Hi, Everyone —

Well, today I lived up to my slacker reputation and went on a wonderful tour of the Winterthur museum and grounds.  Heidi has already posted some of the details of the tour.  For me, the remarkable thing about Winterthur is that it was a home that was designed around the concept of being a museum.  When I visited Biltmore in Asheville last year, I found I could just stand in the rooms and imagine what it would have been like to be a visitor in the heyday of Biltmore.  The views to the outside, the coziness of the guest rooms, the dining rooms, and all allowed you to dream of the good life.  Unlike Biltmore, Winterthur tried to be both a home and a museum and wasn’t really successful at either.  That said — the needlework collection that we viewed was amazing.

A Fishing Lady Canvas

The reason that I chose to show you this picture is that a canvas called “The Fishing Lady on Boston Commons” won a prize at the ANG Exhibits this year.  Apparently this used to be a very romantic notion and so all the young girls wanted to stitch a canvas like this.  There were two others in the Winterthur room where this one was displayed!  (Another intricate sampler was signed by the stitcher, aged 14.)

For me, the charm of Winterthur was the grounds.  Several vistas reminded me so much of the area around Eighty Four, PA where I grew up.

Pastoral Splendor!

I was also very impressed with this multistory “flying” staircase.  A staircase is considered to be flying if it is not attached to the wall.  I’m including this picture because I thought I might impress my daughter Marisa with my artistic abilities!

The “Flying” Staircase at Winterthur

It was about at this point that my camera was prohibited.  (I had to download sixty pictures — so obviously there are many more vistas and artifacts to share.)

When I got back to the hotel, I decided to go for my daily swim.  I was able to do my full 45 minutes in the one lane lap pool.  The challenge was sharing it with 14 kids between the ages of 18 months and 14 years!

Sue and I had dinner with Diane and Robin at Opa, a Greek restaurant about four blocks from the hotel.  It was a noisy, happening place, but we had a  delicious ethnic dinner, including baklava for dessert.

Dinner at Opa!

Now it’s time to shift gears and get ready for my new class “Illusions” tomorrow morning.

Cheers!  Rosie