Conrad Rudolph is a medieval art historian at UC Riverside and the author of Pilgrimage to the End of the World: The Road to Santiago de Compostela. Before participating in a panel on why we love saints, he had nothing but love for Riverside, orange blossom, and the site of the event—the Getty—in the Zócalo green room.
What’s your favorite plant or flower?
Does orange blossom count? I’m from California.
What’s the most underrated thing about Riverside?
What a great city government it’s got. Phenomenal. And I might add, clean air. It used to have a reputation for being smoggy. Riverside is a beautiful place. I’m from here. This [the Getty] is my neighborhood. And I prefer Riverside, actually.
It’s your last meal. What do you decide to eat?
Well, I think I wouldn’t have an appetite.
What’s on your nightstand right now?
I don’t have a nightstand. If I did, it’d probably be something I’m reading. Right now I’m reading a biography of Andrew Jackson—American Lion.
If you could time travel to any year, which would you choose?
Jerusalem, the year Christ died.
What word or phrase do you use most often?
I don’t know. That was an answer.
What’s the last board game you played?
That would’ve been Monopoly with my kids, 10 years ago.
Who was your childhood hero?
You know I don’t have heroes. That’s kind of an issue with me. I once lost a job because I said that. A good job, too.
What’s the strangest job you’ve ever had?
Delivering telegrams in Beverly Hills. Some pretty strange people.
What’s your favorite museum in the world?
The Getty. [You don’t have to say that.] I choose to answer that. Free will.