Thursday, September 5, 2013

Olana in the Catskills

A view from the porch of Olana
Glad to share a beautiful day in the 
Hudson Valley/Catskill Region of New York State for
Random 5 Friday.

1.  I have a great core group of gal pals that I can hang with and take day trips to explore art and gather inspiration.
2.  Olana is a New York State Historic Site and was the home of Frederic E. Church, one of the major figures in the Hudson River School of landscape painting of the mid 19th century.
 3.  You can see the Rip Van Winkle bridge from this porch.  
  4.  The panoramic views of the Hudson River and the Catskill Mountains are perfect backdrops for any painter.  Can you imagine these views with the full colors of autumn???  Won't be long now!

5.  Funny thing was, the children's quarters on the third floor, where they were taken care of by servants, had a back stairway that led to a door where Mom could get to them, but they could not come to her via this door because there was no doorknob on the children's side.  Sweet!   
Amazing architecture, with gold medallions that sparkle in the sunlight, fantastic, original furnishings collected by Church from all over the world, and of course the beautiful paintings by Frederic Church, as well as Thomas Cole his teacher and others.  A worthwhile day of adventure with good friends, and great weather!
Topped off by lunch on the water...ok, not on the yacht, but on the water's edge.  A great day as the cormorant looks on...

18 comments:

  1. Amazing architecture, history and interior design. I would love to see Olana in the future, hopefully if budget and resources will permit :)

    Thank you for linking up with my quiet beautiful sunday series. I really appreciate it! Enjoy the weekend!

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  2. What wonderful photos you posted! The views of the Catskills are indeed stunning. Thanks for sharing and all.

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  3. I loved seeing your photos of Olana and the surrounding area. So beautiful! I now have another place to add to my ever-growing bucket list. Have a nice weekend!

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  4. What a beautiful place. I would never want my children to be shut away from me. Even now that they are in their 20's. But, I must admit there have been times when no door knob on their side has held it's appeal.

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  5. this is an amazing building, I am not familiar with Mr Church (a google coming up) and interesting about the door to the children-the Catskills view is stunning...

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  6. What a place! I would love to see and explore it for myself. And yes, can just imagine what that view looks like in fall colors.

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  7. What a glorious work of architecture! Wow! And how amazing to be there among those painters' environment and inspired by their works. I regret not going to this historic spot when I was in NY. Love this post! Thanks also for your comments on mine. I really appreciated them.

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  8. what a unique building! love the views of that area, for sure. :)

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  9. Beautiful balcony and an awesome view! The Building is very special, with the special decorative bricks!

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  10. Thanks for sharing. Love the building.

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  11. A dream location for creative souls like yourself - would love to visit someday.

    Thanks so much for sharing at R5F this week. xo

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  12. What a great place to visit! And how awesome to have a group of gals to hang with and do stuff like that.
    But you didn't say what you had for lunch ... ;-)
    Thanks for visiting my blog .... it's so nice to see you there **hugs** Diane

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    1. on the waterfront...fish and chips!!! A beautiful day!

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  13. Saw you at Diane Writes, Beautiful Sunday for last week...so glad I stopped by, I love these pictures! What a gorgeous place to visit! My sis will be up in the area next week, so I will pass this blog along.

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  14. very interesting place. Nice you have friends to go fun things with.

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  15. Neat photos of a neat place, I find it interesting that a mom could get to her kids but the children couldn't get to their mom. I guess the rich have always lived extraordinary lives.

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  16. That looks my kinda outing, especially when shared with good friends. In fact, I have spent a couple of summers with girlfriends in Upstate NY (Canandaigua and Honeyoye) and boy did we have some good times and come away with stories to tell (especially with 10 kids between us at the time). Have a great week. Tammy

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