Thursday, August 9, 2012

The D. of C.

This past weekend I had the privelage of visiting my dear friend, Estee, in her current location of Washington D.C. Estee and I met in Honduras and got to know each other as I began teaching. We were laughing tears of mirth soon thereafter. Estee is from California but she has lived in the Dominican Republic, China, England, and Costa Rica over the years.

Before this summer, I had never been to the nation's capital, but now I would recommend it in a milisecond. Most tourist destinations are free, the food is interesting, and one can take the metro virtually everywhere.

I don't have much experience with these sorts of things, so I was a bit geeked out.


I was excited to see a little something-something in the distance. Can you see what I mean?


Tourists can use these Zipcars. These vehicles are parked everywhere. Apparently, one buys a Zip card and then reserves a car parked at a certain spot in the city. Then you just hold the card in front of the windshield and the doors unlock. 

Once we got home, we took a walk to pick up Estee's friend Sarah. DC is very green. 


Sarah introduced us to Serendipity, a funky restaurant know for it's frozen hot chocolate. Sarah is a pastry chef so stuff she recommends is legit.


We ordered the frozen hot chocolate for two and it was a chalice of a beverage with (apparently) 14 different kinds of chocolate. Estee attempted to take a picture of me with the said chalice and we were laughing too hard. 


The onion ring tower was also divine. 


I love the decoration inside the restaurant! 


Pretty sure the bar was pink.


This is in Georgetown, I believe. There's lots of shopping to do. 


Admittedly, I took way too many pictures of flowers. 



This was fun! A sort of mini-fountain park near the Potomac river.


This mother-daughter duo had so much fun, screaming and laughing the whole time. What with the flowers and this adorable display, I think I might be getting sentimental.


The photo opp's were too great. 


Reagan airport is really close so planes and helicopters constantly flew over our heads.


A curious little house. I suspect the diplomat from the North Pole lives there.


This is how DC does gas stations.


More flowers.


Finally. My dreams have come true.


The Lincoln Memorial. 


Every state is honored around the top of the memorial. Smitten with the Mitten!


Honest Able himself.


Estee: looking casual, looking cool.

Once again, we attempted to take a serious "tourist" photo. Couldn't do it.

                         


From one memorial to another.

Some advice: wherever you go in Washington, look up. They spend time on ceilings.


Pictured below is the exact spot where Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous "I have a dream" speech.  Gave me chills.


The Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial.




Sad bit of controversy: this entire sculpture was designed by a Chinese artist and made in China. Some thought, when the memorial was first dedicated, that his eyes looked too "asian."


 A view of the Jefferson Memorial.


DC might hold the world record for the longest buildings ever. 


Day 1 ended with a delicious Indian dinner. Estee received numerous birthday cards including one which pointed at the reader and said, "Point!" Clevah. 


Day 2 started with a tour of the Capitol Building. (Ever notice that? DC is the nation's capitAl but this is the CapitOl building?).


The line for the school tours and young politician groups.


Our "reserved tickets" line. HA! Take that, tweens in pant suits!


Estee and I, looking fly in our tour headphones.


The Rotunda - connecting the House and the Senate. Although it doesn't look seem that tall, this room (under the dome) could house the Statue of Liberty with 29 feet to spare. Blown away.



Beautiful artwork.


The painting at the very top of the dome is called "The Apotheosis of George Washington" (apotheosis meaning "to deify" from the Greek). It depicts George Washington rising to the heavens. The amount of reverence this man gets in this town is intense.

Below is a close-up. George is in the very center, across from the banner which reads, of course, e pluribus unum. I couldn't find him at first. I was too distracted by the half-naked giant front-and-center wearing a purple towel. 


The Statuary Hall. This used to be the meeting room for the House. Now it houses dozens of statues; each state is allowed to dedicated two. 


Estee and I both thought that the statues seemed to be placed in the room rather unceremoniously (gasp!) . It kinda looked like storage. :(


Lady Liberty passes down the scroll on which the Constitution is written. 


Michigan was the last state to dedicate a statue; it stands in the actual Rotunda under the apotheosis. It depicts Gerald R. Ford.

Sweet digs.


A bit blurry - the lighting is very dim.


This is the Crypt, located directly under the Rotunda. There are 13 statues in the Crypt representing the 13 colonies.


This star exactly in line with the top of the dome and it is the spot from which all Washington's streets are numbered.

There is a museum in the Capitol building which houses the original flag flown at Ft. McHenry where Francis Scott Key saw it and wrote "The Star-Spangled Banner." Also, the table on which Abraham Lincoln's casket lay in state is exhibited in this museum.

A view of the visitor center where we first arrived.



This is a replica of statue on top of the Capitol Building. She weighs 15,000 lbs. She looks pretty confident for an 8-ton lady.


One of the cooler statues in the visitor center. Look at the details at the bottom of her skirt. This is Sarah Winnemucca of Nevada. Incredible art, incredible woman!


From Capitol Hill there is a tunnel to the Library of Congress.



First look. I had no idea libraries looked like this.






She knows her library is better than mine.



This lady represents "Fancy" books (per the inscription above the painting).


And then we have the "Erotica" section. This is exactly what I picture when I read the word "erotica." Who knows what's written on that tablet.


The following paintings represent different types of government.

Government done right: good posture, people with wings, lots of extra fabric, etc.


This is anarchy: streaking, staring, arson, sticks, trampling on paper, etc.

This is "Currupt Legista . . . tion?": Low cut shirts, old people keeping their jobs, old-fashioned scales, a little leg showing, etc.


And this is the service elevator. Wowza.





After the Library of Congress, we headed to Bobby Flay's Burger Palace. Estee's face here is too priceless to not blog about it. The sweet potato fries were dynamite.


I got the "Bobby Blue Burger," I believe. Delish.


And then there was "Nosegay Flower Shop." I recognize this term from Shakespeare believe it or not. According to Wikipedia (the most entertaining way to find stuff out), "nosegaytussie-mussie, or posy/posey/posie is a small flower bouquet, typically given as a gift." Just an idea for next Valentine's Day. 




The White House!


A Segway tour. 


As previously stated: longest. bulidings. ever.


The art here is interesting. Shirtless men hauling what appears to be huge corns on the cob . . . er. . . corn on the cobs . . . um. . . . corn cobs.


He works hard for the money. Even then, construction workers were considered comely.


We stopped by the Smithsonian's Museum of American History. George Washington strikes again. This time he's without a shirt. I'm a little embarrassed for him.


The First Lady exhibit was by far my favorite. Below is First Lady Obama's inaugural dress!


Nancy Reagan's inaugural gown.


Costume pieces from the original "Wizard of Oz" film.


The original Muppets.

I wish I could have seen Moldy Hay in action. 


There is it again.


We also made a monumental visit to Hour Eyes for Estee.


I took silly pictures of Estee's eyes.



We stopped at Le Pain Quotidien for brunch. Estee got her revenge by taking this intimate picture of me featuring my left lazy eyelid. Thanks, Estee.


I needed some space.


The food was amazing! I felt so European. Olive pesto with sun-dried tomatoes and fresh bread.



We kayaked on the Potomac!







Someone's camping out! Look at the little ladder on the left obviously there for a quick, two-step escape.



Taking it in.





It's everywhere!


I enjoyed the boat house because it didn't look like DC. It looked like Utila.


The National Cathedral. Breath-taking. Look how small the people on the steps seem in comparison.


The Cathedral was seriously damaged after the earthquake a year ago. These pieces fell from its spires.






The glass work was phenomenal.









This particular window was designed using actual pictures of space. One of the pieces uses (the rock in the center, I believe) is lunar rock.




Blue light filtering in from the stained glass.




Caption options for the above work of art:
a. "Stop! In the name of love."
b. "Wait . . . I'm sensing a presence."
c. "Dude. Just chill out. Chill out."
d. "You're gonna hurt yourself or someone around you. Look at yourself."

There's always this:




Pretty flowers galore.



They're pretty, ok?! Just DEAL WITH IT! Gosh.


Is it just me, or does the escalator for the metro seem ginormous? 


This is the start of the Blue Period for me - like Picasso, I have no idea why some of my work turned out blue.


This little lady is a beaut.


Panda is letting it all hang out.


A zebra. How does this sort of thing naturally occur in nature? Wild.


Creeped out? Estee and I were. Two zoo workers started to open a souvenir cart behind us. I suppose it might have sounded like the door to their habitat opening (a.k.a Lunchtime!).


Time for Mount Vernon pictures. George and I had a very real chemistry, despite my man-sandals (which are very comfortable and supportive).



This was my favorite place to visit. Here, the gap between 1775 and 2012 seems very small.


The main house. No cameras were allowed here. We saw George Washington's original state-of-the-art swivel chair and the bed on which he died. I was astounded by the paint colors he and Martha chose, very modern and very bright.


He and Martha enjoyed quite the view.


I was able to snap a picture of his kitchen.


And the pantry. Yes, that is a turkey hanging from the ceiling.


Stables. 


Carriage. Fancy, George.


General Washington also owned one of these. It was a cheaper, simpler form of transportation which consisted of a chair on top of a platform on wheels. Well-played!


Estee pointed out the sleigh in the background. Jealous!



We visited George and Martha's tomb.







The museum in the visitor center hosts (among other things) a set of  General Washington's dentures crafted from human and hippopotamus teeth. Below is a (poor quality) picture of one of three imagings of George Washington. These replicas were designed using his dentures, busts, and paintings of him. Here he is at 19 years old.


Meanwhile, in 2012.


We enjoyed a ghost tour in Alexandria. It suddenly started pouring and we hid under scaffolding. Do I detect a skeptic (young dude on the right)?


The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from the Revolutionary War.


The tombstone of John Carlyle, said to be one of the lost souls that still haunts Alexandria.


Alexandria's graveyard. Apparently, there are hundreds of unidentified bodies buried here. 



The haunted church.



Estee's dog - Peanut Butter Cup. She refused to photographed.


But I got a blurry shot of her sad, pitiful mug.


We threatened to pin her ears back.


The end.

That's the D of C in a blog post. Special thank you to Estee and her wonderful parents for hosting me!

I'm heading back to Honduras on Tuesday (the 14th). Estee and I will sharing an apartment. I look forward to some more adventures and challenges as I begin a full year of teaching English this time as well as theater. 

Enjoy the rest of your summer!