Ever since we visited The House on the Rock with Grandma Evie back in September, David has wanted to return with his dad (who missed out on the fun last fall). Since it's too cold today to go skiing, which is what was originally on the agenda, we decided it would be a great day to make a quick trip out to The House on the Rock, especially since Greg isn't drowning in his classwork (yet).
I worked a whole plan on how we could see the most and spend the least, only to discover, once we got there, that they do things entirely different during the winter months. So we had to take a tour. Sigh. And spend more money than we had planned. Double sigh. But we pushed ahead...
after a snack...
and an informational video...
So what is The House on the Rock, you may ask? It's a massive tourist trap complex that reveals the inner workings of one Alex Jordan. The centerpiece of the complex is an actual house on an actual rock, which Mr. Jordan built in the 1950s.
Below is a picture of the snow-covered, frozen gardens. Behind the gardens (which are really quite lovely), is a covered ramp leading up to the house. The house is hidden among the trees, but you can just barely see the top of it in this picture.
Here is another view of the central gardens at the complex:
Like I said, Mr. Jordon built the house in the 1950's. Some might say it is an architectural marvel; others would say it is an architectural mess. It may have been inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright; it may have been built to spite Frank Lloyd Wright. Either way, it was opened to the public in 1959.
The house started out small, and, over time, Mr. Jordan made grand editions. This is a picture of the original room, and the one that Mr. Jordan used most frequently even after the house was expanded.
You can see that he liked carpeting, couches, low ceilings, large fireplaces, and he preferred lamplight over sunlight. (Basically it's like living in a carpeted cave with Tiffany lighting.)
In the 1980s he built The Infinity Room.
Here we are waiting to go in.
Finally, some sunlight! And some beautiful views!
You can just barely see a red barn in the above picture.
Here below is a lovely rural Wisconsin scene.
Look, David posed for me! And it was his idea!
Love this picture of my crew at the end of The Infinity Room:
Looking down through the glass coffee table from The Infinity Room:
Now, on to the rest of the madness.
Oh, by the way, here is a picture in The Infinity Room of The Infinity Room. (In case you haven't noticed, they really like Capitalization at The House on the Rock. Very Serious.)
Mr Jordan realized that he could bring in quite a bit of revenue if he charged people an entrance fee. He could then use that revenue to grow his collections. And then even more people would come and he could charge them even more money. And then he could add even more collections and more buildings and more displays. And then even more people would come and he could charge them even more. And on and on.
We saw the tiniest little bit of The House on the Rock collection. Tiny! But even that was overwhelming.
Here are just a very very few images of the little slice of randomness we saw. Feel free to try to make sense of it. (And get back to me if you do.)
Below is the "amazing three-story bookcase"! It's got some great reads on it. (Please, click on the picture and you will see for yourself the sarcasm of that last statement.)
Are you screaming at me to stop yet? Don't worry, I'm finished. But trust, me you ain't seen nothin'. That place is out of control.
Here are some thoughts Greg and/or I had:
- It's a tourist trap in the truest sense. Which makes it kind of cool because it's a crazy insane tourist trap. Like the ultimate tourist trap.
- If you build it, they will come.
- I have so much contempt and disdain for it all--but there I was, forking over the outrageous admissions price. And spending the rest of the day thinking about it, discussing it, analyzing it.
- It's exactly like you're in a hoarder's house, except this hoarder has acres and acres of covered buildings in which to display all of his or her crap.
- It's like being in your grandma's cluttered house and your chest gets really tight because there is so much STUFF. It might even be nice stuff, but there's just so much of it that you feel like you're suffocating.
- That place makes me itch. Itch to throw stuff away.
- It's creepy that they try to make Alex Jordan out to be some kind of visionary or genius or something. He's not, that much is apparent. (Except for the fact that I did fork over all that money. Maybe he was a genius, and the joke's on me.)
- The House on the Rock makes me appreciate museums, precisely because it is not one. There is no educational value. Nothing is labeled or explained or meant to teach. It's purely an entertainment experience. What does it say about us tourists that we flock to it?
- I can't look away!! It's like the wreck on the highway or bad reality T.V. You know you should look away, but you can't.
- This could only happen in the Midwest.
Enough about The House on the Rock. It was a fun outing, and I'm glad we went. I mean that very sincerely. But I will say that it was wonderful to be outside again, on the road back home.
We passed dozens and dozens of dairy farms....
...including lots of cold cows....
Don't you think those cows are cold? (Click on the picture to see them better.) But I guess, if I were a cow, I'd want to get out of the barn sometimes too, even if it's 9 degrees outside.
I love Wisconsin. (I really do!)
