Pictures coming! Check back often!!
Wednesday, May 13, 2026
I don't know what it must have felt like for a medieval peasant to visit Rome, but I am in a similar position at the 34th annual Congress for the New Urbanism. Wal-Mart, the enormous conglomerate where many Americans shop, is headquartered here, the longtime home of founder Sam Walton. The Waltons and their fellow townspeople have used all the money we've sent here over the years to build a place that--surprise!--looks nothing like a Wal-Mart.
Jane and I arrived about 6:00 this evening after an all-day drive from Iowa. The conference kicked off yesterday, and today featured a day of panels and activities in Fayetteville, about 25 miles south of here. That included the keynote address by economist Raj Chetty. However, I am used to traveling to the conference on Wednesday, and did not make the necessary adjustments. Coe College has just finished its spring semester, and I only got my grades in Monday; I'm not sure I could have gotten here sooner, but next year I'll try to adjust myself to the conference schedule.
We're staying at the 21C Museum Hotel on A Street, which is closed to traffic. We spent the evening walking around downtown, which is exactly as advertised, if maybe more pricey than a simple Arkansas country town. There are a ton of bicyclists of all ages, maybe particularly on a night like tonight, which was incredibly lovely. The streets are narrow, and cars drive slowly, and yield to pedestrians. The public library is spacious and well-stocked, including a copy of Paved Paradise by Henry Grabar. The chess club was hosting a large number of matches in the park by the county courthouse. We found, for the second year in a row, some outdoor dining to start our visit to the host city.
Tomorrow, I will start the serious business of this conference. First, I need to find where, among numerous sites scattered across several Northwest Arkansas towns, I check in and get my name badge.
No comments:
Post a Comment