St. Louis...Going To The Dogs

The Beggin’ Barkus Pet Parade, sponsored by Purina PetCare, stepped off on Sunday, February 23, 2014, marking its twenty-first year as a highlight of the St. Louis Mardi Gras festivities.  Grand Marshal Andy Cohen is a St. Louis native who now lives in Manhattan and has claimed fame as a producer for the Bravo Network.  The alternative rock band Barenaked Ladies preformed a free concert after the parade.

The 21st year of the Purina Beggin' Strips Pet Parade

St. Louis Police are serious when they post "No Parking" signs in the parade area

But they didn't tow the Schnucks V-8 powered giant shopping cart???

 

Spectators begin to line the parade route hours beforehand

 

Who is walking whom in this picture?

Dogs of all breeds and ALL SIZES mingled on the streets

An Airedale ready for the "best dressed pooch" competition.  We've had two
Airdales in the past, Fergie and Tasha, two of the sweetest-natured dogs ever.

New York television producers and Canadian musicians notwithstanding, the real stars of the afternoon were the eight thousand four-legged “celebrities-for-a-day” from pooches to hounds, from pedigreed to mixed breed, all strutting their stuff.  Costumed furry friends deigned to walk (or on occasion be carried or pulled in wagons or pushed in baby strollers by their two legged companions) the parade route on a chilly Sunday.  Another dash of excitement was added by “drag-racing” dachshunds in the Weiner Dog Derby. The lively conclusion of the parade took place on the entertainment stage at Soulard Farmers’ Market where the coronation of the “best dressed pooch” took place.

Walk in the parade?  I think not...

Too pooped to parade!

Stepping out with ATTITUDE

An Old English Sheepdog walks its owner in the parade.  When we
had our Old English, Maggie, she thought she was a lap dog

Banfield Pet Hospital offered free face painting for the young and young-at-heart

 

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch Weatherbird walked in the parade.
(Notice that he's looking up, trying to figure out what the forecast should be.)

 

There is a breed just right for everyone!  An estimated 100,000 people enjoyed a bright but frigid Sunday afternoon watching the antics of 8,000 amazingly well-behaved canines.  In addition to the fun the parade raised over $17,000 for the no-kill rescue and adoption center Open Door Animal Sanctuary in High Ridge, Missouri.

The Purina float.  This might be the only parade that
causes a frenzy by throwing DOG TREATS to the crowd.

Maybe if I just ignore this tutu they put on me, I can maintain my dignity

Yeah, well, maybe you can, but I can't!

A Shiba Inu, a Japanese breed, was smart, attentive, well-trained and beautiful

Sitting patiently to get the free treats that Purina was giving out to pet owners

Dogs of all breeds and sizes, including this "pocket puppy"

Don't look now, sir, but you left your dog at home...that's your cat you're carrying

For all you Mizzou fans, this guy painted his dog up as a Tiger

After a fun afternoon enjoying the world’s largest pet parade (according to the Guinness Book of World Records), a stop at another iconic site literally added a cherry on top of a great day.  A Fitz’s root beer float is a fitting closure…or perhaps a bottomless mug of root beer from the tap…or, with a nod to the day’s festivities, a Coney Dog with onion rings.  You can even make a selection from the gluten-free menu.

Fitz's Restaurant and bottling plant is housed in an old bank building, built in 1928

To add authenticity, Fitz's uses 1940's vintage bottling equipment , found intact and
stored in a barn in Shawno, WI.  The line can produce one bottle of soda per second

Fitz’s first appeared in St. Louis in 1947 as a local drive-in restaurant.  Sadly, it disappeared for a number of years.  But the foamy, creamy treat returned when Fitz’s Bottling Company opened a soda micro brewery in 1993 in the Delmar Loop in University City.  You can enjoy your favorite root beer (or four other flavors) on tap or take a six-bottle carton or a mix-and-match case of twenty-four bottles home with you.

Fitz's Root Beer, Diet Root Beer and 3 other flavors on tap.
All together, they make about a dozen flavors of soda.

From costumed dogs to Coney Dogs, another fun day and another great chapter in our Road Stories.

Sophie has been to the parade with us in the past, but because of the weather,
we didn't take her along this year.  Shhhhh, don't tell her!



La Posada, Winslow, Arizona

If you are a Route 66 buff; if you are interested in architectural gems; if you appreciate amazing desert scenery; if you are an art aficionado; or if you simply enjoy first-class surroundings and service, you'll find it all in “the resting place.”   La Posada, a landmark hotel, is an oasis of style and comfort in the northern Arizona desert.

Signs along historic Route 66 direct you to nearby attractions from days gone by

La Posada was the last great railroad hotel, built in 1929 by the Fred Harvey Company.  Fred Harvey developed restaurants and hotels for the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway.  In the 1920’s, Winslow, Arizona was the railhead and crossroads for the Santa Fe Railway and no expense was spared for this masterpiece.  In the midst of the Great Depression, construction cost alone was over $1 million.  With the grounds and furnishings, the price tag topped $2 million -- over $40 million in today’s dollars.

Map of some of the Fred Harvey Hotel locations along Route 66 and the Santa Fe Railway
from Kansas to California           (postcard from Yvonne's personal collection)

 

Driveway entrance, La Posada Hotel, Winslow, AZ

The chief architect and interior designer for the Fred Harvey Company from 1902 to 1948 was Mary Jane Colter, and it was she who envisioned and brought to life La Posada.  Colter was an American architect who had a “concern for archaeology and sense of history."  Much of her inspiration came from the landscape.  She is probably best known for her structures along the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, created between 1905 and 1937.  Her designs included Hopi House, Hermit's Rest, Lookout Studio and Desert View Watchtower.  Her work can also be observed on the decorated exteriors of the train stations in Chicago, St. Louis and Los Angeles.  
 

Mary Colter designed Bright Angel Lodge at the Grand Canyon in 1935 as an affordable
alternative to the up-scale El Tovar Hotel already on the canyon's South Rim 

The "geologic" fireplace in Bright Angel's lobby features rock from all
of the layers of stone that are seen in the canyon's walls 

 

Hopi House, designed by Mary Colter in 1905 and built as a market to sell Native American
crafts to tourists.  Its design is very accurate and closely resembles a native pueblo.

 

Lookout Studio (or The Lookout), South Rim of the Grand Canyon, designed by
Mary Colter in 1914, emulates the natural scenery along the rim of the canyon.

Colter felt that her masterpiece was La Posada in Winslow.  She was given free rein in that she had artistic license to create everything from the architecture to the interior design.  She selected the china, the maid's uniforms and even participated in designing the gardens. Mary Jane Colter always started with a creative vision for her designs.

 

Only 2 1/2 stories above ground, the hotel is not overly imposing from outside,
but is tastefully furnished, cozy and inviting inside...just like a hacienda

 

 

 

The renovations of the mid 1990s included $1 million to restore the landscaping and gardens

 

A view down one of the hallways in the hotel

 

This carved sideboard is located in the main hallway into the hotel

 

Stairs down to the lower level and up to some of the guest rooms

 

For La Posada, the back story was rooted in the fantasy that the hotel was a grand hacienda for a wealthy Spanish landowner whose family had owned the property for 120 years.  From this vision, she created all aspects of La Posada.  When the hotel opened on May 15, 1930, it had hacienda lodging for seventy, with three restaurants.

The hotel opened in May of 1930.  The date is carved above the front entrance

 

Another view of the hotel's exterior and landscaping

Hollywood greats such as Cary Grant, John Wayne, and Bob Hope made La Posada the destination for Tinseltown's elite.  Makers of history such as Charles Lindbergh and his wife, Ann Morrow Lindbergh, stayed the night.  The register also reflects that Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Truman made the hotel part of their travel plans.  The hotel remained open for 27 years, but sadly, it closed its doors to the public in 1957 and in 1959 the furnishings were auctioned off.  In 1960, it was gutted and used as offices for the Santa Fe Railway.  Several times it was nearly demolished, even as recently as 1994.

The Turquoise Room as it looked when the hotel opened in 1930
(postcard from Yvonne's personal collection)

The property was placed on the endangered list by the Trust for Historic Preservation, where it came to the attention of Allan Affeldt.  After negotiating with the railroad (the hotel was never officially on the market) for over three years (what patience and fortitude!)  Affeldt, his wife, Tina Mion, and a third partner, Daniel Lutzick, purchased the property and started restoration.   With great vision, determination, and a massive financial commitment, La Posada re-opened to guests in November, 1997, once again taking its place among the grand hotels.  In 2013 USA Today listed it among the top 20 historical hotels in the U.S.  The May/June 2012 issue of AFAR magazine recommended it as one of the top hotels in the world.  Sunset magazine in May 2011 said "four-star service at two star prices."  Indeed, a room can be secured from $119 to $169 per night.  Currently there are fifty-three guest rooms available. The hotel was on the Condé Nast Traveler Gold List of 2009.  Condé Nast also pronounced the hotel’s restaurant, the Turquoise Room, one of the three best restaurants in the United States and one of the top sixteen eateries in the world.  Mary Colter's vision is once again an oasis in the desert.

The cover of the Conde Nast Traveler which raved about La Posada
is proudly displayed on the wall with a plaque from the magazine

 

La Posada is on both the National and the Arizona Registers of Historic Places

 

The hotel's gift shop sells a large selection of Native American pottery and jewelry

 

The Amtrak depot is located on the grounds of the hotel (note the hotel roofline in the background.)
Yvonne took this picture from the Amtrak window as she and her Mom and Dad passed through Winslow.

Whether traveling by plane (Winslow, Arizona has the only Charles Lindbergh-designed airport in the world), by train, (the Amtrak depot is located on the grounds and the Southwest Chief stops twice daily), or by car (exploring the iconic Route 66), a stop at La Posada is sure to be one of your, as well as one of our, favorite Road Stories.

To borrow a phrase from Casablanca, "Sooner or later, everyone comes to La Posada."
Yvonne and Mike and their friends, Tom and Adele, had lunch in the Turquoise Room
during their RV stop in Winslow in October 2012.    (Sophie pee'd on their grounds!)

Up, Up and Away!

The summer that I started my Masters degree in Greeley, Colorado, I lived on the third floor of a campus dorm.  The day I moved in I heard a “wooshing” noise that registered as “hmm… that sounds like a dragon breathing”.  I pulled back the drapes to see the brightly-hued envelope of a hot air balloon dancing by.

Hot air balloons have fascinated both old and young

Hot air balloons have captured mankind's imagination for centuries, since Leonardo de Vinci first envisioned a “lighter than air flying machine”.  The first practical hot air balloon, a Montgolfier¹ type, made its public appearance in 1783. The passengers on that flight were a duck, a rooster and a sheep.  On November 21, 1783, the first human aeronauts, Jean Francois Pilatre de Rozier and his friend the Marquis D'Arlandes, took off in their hot air balloon and landed safely 25 minutes later.  Since that time, hot air balloons have enthralled mankind on a scientific level, but also on a creative level that allows his fantasies to come to life.

The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta takes place every October and is a showcase for both scientific and creative aspects of hot air ballooning.  The excitement is shared by thousands of onlookers.  From the inception of the Balloon Fiesta in 1972 with 13 balloons taking off from a shopping mall, to today's event that witnesses over 600 balloons ascending from a 70-acre launch field (the equivalent of 54 football fields put together) the Balloon Fiesta thrills as many as 100,000 visitors a day during the week-long extravaganza.


This balloon is sponsored by the Fiesta Committee.  Here, it participates in the evening Balloon Glow

The Good Neighbor Pharmacy balloon

The air is heated up and the balloon inflated just as the sun comes up in Albequerque

Wells Fargo Bank had at least three balloons at the Fiesta - these two
plus one in the shape of a stagecoach

Brightly-colored logoed "envelopes" are instantly recognizable, even from a distance
 

 The 365-acre Balloon Fiesta Park, home to the Anderson-Abruzzo Albuquerque International Balloon Museum with its façade in the shape of a hot air balloon, was custom-designed to host the world’s largest ballooning event.   Food and merchandise vendors border the fields; live music and evening fireworks add to the fun.  The happy carnival-like atmosphere comes alive each morning by 4:30 AM and lasts until after dawn.  It re-energizes in the early evening until the last fireworks close the day.  What is amazing about this event is the fact that you are much more than just an observer.  Visitors become participants as they are allowed to walk in and among the hot air balloons during the static glows as well as during preparation, inflation and lift-off of the Dawn Patrol and  Mass Ascension which takes place each morning, weather permitting.  The magic comes alive at night when the burners are fired up and the balloons, tethered to the ground, glow like Christmas ornaments.  The Balloon Glow takes place on the first Saturday night of the Fiesta; the Night Magic Glow is held on the second Saturday night; and the “Glowdeo”  --  a “special shape” balloon static glow, takes place on Thursday and Friday nights.  During the mass ascension 500 or more balloons take off over a two hour period.  It's a beautiful and thrilling sight.  The color, the noise, the wonder and the sheer number of balloons make for a joyful event.

Balloons fill the sky on the final morning of the Fiesta

The prevailing winds brought them right over the top of our campground,
with some even landing among the RVs

This unique balloon is from....where else?  Roswell, New Mexico,
the alien capital of the United States

We loved this balloon with the silhouette of a safari on the envelope

 

A lot of businesses and commercial enterprises sponsor balloons, both at the Fiesta and elsewhere.
In many cases, the business pays for the "envelope" but the pilot owns the basket and the burner.

A favorite event for many is the “Special Shape Rodeo”, which started in 1989. Some favorites return every year, but new ones make their debut each season.

Little Bee Lilly (red shoes) and Little Bee Joey (blue shoes)  "hold hands" while taking off and flying.
The hands are held together with hook-&-loop tape, and are pulled apart just before landing

Airebelle, the Flying Cow, sponsored by Creamland Dairy

Spider Pig during the evening glow.  Spider Pig was first introduced
as a super-hero in an episode of The Simpsons

Humpty Dumpty thrills the crowd of on-lookers

Simba, from The Lion King

Noah's Ark, looking up into the envelope.  The animals, topside, can be seen looking over
the rail from the deck of the Ark.  Compare the size of this balloon with the one next to it.

 Super FMG landed in the RV campground after a short flight on Sunday morning

Mister Z, the zebra from Madagascar

Smokey was a crowd favorite

It is great fun to watch or even be a part of a chase team.  Mike and I have each had the amazing experience of being a passenger.  Mike first flew with his friend Roy, who is a professional balloon pilot.  Mike also had the opportunity to fly in a hot air balloon over the Masai Mara in Africa.  My opportunity to perch in a gondola was in India during the Pushkar Camel Festival.  The visual perspective from the hot air balloon basket was one of watching a realistic human scale scene become a study in miniature -reality became a dollhouse scene.  The other aspect that was most noticeable to me was the silence aloft.  It wasn't just quiet but totally silent – akin to the depth of darkness one experiences when the lights are turned out in a cave.

 

The only thing the broke the silence was the “wooshing” of the dragon breathing.  

 

Mike in the gondola of a balloon over the Masai Mara in Africa, 2008.  The second
balloon that flew part of our group that morning is in the background

Mike's balloon casts a shadow on the Masai Mara plain.  We were in Kenya, but
Tanzania is just over the horizon, and the pilot could not cross into their air space.

This balloon, being inflated at the Pushkar Camel Festival in India,
carried Yvonne and others over the thousands of camels at the festival

 

The Pushkar Camel Festival site from the air

Higher and higher, as the people and tents get smaller and smaller.  If you look very
closely, the brown spots that you see are some of the thousands of camels for sale or trade.

 

We close with the “Balloonist’s Prayer”

(reprinted from the Balloon Fiesta’s website)     

May the winds welcome you with softness;
May the sun bless you with its warm hands.
May you fly so high and so well that God
joins you in laughter and sets you gently
back into the loving arms of Mother Earth.

 

The aptly-named Freedom Flight V balloon remembers all of America's POWs and MIAs 

 

 

All across this great country of ours, and now in the skies above her, we continue to find great adventure and great Road Stories.

 

 

 

One easy way to have convenient access to the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is to reserve an RV space adjacent to the Balloon Park.  Free shuttle buses run from the RV campground to the balloon field.  Reserve early - space is limited and always sells out.  The 2014 Albuquerque Balloon Festival will be held October 4-12, 2014.  Admission to the park and launch field is charged.  More information can be found at   http://www.balloonfiesta.com/guest-guide

 

¹  Joseph-Michel Montgolfier (26 August 1740 – 26 June 1810) and Jacques-Étienne Montgolfier (6 January 1745 – 2 August 1799) were the inventors of the Montgolfière-style hot air balloon, globe aérostatique. The brothers succeeded in launching the first manned ascent, carrying Étienne into the sky.