Portage & Main

Location: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Address: Portage & Main Street
Date: October 2014
Website:  history.bmo.com

  Portage & Main is possibly the best known intersection in Winnipeg, Manitoba.  On Sunday, November 24th the Winnipeg Blue Bombers won the Grey Cup after a 29 year drought.  Winnipegers flocked to the intersection to celebrate their Canadian Football League victory.  We found ourselves standing at this intersection back in 2014.

  On one corner stands the Bank of Montreal building.  It has been there since 1913.  In front of the bank stands a monument to Bank of Montreal employees who died in World War I.  The statue is modelled after Wynn Bagnall who worked for BMO, went to war and was lucky enough to return to continue working. 

 
  To cross the street you need to take a pedestrian underpass. Once on the other side of the street we encountered some more sculptures.  The first sculpture is called Tree Children and shows four children playing in a tree.  The intersection of Portage & Main is often said to be the coldest and windiest intersection in Canada.  It wasn't too cold but it was windy when we arrived.  Hold on tight children!

  The next sculpture depicted a herd of caribou which are no strangers to wind and cold.  The caribou are navigating the fast moving waters of a river.

  The sculpture is called Seal River Crossing.  Seal River is located in northern Manitoba but thanks to artist Peter Sawatzky we can witness the caribou migration at a lower latitude. 

  The final statue we encountred was called North Watch.  North Watch features a man wearing big boots, sitting and supposedly keeping watch.  The sculpture is created by Ivan Eyre and is similar to another of his sculptures called Icon North.

 The main difference between the two sculptures is that North Watch features a dog which sits behind the man.  The dog is also keeping watch.  One thing we noticed about this sculpture is that the man is facing south.  We wondered if the sculpture had been placed the wrong way around.  We figure that the artist intended the man to be watching from the north.  When visiting Portage & Main be sure to dress warmly and prepare to be blown away.  If not by the architecture, history and sculptures then certainly by the wind.

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Map of Our World
Tree Children , Seal River Crossing , North Watch
BMO Building (Portage & Main)

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Post # 270

Happy Days House

Location: Los Angeles, California, USA
Address:  565 N Cahuenga Blvd.
Date: June 2019
Website:  www.paramountstudiotour.com

  Happy Days the popular television show ran for about 10 years after first airing in 1974.  It followed the life of Richie Cunningham (Ron Howard) and his friend The Fonz (Henry Winkler).  The show was filmed at Paramount Studios in Los Angeles so it is not surprising that when they were looking for a home to stand in as the Cunningham residence they found one just a few streets over from the studio.

  Happy Days was filmed on Stage 19 of the Paramount Studios lot.  In the photo above, the red trolley is just about to pass the building.

  If you take the Paramount Studios Tour, Stage 19 is located right next to the tour entrance building on Melrose Avenue.

  On North Larchmont Avenue is Cafe Gratitude. After our Paramount tour we walked here for some vegan dishes.  A few streets further west is North Cahuenga Blvd.  The Happy Days house is located at number 565. The fictional house is supposed to be located in Millwaukee, Wisconsin at 565 North Clinton Drive.  At least they got the number right.

  Unlike some homes used in television or movies, this home has not changed much in the last 40 years so it was easy to recognize. Sunday and Monday are happy days. Tuesday and Wednesday are happy days. Thursday & Friday unfortunately appear to be garbage days.

  The house was used for exterior shots during the shows run. We enjoyed our brief visit to relive some Happy Days memories with the Cunninghams and of course Fonzie living over the garage. We give it two thumbs up. "Aaaay!"

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See more locations from the Paramount Studio Backlot.

Map of Our World

Cunningham Residence
Cafe Gratitude

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Post # 269

Vessel

Location: New York City, New York, USA
Address: Hudson Yards
Date: September 2019
Website:  www.hudsonyardsnewyork.com

  The High Line in New York is a repurposed elevated railway that passes through the west side of Manhattan.  At the northern end of the High Line is Hudson Yards.  Hudson Yards has grown to include a large shopping center, apartments and a concert event venue.  In the middle of it all stands the Vessel.

  Before we reached the Vessel we had to walk past The Shed.  The Shed is a huge metallic looking building on wheels so that the amount of covered space can increase in size.  When we walked by, someone was rehearsing a song which to us sounded like "Bye, Bye Macaron" repeated over and over.  We found out later that the event was for World Central Kitchen so maybe those were indeed the lyrics.

 The Vessel really is something to see.  It is a hollow open structure that stands almost 16 stories tall.  It is made up of a series of steps and landings and one elevator.  There are 154 staircases and 80 landings inside the structure.  It looks like a giant vase sitting in the middle of the square.

  Climbing the Vessel is free but requires a reservation as only a limited number of visitors are allowed inside at any given time.  The first day we arrived and were told to visit one of the kiosks surrounding the structure.  From there you can use a QR code or be sent a text to get a link for reserving a time slot.  Unfortunately, all of the times were later than our other afternoon plans would allow.  The next day we returned and tried again.  We booked a time for later in the afternoon and went off to explore New York.

  We returned within our designated entry window and were allowed into the Vessel.

  At the bottom of the Vessel was a glowing purple light where people were placing their phones to get a perfectly round image with their faces and the surrounding buildings.

  The photo would look something like this photo above except with the view ruined by goofy faces.

  We started to climb the stairs.  There are no seats or benches anywhere so be prepared to climb up and down without a break. There is one elevator if you wish to wait for it.

  The stairs go up in multiple directions so you kind of move around the sculpture as you climb up.  If you wanted to stay on one level but move to the opposite side you would go up one staircase then across a small platform and then down again.  You would repeat this until you got where you were going.

  We moved around the structure as we worked our way up to the top.  The staircases full of people made for interesting photos from any angle.  The whole structure had a metallic bronze exterior to it which reflects.  We felt like we were in some futuristic space station.  We expect it may not be too long before someone films a movie inside this structure.  If you can, we recommend you visit The Vessel and take the stairs.

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Map of Our World
Vessel

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Post # 268