National September 11 Memorial

~ I paid a visit to the National September 11 Memorial in New York City during August 2012. I expected to be much more emotionally affected by the site, but I wasn't.

On my way to the Memorial site, I also dropped into St. Paul's Chapel, a building I have visited on numerous occasions during my trips to New York, and here I was once more emotionally engaged with the Chapel and the displays there – although these seem to be shrinking as the years pass.

I think the difference between the two sites is that St. Paul’s Chapel connects with you on a personal level, partly because of its accessibility and scale, while the National September 11 Memorial is massive and almost impersonal - despite the almost three thousand names displayed there. Of course, the Chapel still stands, while the towers of the World Trade Center now only exist in our memories, and in the multitude of audio-visual artifacts that remain.

Clearly, visitors with a direct connection to the site will be much more emotionally engaged than myself, and indeed while there, I saw visitors making rubbings of the names of people they knew who were victims of the attacks. Also, once the museum, with its many artifacts and exhibits is finally open, I am sure the whole experience will be much more affecting.

I expect to return to the completed Memorial on subsequent visits to New York City, and I will be interested to see how the experience compares to my August visit. If you are visiting New York, a visit to the National September 11 Memorial is certainly worth the long queues and security checkpoints. Like other major memorial sites (war memorials, Holocaust memorials, and such), the Memorial serves to remind us of the tragedy it commemorates, and to keep alive the memories of the thousands of men, women and children (some unborn), who were victims of the attacks.

Here is a short video I made following my visit:

The song is Sweet Forgiveness, by one of my favourite artists, Iris DeMent… www.irisdement.com

Art: Ballroom

~ During my three week house sitting stint in Melbourne over January, I frequently found myself hanging out at the city’s Federation Square. The square has become the active heart of Melbourne with some type of event, or events taking place there throughout the summer, and at other times of the year.

While I was there, a major installation, Ballroom, attracted much attention from visitors and locals alike. The installation was created by American artist, Patrick Dougherty, who bends, weaves, snags and flexes a humble pile of sticks to create works of art that are inseparable from nature and landscape. Over the last twenty five years, Dougherty has build more than two hundred works throughout the Untied States, Canada, Europe and Asia, with every piece mesmerising in its ability to fly through trees, overtake buildings, and virtually defy gravity.

In addition to freestanding structures, Patrick’s art functions just as easily as adornments. What shape the works take, depends very much on the site and methodology used.

The work took three weeks, or 2000 hours, to build with the help of 70 volunteers. In part inspired by the architecture of Flinders Street Station, Patrick named this piece, Ballroom.

Speaking about the installation, Patrick had this to say: “I think that a good sculpture is one that evokes in the viewer a wealth of personal associations. My viewers see stick castles, lairs, nests, architectural follies; and they remember moments in the woods building forts and hide outs.

I hear stories about the Garden of Eden, favourite trees, and secrets about first dates. Some viewers touch the surfaces and talk about the momentum of wind of other forces of the natural world. Most important, people love to explore strange shapes and hidden spaces, particularly if they encounter them in unlikely spots. I like to see children running towards the openings and people standing on the street and pointing. I like to spark people’s imaginations and connect them with nature in a surprising way.”

Here is a brief video I shot of the installation during my stay:

More information:

Federation Square... 

When Travel is Just Like Coming Home Again

Victoria Square Fountain, Adelaide

~ For most of my life I have lived in Adelaide, Australia, and although I like to say that Adelaide is a nice place to come home to, the more I travel the more I am beginning to feel that I have roots in other countries and cities around the world.

My parents were Greeks who immigrated to Australia just prior to the Second World War, and of course I have visited the island my parents came from – Ikaria – on multiple occasions. 

Two of my sisters have returned to live on the island, and both have children and grandchildren growing up there. I consider Ikaria to be my first home away from home, having visited several times during the 1970s, and again in 2008 and 2010.

South Street Seaport, NYC.

New York City Dreaming

When I landed at New York City’s JFK airport following an exhausting flight from Australia, my return to that city in 2012 for my third visit in six years, also seemed like coming home.

When I boarded the A-train for the Washington Heights apartment (and two cats), I would be ‘house’ sitting for the second time, it was a great feeling, and it was all I could do to suppress an open smile. Let me tell you though, smiling openly on a 6:00am A-train full of sleepy New Yorkers heading into Manhattan for the start of the working day is probably not a good idea.

I first went to New York in 2008, and have returned every two years since. There more I go, the more I love it, and the more that city also begins to feel like home. I hope to return to the Big Apple again in 2014, which should pretty much cement its place in my mind as my second home away from home.

Federation Square, Melbourne

Wherever I Lay My Hat
I have been house sitting for friends in Melbourne for the past four years, and every time I return to that city, it too feels like coming home. Then there are my visits to an American cousin in Tucson, Arizona in 2010 and again in 2012. If I get a chance to visit again – and I certainly hope to – I know that Tucson will also join the list of cities that have become my surrogate homes as I continue to travel and occasionally retrace my steps around the world.

What all these locations have in common is the familiarity I have developed with them: knowing how to find my way around what were once strange cities and landscapes; knowing where the nearest supermarket, ATM, subway station or bus stop is to my home away from home; and knowing enough about a location to be able to offer advice and information to people who are themselves looking for assistance. Then there is the joy I get from returning to favorite locations within each of these cities: Federation Square and the crowded alleys of Melbourne; the South Street Seaport and Bryant Park in New York City; the tiny villages and summer festivals of Ikaria; and the giant Saguaro cactus plants that dot the dry desert landscape around Tucson, Arizona. But most of all, it is great to be able to continue my explorations in each of these locations to broaden my knowledge and understanding about each city, and the people who live and work there.

Adelaide is a great place to return home to, but I can’t wait to again revisit my various homes away from home, and add other countries and cities to those already mentioned here.