Kenneth Alford

Georges Seurat, the leading force behind neo-impressionist painting, died in Paris in 1891 at the age of 32. (The cause of his death is in dispute, but it's likely to have been diphtheria.) His final major work, Cirque, remained unfinished. It hangs today in the Musee d'Orsay in Paris, quite possibly the most beautiful and emotionally moving art museum ever built. Actually, built is a bit misleading. Probably rebuilt is a better way to put it. The museum, which opened in 1986, was originally the Gare d'Orsay train station. But the words train station lessen the architecture's impact and purpose. With its facade and interior ceiling and walls refurbished to their original glory, this space stands as a monument to an era when our ability to move beyond the most basic means of transport was celebrated ... read more

... dog poop mostly from what I can tell. Granted I'm not out now that the sun's fully down to see how it lives up to the City of Lights moniker. But honestly even if the whole place shone brighter than the noon sun after dusk, the dog poop thing would still give it a run for the money. Not that I'm complaining. Yet. (Actually, I'm loving the trip so far. It was supes easy getting over here, and we've had a blast today.) And why am I not out on a Friday night? Jet lag, baby. Jet lag. At this point I've been awake for about 30 hours straight. So today there are only photos. I've tried several times to be pithy here, and it just ain't working. I'm not some trained money; I'm an ... read more

Well. Here we go again. Off to Paris for a few days during Thanksgiving. And one of the main questions (probably because you're being polite ... or nonchalantly fearful ...) is if I'm dusting off the infamous travel blog. And to both of you I say, of course I am. So here's your chance to bail out before you're faced with stories of me apprenticing at a world-class fromagerie. (Oh, who are we kidding? It'll just be me bitching about stuff again. But that's fun, too, no?) Please join Carlton, Don and I as we attempt to destroy our cholesterol counts in only four days. Baguettes for everyone!!!... read more

Dear Frankfurt Airport, You are a pit. I swear to Jesus. If I had any calf muscles left after walking the last 17 miles to get from one gate to the other ... not to mention now being able to qualify for Social Security benefits because I waited in two different security lines for so long that if I had children, I would have missed their formative years ... I'd march the hell out of here and find anywhere else that serviced two rubber bands and a beanie hat to get me out of here. I'm not sure if it's your ubiquitous smoking "lounges," where a dozen death-addled convicts stand puffing away their last hours or your stunning array of choices for food ... stunning only because there are no choices for food ... that ... read more

In this episode Rusty "borrows" internet and uploads pictures for Kenneth. Rusty, the official blogtographer of the Kenneth & Rusty travel blog, has been working his index finger to the bone getting images for Kenneth to be pithy about. Here are some of his latest favorites.... read more

Spent the day making the most of our new-found metro tram navigation skills and went back and forth all over the place. This included our return to the Anne Frank house, where a crowd of people still stood around the corner waiting to get in while we walked to the front of the line, showed our pre-paid tickets and walked right in. I have no idea why people haven't picked up on securing reservations. But my thanks to all of you who stood there so I could sneak past. And what to say about Anne Frank Huis? There's a theory ... a plaudit ... a something ... in playwriting that suggests that the more specific something is in story telling, the more universal it becomes. And that's the thing that hits us about Anne Frank. ... read more