Chattanooga Trip

I was 1 of 5 semi-finalists for an opportunity in Chattanooga Tennessee. They have a VERY active public art program there (better than in many, much larger cities). I've been hoping to get a signature sculpture in their collection for years.

I made the 300 mile trip on Monday the 17th. It rained the whole way down.

I went out early the next morning to review the site. The first thing that I noticed was the large ice cream cone across the street. As luck would have it, I had their pizza delivered to me the night before (I'll take my omens where I can find them).

The paperwork had mentioned that it was "adjacent to the Inclined Railway", which I had misunderstood as "near" or " in the neighborhood of..." It is actually right in front of the Inclined Railway office.

I had taken a round trip on the inclined railway during a family trip at age 13.

I had plenty of time to kill before the presentation, so I went exploring. I knew that Lookout Mountain was a site for a major Civil War battle, but I didn't know that it was a Revolutionary War battle site, as well.

Half way up Lookout Mountain, I found a bridge where I could check out the inclined railway. I wondered why there were the bends in the track? As 2 trolleys passed, one going up and one going down, I understood. They share the middle rail, and it is the only way to get around each other.

The view from the top of the mountain is spectacular; and no photograph can capture that sense of ...space...perspective...(I'm at a loss for words here!).

With a couple hours yet to kill, I drove through downtown Chattanooga, found where I was supposed to be,and...yes, you guessed it...went exploring. I found this diagram for the Merengue dance steps in the sidewalk. I also found the Quick Step across the street.

I found this life-size masonry piano by Lorri Kelly.

I walked out onto a pedestrian bridge, and checked out the view of the Tennessee River.

I spotted this inter-active metal installation by Jonathan McNair under the bridge.

After a very nervous presentation, I made my way home. I saved my appetite for this mexican restauant in Cave City, Kentucky. It was recommended to me by my neighbor, Steve McMillen (whose birthday was the day before...happy birthday, steve!)