Distractions, reflections

Leaving Tennessee, Jennifer and I were on different flights to Chicago, but met up at the connection for the same final leg to Toronto.  Jennifer had crossed the Atlantic from the UK not only to visit with G.A., but also to stop by Waterloo to plan the ISSS 2010 meeting.  With Allenna, visited the Wilfred Laurier University campus.  It’s a compact site, as viewed from the residence across the street.

Since the university tour only took to midafternoon, I suggested that we do some sightseeing.  The Grand River by the Elora Mill Inn is scenic.  We drove south over the bridge from the centre of the village to oversee the mill.

We walked a little farther west on the south bank for a better look of the dam.

Looking east, there’s some traditional-looking buildings on the north side, and the Metcalfe Streeet bridge.

Viewing the gorge itself requires driving back north over the bridge, and west to Victoria Park.  There’s a long set of stairs down to the level of the water.  The stairs curve, so only part of the route is visible from the top.

When G.A. Swanson released the news that he would soon been passing on, a group of us quickly scheduled for a visit.  Convening at the Nashville airport, Jennifer flew in from the UK, I flew in from Toronto, and Gary drove down from Kentucky.  We rode together to Cookeville.  Paulette had been visiting G.A. to help out, and hosted us with a welcome in a show of southern hospitality.

I first met G.A. at the 1998 ISSS meeting in Atlanta, which I’ve cited to many as the single best educational experience of my life.  G.A. had encouraged me, as well as Jennifer and Gary, to become more and more involved in the systems community over the years.

We spent the evening catching up on news, and reminiscing.  In his home, the photographs and souvenirs of world travels suggested not only a man who was known internationally, but who might also have been a Southern rebel in his youth.  The next morning, we moved a few things around to take G.A.’s car to the university.

While I first met G.A. in his role as ISSS president in 1998, he had long been a professor of accounting at Tennessee Tech since 1982.  His office was in the College of Business at Johnson Hall.

We helped G.A. finish cleaning out his office.  He had sent in his last paper for publication, and said that he wouldn’t be needing any more references.  In the inner room were years of books not only on systems research, but also on accounting.

G.A. had a complete archive of systems research.  Jennifer packed up some of the old artifacts that are hard to find.

Having reoriented myself from Takeshita dori, we crossed Meiji Street to a landmark I remember — the Birkenstock Store.  It’s in a flat iron shape, with the street forking off.

The fork on the east side is Harajuku Street.  I remember walking down this stretch and thinking that the buildings didn’t seem very interesting.

One or two intersections up, looking to the right, is a strange building at the end of the street.

Design Festa Gallery always amuses me, with the nearly-random pipes on the front facade of the building.

Since I’ve been to the gallery before, I decided to start on the upper floors for a change.  The murals on the stairwell walls are entertaining.

We were greeted by two Japanese girls, who asked us to rate our favourite student paintings of the day.

On the Sunday morning before catching the train to Narita Airport, Marianne and I returned to the Harajuku district.  I thought that I knew the way to Design Festa Gallery, but my memory was faulty.  From the train station, we walked north past Takeshita Dori, and then east.  When we started up a slight incline, I figured that we were in the wrong place, and should turn south.  This led us through a residential area in Jingumae.  The lane we had picked might permit the occasional car, but seemed mostly for pedestrians.

On this street was a large temple or church.  Christian?

As we continued, we found a small torii, marking the entry to a common space or park.

Sunday morning seems to have been flea market day in this neighbourhood.

On the temporary tables, there was an assortment of pots.

I’ve been to the Harajuku district on every trip to Tokyo, and somehow managed to arrive at the Meiji Jingu at times when the gates are closed.  This time, Marianne and I found the gates to the garden open.

I guess that Saturday afternoon is a good bet for families to visit the gardens.

As we entered the gardens walking north, I enjoyed the view of the brook to the side.

The park honours the Emperor Meji who passed away in 1912, and is interred in Kyoto.  The view of the long, tree-covered walk is impressive.

Sake barrels are displayed as decorations, emptied from prior festivals after having been donated by local brewers.

The Meiji period was seen as enlightened one, when the emperor enjoyed western food and took wine with it.  Wineries in Bourgogne, France, consecrated these barrels in the emperor’s honour.

I barely need an excuse to view neighbourhoods where I haven’t been, before. Since Jennifer and Marianne were interested in seeing “Textile Town“, we got maps that oriented us to the train station at Nippori. As is usual in Tokyo, the exit at the subway is rather well marked.

The train platform is elevated, so we took the stairs down. Looking over my shoulder, there’s a gate with Japanese characters leading to the platform.

The streets aren’t rectilinear around Nippori. Walking out a little from the station and looking east, there’s a commercial area … but not textile stores.

Looking south, there were also storefronts, but the rag trade is a little farther on.

We headed south in the direction we thought correct. Apartment towers reveal the area to be mixed commercial and residential.