Inside of Billings, Montana

I was in Billings for a meeting of people who manage downtown cores. Its always interesting to see the different scales of "downtowns." As you can imagine Billings has a fairly small downtown. Interestingly they created a plan for keeping it going, you know focusing on the historic architecture - lots of small older hotels being re-purposed into antique shops, restaurants and bars. But the streets were HUGE - must have been 75 feet across. Parking on both sides (also enormous parking decks everywhere) and many in the downtown were one-way pairs. I almost stopped in the middle of the street and took a picture just to show how huge-ly wide they were. Built for the entire state of Montana (under a million) to drive through each in their own huge truck and you still probably wouldn't fill those roads.

It has a lot of the same terrible inflictions as other big sprawling Midwestern towns and railroad towns I've been in. The scale is completely blown by about two or three high-rise (really mid-rise) 70s and 80's buildings. In this case it was a bank and a conference hotel. In that same area there was a beautifully restored full block six or seven story brick building probably built in the 20s. Which may have had slightly less SF than the "towers" but were so much better for the town. Interesting juxtaposition; plus the building had a fabulous restaurant - I thought for a moment I was in San Francisco. Guess there are a lot of rich folk who own ranches in Montana and they have to go out to eat somewhere.

Anyway the other interesting thing about Billings was this white sail-like thing which covers their 100% intersection. Looks like it was designed in the 1990's for the inside of a mall. But it defines that area of town and they have Friday night music under it, a farmers market under it on Saturday mornings. Obviously with the size of their streets, re routing traffic is not really an issue so closing down that intersection doesn't affect traffic flow. Interesting idea to create "place." Don't know that I would suggest it for anywhere else but they seem to be fond of it. Apparently, the wings on the thing contract in the winter and the site of the guys moving it is really something to see.

One other thing about this 100% corner is another older building undergoing condo conversion. Selling price are about $185 per square foot. Hard to imagine you could restore and construct for that but then again I'm looking at 500-1000 Great British Pounds sales price in London these days so everything in the US - especially Montana seems cheap to me.

Outside of Billings, Montana

This is the site of the Little Big Horn battlefield outside of Billings in Montana. This trip to the US was a long strange journey involving six separate plane flights! Anyway the battlefield tour was a side trip for another meeting. I didn't really see the point of a battlefield tour, until I heard the story from the National Park Service guide. He put it all in perspective. The Battle, AKA "Custer's Last Stand," was a turning point in US history, because it was a victory for the Indians, who then lost the bigger battle for the right to travel away from the newly created reservation. It came to take up such a large part in the American Psyche because news of the battle reached the eastern US on the same week as the Centenary celebration in 1876. Imagine the stir that must have caused.

The battlefield itself, was stark and rolling hills with markers where the American Army men fell. The interesting bit is the second picture, which is the VERY recent monument to the Indian dead. Once I figured out the story, this memorial became even more moving. You enter a circular space, with the stories of the Indian tribes on the walls and one side of the circle is open (away from the monuments of the US Army) and this sculpture is silhouetted against the rolling hills.

Perhaps its because of the current war, but this set of dueling memorials really made me think about what we do to each other. I bet both sides thought they were righteous.

Cubbies in the sunshine

Had a quick-ish trip through the US in July (gotta get quicker at uploading this stuff) that included beautiful Chicago. It was a lovely lovely couple of days - clear blue sky, not too hot and relatively painless meeting followed by my friends Jeremy and Shira's guest room..

Guess what? The guest room came with season tickets to the cubs game. Shira had to work all day so I got her seat. As you can see it wasn't half bad. It was an amazing day.

Got to see all kinds of only in Chicago things. Including the following...

So Chicago

This is such an emblamatic Chicago street scene. I know its not the flowered up shopping drag but its an inner suburb on the north side near Wrigley Field. Note the muscular brick buildings, the encroaching elevated rail, the folks just walking around and the size of the streets. For some reason I usually see Chicago in the winter or I'm in town for business so I don't get in to the neighborhoods. They are really remarkable - lots of corner bars, newish shops and folks walking around.

Push button

I was really taken with the SIZE of these signs instructing you on how to use the signals in Chicago; they must be about 16 inches tall. The first word is "Push" it is obscured on this one. If a sign can yell at you these certainly do. May be pedestrians in Chicago are just more aggressive than elsewhere and need to be kept in line - graphically.

Old school score keeping

No jumbotron for Wrigley Field! It looks like they actually have guys who turn over the scores behind the green score board. But even better, they also keep you up to date on the scrore of other major league baseball scores - National League on the left, American League on the right.

No sky boxes, either

I'm not sure how they do it but the Cubs don't have sky boxes at Wrigley, either. These are houses across the street from the stadium and their roofs overlook the field. Apparently for years they just over looked the field but then people started building up the structures and stands and the team ownership threatened to build a big wall unless they got a cut of the action, so now those houses all have giant super structure stands on top of them. One even has a rooftop painted with the Budweiser logo.

I'm trying to imaging the zoning hearings that it took to get these things approved.

Film school in San Fran

Ah, my buddies at 900 Tennessee sent me this lovely picture of summertime funny in SF. Our old factory building would get together and BBQ (mainly vegetarian) stuff; then watch a film projected on the side of the building. No such building camaraderie yet here in leafy North London, plus I guess the bricks my current apartment (flat) would make Citizen Kane look funny.

Also please note how flippin' cold it is there in the City by the Bay - so cold they all have to hold dogs on their laps to keep warm!

Best use of overpass

I cannot tell a lie, This is NOT London. I found this picture while I was cleaning out my hard drive on a long plane flight. I took it in Curacao last year.

Its very hot in the Netherlands Antilles and I thought this was an ingenious use of an ugly overpass. If you look very closely peering under the bridge, you will see an orange-y coloured building tucked in the shade. That building is restaurant/club. Oddly, given that it was in the dark it was such a relief to be out of the sun that people fled to the place and had a beer and relaxed.

I haven't seen many successful uses for the darkness under an elevated road - I hear there is a great skate park in Oakland - but I recommend this as a great use for that space.

Pub in Diamond District

OK, so I'm not up to pub-a-day levels but I am still very interested in pub life in London. This is one of the pubs in the neighbourhood where I work, which is in Hatton Garden, the diamond district of London. I love that it has such a play on names: Deux Beers and De Beers - get it?

I wanna Brompton

Here are some pictures of the DE-luxe folding bike I am considering buying, a Brompton. Above is me peddling -- note how jaunty and happy I look. Imagine my eyes are open.

The above picture is the bike opened.

here it is with the back wheel folded - from there it collapses to about 1.5 feet square; perfect for flat (apartment)living.

But then again - its a lot of money - maybe I will just wait for my current bike to get stolen then I'l have to get a Brompton!

Ballet Boyz at South Bank

Tonight, unday evening I went to see Ballet Boyz at the South Bank complex.

1) It was my second time at the South Bank Centre, which includes The Royal Festival Hall, The Hayward Gallery, Queen Elizabeth Hall and even more fabulous stuff. Its two year facelift nicely finished before I got here. Now the Royal Festival Hall opens up onto the Thames with a very nice river walk and unbelievable views across the river to the city. I highly approve and next time I will remember to take a camera because these web links don't do it justice.

2) The Ballet Boyz show was really amazing it was a "Gala" which apparently means a conglomeration of different companies each doing a small piece. The Boys themselves were very good as were their guest performers. I forgot how great dance can be - London is certainly full of it. There's an entire venue devoted to it; called Sadler Wells. That's next on the list!

Summer Time!

That means time to "stand around out of doors drinking" here in London. This is a picture of some folks from work headed to a pub; Sarah carefully showing us the way. She's taking ACTing classes so its all about the gesture now.

Will you look at that crowd!? Beautiful Friday evening; work is over and all of London decides to go for a drink. So I decided to take a few more pictures of crowds out side of pubs. This is my tribute to my recent vistors Jen and Bob and their pub a day feature.

Another pub

To the left of the previous pub

Yet another out door pub scene

Just down the hill from the previous pub.

Vacation photos

Can you imagine sailing here?

This is a picture from the 'rents recent sailing trip. There are many more beautiful pictures like this one but this one struck me because the ocean is such an amazing colour of blue, its astonishing. As I mentioned in my last post, the weather has finally shifted here in London and it has not rained all day.

So now, dear readers, I want you to send me links to all your vacations so I can enjoy other holiday the pictures.

Good or Bad Infil?

I know its a less than inspiring picture but its purpose is to show a newer (mid 20C?)brick multi-family home right next to an older (late 19C) brick multifamily dwelling. Both have pretty bad street frontages, i.e. high brick walls smothered with ivy, but at least is fairly uniform - for example the side walk is the same and as you walk in front of the houses basically what you see is the brick fence wall and green top. Really the only difference is the flat roof and the internal steps are clad in glass.

There is a lot of this new v. old in neighbourhoods in London. Perhaps because I'm a pedestrian here I notice it more than in the states. I think its because the city is older and has had reason to replace housing. I admire the fact that they kept the building palette similar (brick and white) and that the size of the buildings are similar. This weekend I'll try and get some more pictures of this infill at different scales, it looks like it will be a nice couple of days - or at least it won't be raining the entire weekend!

Tour de France in London

Amusingly, the Tour de France is starting off in London this year. Actually its a prologue time trial but the city is really getting ready. Between that and the Wimbledon finals, this weekend is all about sports.

The problem is how do I tell my Mum that after all those years silently complaining about the "pop/grunt/pop" of tennis on the TV in the background of my life; I now rush home to see the BBC "Wimbledon Today" program every night at 8. Oh, I guess I can just write about it in my blog...