best internet meme:  these babies just, they just cannot even. Love the entry staircase with ancient + modern Seating for one Space age tea set Color/pattern fave This photo does not do this piece justice. Both Owen's and my favorite work overall (details below) Love This sculpture was very moving. I still have more Muncie details to come.  What museums do you enjoy visiting?