long train running

I had an excellent day off, which was exactly what I needed. I got up reasonably early, went to Philz to grab coffee, and then wrote from the window seat in my hotel room for a couple of hours. Then I showered, ate breakfast, and drove to the Art Institute of Chicago to spend an afternoon immersing myself in art.

The museum is massive - I spent five hours there and didn't see it all. But I did see the special Matisse exhibit, which I enjoyed much more than I expected to. And I saw some famous works that I didn't realize were in Chicago (American Gothic; the Edward Hopper 'Nighthawk' painting of people in a late night diner; various European masters and Japanese masters, etc). There was also a totally bonkers wing full of miniatures that were v impressive, a temporary exhibit of Korean art collected by the dynasty who founded Samsung, some excellent photographs, an astonishing mural that took up the entire gallery connecting two buildings, a lot of armor and arms, a mummy inside a coffin, etc etc etc.

So needless to say it was all v enjoyable and inspiring. I could have stayed longer since they are open late on Thursdays, but it was rather stormy this afternoon, so I chose to get to safety. After taking a short break at my hotel, I grabbed dinner at the bar at Petit Pomeroy, which was excellent - I had a nice Beaujolais (which I usually don't like, but the bartender gave me a taste and sold me on it) and an incredible lobster risotto that was pretty much perfect. 

And then I came back to the hotel to beat the rain, and I watched the thunderstorm through my window while finishing A CAUTIOUS TRAVELER'S GUIDE TO THE WASTELANDS, which I quite enjoyed. If you like the idea of the trans Siberian railroad running through a dangerous and arcane wasteland full of magical creatures, this one is for you. And now I need to sleep - goodnight!