Ugh, This Stupid White House Ballroom
Plus California superblooms, tropical midcentury in San Antonio, and more...
This week in The Escapologist…
Right Now in Travel, as Briefly as Possible
War across the Middle East is massively impacting travel. The gist:
Much of the airspace across the Middle East is closed.
There are direct threats to airports, hotels, and other ground infrastructure.
Airlines based in the region are operational but at reduced capacity.
American/Israeli bombs have damaged major Iranian cultural sites.
Rising jet fuel prices are expected to drive airfares higher this summer.
It’s superbloom season in California, and higher than average rainfall across the West is predicted to create ideal conditions for flower-gazing. As always, remember to leave no trace.
Thanks to those of you who reached out about the construction at Sainte-Chapelle in Paris. The chapel has been open throughout a major renovation project, some strategically placed mirrors (!) are cleverly disguising some restoration work. In the photo below, you can see the mirror in the bottom left corner
Sainte-Chapelle, Paris, with mirror covering restoration work / Corinne Bourgoin, 2025 San Antonio’s River Walk, a pioneering development that set the tone for so many urban waterfront renewal projects in the US, is getting a smartly refreshed hotel. The El Tropicano, which opened in 1962 and had its own flamingo garden, will be reborn as Sítio El Tropicano. The inspiration is midcentury Brazilian tropical – a winning combo if there ever was.
The Whitney in NYC is hosting its Biennial and it’s weird (complementary) as ever. Two pieces to look out for that have travel-centric themes: Songbook, 2024 by documentary filmmaker Mariah Garnett, who traveled to Cairo to reinvent and stage her great-great aunt’s 700-page opera about the Egyptian pharaohs. Also, 20-minute workout, [WIP], 2023/2026 by Hawaiian collective kekahi wahi gives us a semi-creepy workout video on the spot where Captain James Cook tried – and failed – to kidnap high chief Kalani‘ōpu‘u in 1779. The incident eventually led to Cook’s death. (Note that the latter contains adult content.)
5 Days Left to Sign up for My Travel Journaling Workshop
Obsessed with travel journal inspo but really not sure where to start?
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Join me, travel editor & journalist of 15+ years (and lifetime journal fanatic), for this informative, engaging online class. It’s 2 hours of tips, tricks, and tools to help take your travel journal from chaotic scrapbook to a gorgeous reflection of your personal travel story.
What to expect:
Ideas about what to capture and how to capture it
Tips for making time to journal while you’re traveling
Layout inspiration and ideas
A list of recommended journaling materials
Advice for making a compact journaling kit you can use on the road
Creative time to turn inspo into action while we make a journal page together
A casual, safe, there-are-no-mistakes atmosphere
Because the workshop is online (We’ll be on Zoom) and on a Sunday, pajamas and a cup of tea are suggested but not required. Shoot me a note or a comment if you have questions! I hope you can join us!
Here’s What I Learned About This Stupid White House Ballroom
You may have heard.
The President of the United States, following the demolition of the East Wing of the White House, now wants to build a ballroom in its place. A really, really big ballroom. The National Trust for Historic Preservation, a private nonprofit based in Washington, D.C., has led the opposition to this project and has sued the President, the National Parks Service, the Department of the Interior, and a number of other defendants in order to halt construction. The initial suit was dismissed on procedural grounds.
Here’s what we know, so far, from the NTHP:
The current proposed plan is for a ballroom that can accommodate 1,000 people for a seated dinner. There has also been talk of increasing this capacity to 1,500.
The plan is for a 22,000-square-foot ballroom, which is about 44% larger than the industry standard.
The 90,000-square-foot, multistory building that will include the ballroom is three times the size of the White House.
The proposed ballroom cannot be subdivided. If 200 people are gathered instead of 1,000, the space will feel awkward and outsized, and guests will not be able to move through it comfortably.
Construction of the ballroom would create a massive visual asymmetry, which is antithetical to the original intentions of the White House’s architects.
The ballroom will fully block views of the White House from the US Capitol, interrupting an intentional, symbolic sight line between two of the branches of government.
Ballroom construction will necessitate the disruption of the White House’s driveway and garden, which were designed by Frederic Law Olmsted.
The plan calls for Corinthian columns on the ballroom’s portico. The White House currently contains no Corinthian columns. They are all ionic or doric. In addition to the plans for the ballroom, the President has called for the replacement of the White House’s existing columns so they will all be Corinthian – and thus match the ballroom.
The ballroom’s portico is nonfunctional. It cannot be accessed from the ballroom. Additionally, the plan calls for dozens of false windows and doors.
It’s not clear what the massive spaces on the floors above and surrounding the ballroom are for.
A public comment period on the construction of the ballroom closed on March 4. More than 30,000 comments were received, and an estimated 97% of them opposed the project.
The wildest part of all this? The NTHP is not even opposed to the construction of a ballroom. They are simply opposed to the construction of this ballroom.
The National Capitol Planning Commission, which oversees city planning in Washington, D.C., will vote on the project on April 2. It is expected to pass, as the President has stacked the commission with his supporters since he took office. This is not the final hurdle for the project, but it is a significant one. The NTHP is expected to take further legal action.