Skip to main content

Madison WI

 City by the lakes. Two big ones.  Mendota and Monona. State capital of WI.  Madison.  A school town. Largely just that and seat of government.  The Capitol itself, a 100 some years old sits on a high hill in the middle of an isthmus that separates the two lakes that straddle the land on the north and south ends.  The city is compact otherwise.

The Capitol is like many US state buildings a sight to see.  This one claims to have the largest dome by volume among the 50 capitols including the one in DC. Dome is topped by a statue of lady Wisconsin. Her motto 'Forward'. 


by day


and night

It is also a unique design where it has four wings, one each in the primary cardinal directions. One holds the Assembly, another the Senate, one has the Supreme Court and another a hearing hall.

All in all it has some pretty impressive stats and features.  Marble from six countries adorns its interior walls as well as featuring a variety of tropical woods and a bell that resembles the Liberty Bell in Philly.

Our visit also included side trips into the nearby burbs and some driving further northward.

It was a great time to see the surrounds, Canadian wildfire smoke and poor air quality for a couple days notwithstanding.

A visit to a local Botanic Garden named after a lawyer and Republican called Olbrich who turned donor /philanthrope was very calming and enriching - to see some unique flora and fauna along with artifacts from Thailand to name a few.


Thai pavilion at Olbrich gardens


pond outside the pavilion with wonderful lotus flowers

Among our side trips was one to see geological wonders in the form of carved limestone and rivers - the place locally called the WI Dells.





Another was to visit with the home of and see the architectural wonders by Frank Lloyd Wright circa turn of the 20th century completed our trip to this Midwest town.


a pond along the way somewhere


restaurant designed for Ladybird Johnson by Frank Wright at Taliesin compound in WI


restaurant and gift shop building from outside at Taliesin WI


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Of Jims and Johns

Here is another essay on the subject of first names. As in birth names. Or names provided to an offspring at birth. While the developed world tends to shy away from the exotic like Refrigerator or Coca Cola for their new production there is a plethora of Jims and Johns and Bobs or Robs. Speaking of which I do not think there is a categoric decision point at the time of birth if a child will be hereafter called as Bob. I mean have not yet met a toddler called Bob or Rob for that matter. At some point though the parental instinct to mouth out multiple syllables runs out and they switch from calling the crawler Robert to simply Robbie to Rob. Now speaking of - it is strange that the name sounds like something you would not want Rob to do - i.e. Rob anyone. Then why call someone that? After all Rob Peter to Pay Paul is not exactly a maxim to live a young life? Is it? Perhaps Peter or Paul might want to have a say in it? Then there is this matter of going to the John. Why degrad...
2 comments
Read more

But What If We're Wrong?

I attempted to read this book by author Chuck Klosterman backward to forward but it started hurting my brain so I decided to stop and do it like any other publication in the English language.  Start from page 1 and move to the right. Witty, caustic and thought provoking this is a book you want to read if you believe that the status quo might, just might be wrong. At times bordering on being contrarian about most things around us it tries to zero in on the notion of what makes anything believable and certain in our minds.  The fact that there is a fact itself is ironic.  Something analogous to the idea that you can never predict the future because there is no future. Many books and movies have tried to play on this concept - best that I recollect (I think I am) was 'The Truman Show'.  This book by Klosterman attempts to provoke the reader to at least contemplate that what they think they know may be wrong. He uses examples like concept of gravity, and how it ...
2 comments
Read more

Presumptive Society

Today's world is hyper connected.  I am not so sure what it means but you hear it a lot.  It is probably hyper but not sure how connected it is.  Sugar (fermented or not) is available in many ways than before and so getting hyper is easy.  It is probably more a threat than cocaine since it is sold legally. And what is this connected stuff?  Most people I encounter seem disconnected from reality.  So going back to this assumption that we are connected there are subtle and no so subtle instances of how brands and companies and middle men try to portray someone - A linkedin profile for somebody working for X years at a place advertises to the connected network that so and so is CELEBRATING X years @ Such and Such Inc. Do we know if (s)he is celebrating or cringing?  Perhaps a better way to portray will be - So and So LASTED X years @ such & such inc. Then it exhorts the readership to go ahead and congratulate them for this lasting effe...
2 comments
Read more