Tag Archives: Museum of Modern Art

From Medieval to Modern, Olomouc, Czechia

Czechia, Travel, , ,

Sep 10 – For our last day in Olomouc, we went back to the historic square.

Part of the castle walls that once surrounded the city
We ducked into Our Lady of the Snows, which was closed the other day.
You don’t often see angels giving communion
A docent let us into the sacristy behind the sanctuary
From there we moved on to Olomouc Castle, where we saw ruins of the original foundation
A chalice made of an ostrich egg
…and lots more Madonnas
…including one carved in ivory
He’s got the whole world in his hands
A precocious reader
I like this one the best – very peaceful and natural looking
A marvelously embellished rococo carriage
…and the ornate outfit of the horse who pulled it
Outside the Modern Art Museum hangs (literally) another work by David Cerny, this one depicting a thief making off with an artwork hanging out of his backpack. The robber inches along the balcony, trying to escape.
The featured artist was Maria Bartuszova, who worked mainly in white
…and a collection of photographs by Jindřich Streit that reminded me of the American Appalachian photos from the 1930s, although these are of Czechs in the 1980s
Thank you Olomouc – we had a great time!

A Day in Venlo

Hiking, The Netherlands, Travel, , ,

July 2 – Well, we managed to get some sleep in our very warm room, and enjoyed a nice breakfast with some very crabby Germans who obviously did not sleep well either. Today’s temperature is expected to be 98 F for the second day in a row.

This is a planned zero mile rest day in the city of Venlo. We are happy not to be hiking, but wondered how to spend the day without cooking our brains. We ventured into the city to see what there was to see before the temperature got too hot.

Jim wanted to meet with his online group today, but our hotel has no Wi-Fi, so we looked for a place that might accommodate a Zoom call.

We went first to the bibliotek (a library should be a good resource no matter where you are), but they had neither Wi-Fi nor air con.

Most area restaurants had Wi-Fi but no air con, and did not appear to be places that would allow us to sit for an hour holding a meeting. We finally came upon the Museum of Modern Art, which had a little cafe where we could sit as long as we kept buying lemonades. Here are some things we saw in the city:

Lots of statues
Quaint architecture
We stopped in the St Martinus Basilica, where it was dark and cool. This bishop must have been very famous, as his gloves and shoes have been preserved
Animal angels?
Pretty carvings at the steps of the pulpit
A very imposing pulpit
God preparing to smite some poor soul
More artwork on the streets
Is that a chicken atop this sculpture?
The founders of Venlo
The Museum of Modern Art. Light on your feet? Twinkle toes? Name this piece of art!
The museum featured the works of Giselle Kuster. She started out painting realistically…
Got a bit modernist…
Went out on a limb….
Then went fully abstract!
I like an elevator with a sense of humor
When we left the museum at 4:30, the sky was turning dark and the streets were almost empty due to threat of the impending storm. It was 99 degrees F. We hustled back across town, and reached Villa Anna just as the sky opened and the rain poured down.

Mérida Finale

Mexico, Travel, Yucatán Peninsula,

Sept 8 – So we got back on the bus to Mérida, for the final time. We have a day in town to purchase our souvenir plate and repack our packs.

We saw a street performer for the first time this trip. He must be so hot in that costume!
We got into the modern art museum that had been closed the last time we tried
I really liked these little minion guys
We went back to the cathedral and got to see the Lord of the Blisters up close
And then, as the turtle at our hostal looked like he was packed and ready, we did the same. The Uber came at 5:15am, and by midnight, we were home! Thanks for a great trip, Yucatán!