Last month I was in the city for a short conference, and I was pleasantly surprised at both the diversity and cleanliness of the downtown area as well as the tour of the Fredrick Meijer gardens that was one of our evening entertainment events. The only thing I really did not like was the room in my hotel.
As I arrived, the downtown area was very busy with the Art Prize event. There were art pieces on the sidewalks and in the downtown museum, and there were crowds of people strolling the streets to look at them. The weather was sunny and crisp, which was perfect for viewing the pieces. There were a lot of great pieces, but here is one I liked - an ape made of forks.
The evening excursion to the Meijer garden was also art-related. There is an outdoor sculpture garden, indoor greenhouses (I especially liked the greenhouse containing the carnivorous plants), and an art gallery. The latter had a piece I really loved - it was a light installation with mirrors and pieces of colored glass that filled a wall. There were only two small, powerful spotlights, but the reflections, deflections, and color changes made a great piece. I really wanted it but I don't have that much clear wall space. Tragically. I don't know how you buy a piece like that, anyway. Do they come to your house and install it for you?
The hotel was, of course, the Amway Grand (that is the major conference hotel in Grand Rapids). The meeting rooms are beautiful, and the reception we had in the 27th story restaurant and bar was wonderful and gave a great view, but my personal hotel room was in the "old side" of the building and was not very comfortable. The obvious things were missing, such as a coffeepot and a fridge. The layout was a bit strange, with a lot of open space in the middle of the room but the desk faced away from the bed and the TV and was poorly lit for working.
But the trip was nice. I would spend more time in Grand Rapids.
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