The Art of Dr. Seuss at the World Forestry Center

http://www.worldforestry.org/

Someday I think I will want to start going over Portland attractions. A big chunk of that would be the many things available at Washington Park, and of those I can say a lot of good things about the World Forestry Center. I'm not quite ready to launch that though.

However, I did want to write a little about the Dr. Seuss exhibit, which will be there through August 17th, and if you can make it through, you should.

They don't have particularly large exhibit spaces, so nothing takes too long to see, but they are still things worth spending some time on.

It was a pretty good retrospective. There was art from the books and inspired by the books, but there was also some of his early advertising work, magazine covers, WWII themed material, paintings, and Unorthodox Taxidermy.

I had never heard of it either, but in the 30s Seuss experimented with mixed media sculptures, and he incorporated real horns, beaks, and antlers that he got from his zoo superintendent father. (That casts a new light on If I Ran the Zoo, doesn't it.)

Putting works from different times together and setting a context helps you learn more about the artist, and the times, and art. It allows food for thought. This was a good one to see.

Toronto - Wrapping up Toronto

I have gone back and forth a few times on whether I would travel to see a show again.

Initially I thought that was a bad idea, because I was a little disappointed with the production. It's not that they did a bad job, exactly, but this was where I started getting really jaded with the shift toward post-modernism. Everything was black and sterile, and the dragon was a bunch of acrobats in a pyramid formation. The only real color in all four shows was in the synthetic wigs of the Rhinemaidens when in their last ditch effort to recover the Rhinegold they dressed up as street walkers (as you do).

While I do understand that if you always kept opera traditional in costumes and manner that it would become this stuffy old stereotype, the move in the opposite direction has a tendency to over-intellectualize that often runs counter to the passion that makes opera memorable.

(I have written about this in the main blog, most recently in November: http://sporkful.blogspot.com/2013/11/salome-and-portland-opera.html)

Based on the opera itself, I was not sure if it was worth the trip. At the same time, I have still seen the Ring Cycle in its entirety, and not everyone can say that.

More to the point, there were a lot of cool things about Toronto, and it was ultimately the opera that got me there. It's not that I had specific objections to going, but I don't know what else would have made me plan the trip. For one thing, I don't normally vacation alone, and so when you are traveling with other people there are always other considerations. Having gone, I like the things that I did, and writing them up over these past few weeks has reminded me of that - I saw some really cool stuff.

(For what it is worth, the Four Seasons Centre itself, for which the Ring Cycle was the grand opening, is quite lovely.)

So under the right circumstances, I might travel for a show again. Granted, back when I did that I had more disposable income, so that is always a factor, but travel tends to agree with me. I might not travel for an opera again, but I could. If travel for other reasons led to a chance to see an opera somewhere else, like The Met or La Scala, I would probably go for that. The symphony at the Sydney Opera House was amazing. I remain open to new things.

However, I will never buy two tickets again in the hopes that I will be able to come up with a companion if I do not already have one lined up. That was just dumb. When I did it, traveling alone and going to shows alone both seemed more intimidating, but I know better now.

http://www.coc.ca/

Toronto - Niagara Falls

http://niagarafallstourism.com/

Niagara Falls was probably the highlight of the trip. They are so majestic and beautiful, and there was a boat ride! The Falls are the must-see attraction when you are in the area, and that is not intended to take away from any of the other attractions.

I don't necessarily know what to say about them beyond that, because it feels like something that you feel and admire more than you talk about. It is beautiful, but that is visual, and you also have the roar of the falls and you feel the spray and you sense the power, so there is more to the sensory experience. If you get a chance to go, just go.

There were a few things that surprised me, or that were new to me, so that's what I am going to focus on.

Technically there are three waterfalls total, though Horseshoe Falls and the American Falls seem to function more as one, while the Bridal Veil Falls are more separate. You pass by all of them on the Maid of the Mist tour.

That was something else that I had not understood, because I thought of the Maid of the Mist as one boat, which is how it started, but once there was a bridge and a ferry service between the US and Canadian sides was no longer needed, it became more of a tourism thing, and they added more boats. So you can take a boat from either side that will take you around and return you to your departure point, and whichever boat it is will be called the Maid of the Mist, but there will be a number.

One nice thing about being so close to the border was that my phone picked up my regular service, so I had a brief window where I could talk without roaming fees. That may be less of an issue now, at least for Canada.

Years before going, I remember reading a letter from someone who had visited both sides and was disappointed by the amount of litter on the US side, compared to how clean and beautiful the Canadians kept things. Because of that, I was surprised at how tawdry the Canadian side felt once you crossed the street. Without having ever been to Atlantic City, that's what it reminded me of. I have since read other similar comparisons. I guess it's the casinos.

Regardless, I did end up spending some time at the Oakes Garden Theatre, which was really beautiful and peaceful, and it was worth spending some time there.

http://stage.niagaraparks.com/niagara-falls-attractions/oakes-garden-theatre.html

My greatest regret is that I did not take the Journey Behind the Falls tour. I like caves and tunnels and things like that, and I had seen the Falls from above and in front, so adding behind really would have made sense. I was worried about not making it back in time for the van's departure, which is the only reason I did not.

That tour appears to only be available from the Canadian side, but if you visit from the US side you are fairly close, and could probably cross the border pretty easily. I am not ruling that out for sometime in the future.

http://travel.usnews.com/Niagara_Falls_Canada/Things_To_Do/Tips/

Toronto - En route to Niagara Falls

I have no idea which company I booked my trip to Niagara Falls with. There are multiple options.

I can tell you that it is worth going, but we will get more into that next week. Today I want to focus on the trip there.

Despite not remembering the group, I do remember some details. It was a van that did hotel pickups. I believe it was a ten-passenger van. I was with an older couple who were Canadian, but I think from Alberta, and a group of Dutch men.

We had three stops on the way to the Falls. One was a winery. That is a fairly common side trip among current booking options. There's really nothing in that for me.

We also stopped at Niagara-on-the-Lake, which is also pretty standard:

https://www.niagaraonthelake.com/

The lake is Lake Ontario, and this is where it meets the Niagara River, so there is some geographical significance, and there is some history there, as well as a George Bernard Shaw festival. However, if you are just stopping there on a tour, you are stopping there because it is "the loveliest town in Canada."

It is quite lovely, though the first word I tend to think of is charming. It just felt like all it did was stay there being lovely. You can walk up and down the main street, which doesn't take very long, or you could explore a little further, but mainly what you are going to find is a lot of shops with fairly expensive handicrafts, though there are also several bed and breakfasts.

Looking at some of their tourism material I believe you can have a more interesting stay there, but with a short stay it is mainly shopping. You quickly realize that the most sensible thing to do is get an ice cream cone, so that's what I did.

The best thing we did was the airfield. You could take a helicopter ride or a plane ride over the Falls. The Dutch men filled up the helicopter, and the husband in the couple took the plane ride. I had not been planning on doing it, because there was an extra fee, but it was such an opportunity! I took the plane ride and I don't regret it. The Falls are breathtaking from the front, but I am glad to have also seen them from the air.