Days 3-4, Houston and Houston - KC

 The group with Mo outside Belger collection

Day 3: Houston to Kansas City, April 8

FOTD: The Kansas City Royals are a Major League Baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri.

Pics:  Zaza FC, Howard the chef at Rieger’s, Riegers, the bus

Weather:  Warm and slightly humid in Houston and KC

Fitness center and we each have low-cal cereal and fruit for breakfast at the hotel, $25. Hotel was around $320/day because of the high tax rates applied to a daily average of $250 and big valet parking fees.

It’s a travel day, small jet to KC. Lunch of leftover Arizmendi roll and smoked cheese, bagel, apple, water, $5.

Day 1 of the Oakland Art Museum trip:  a great room (benefit of traveling with a co-leader), suite with giant bathroom, at the Raphael, and introductory dinner at Rieger’s Grill and Exchange. DB has arugula salad, braised catfish with cornbread, and chocolate banana cheesecake; THB has smoked duck soup, goat au vin, and pecan pie (and a local brewski). Rieger’s is in old downtown area that is, like many another town, in the midst of a gentrification, with art galleries and hip eating places trying to lead the way. Lots of interesting art on the walls, and a terrific mural in our private dining room. Meal included in tour cost.

Day 4: Kansas City, April 9

FOTD: The Royals are a member of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League.

Weather:  Mid-60s and very pleasant if you ignore the discussion of impending thunderstorms (people are discussing it like we’re all going to perish if it starts raining)

PICS: FC, Kemper Center, dance rehearsal space, Prairie Lost (on top of parking lot), Kemper Contemporary Art Museum and work, ceramics artists’ studios, Belger collection, all different clocks (GO SEE THE CLOCK at SFMOMA), Kauffman Stadium

FitCtr, then confused orders at breakfast where food didn’t come, sent to wrong table, etc. DB has lox and bagel, THB has someone else’s omelet, coffee, included. From hotel, we travel around KC with local journalist getting inside story and outside art sightings, and even into Kansas.  Then we tour the Kemper Contemporary Art Museum with lead docent and museum director (DB and THB met director at Oakland Museum opening event for Hung Liu show, which is coming to Kemper later this year). Lunch at museum: half tuna sandwich, cup of eggplant soup, wild rice salad, choc cake, raspberry iced tea, included.

Afternoon: meet local ceramics artists (THB and DB buy two sets of matching cups….aw!), printmaker (Akio work prevalent), and tour the Belger collection with Mo, the “director”), which is terrific, as is Mo.

The pleasant weather holds (projected for tonight: 31 degrees!), and 7 of the original 10 head out to Kauffman Stadium. It is a nice, reasonably generic ballpark, holds 40k in two large tiers (announced crowd: 11k), with a cascade of water in left and fountain in right (and thus almost no bleachers). We’re under overhang, no chance of getting wet. Good thing, because in 7^th it starts to rain, and we head to the limo.

Good local brewskie, brat with pepper and onions, peanuts, $22. Ticket to game $50, shared limo $25 (there’s really no public transportation out to the park). Ballpark #47 for THB, only 3 active parks left!