Gallivanting Grandma

Monday – May 12, 2014

The time had come to leave Washington and return home.  We checked out of our comfortable room in the Willard and drove through Arlington on our way to Chantilly, Virginia.  Our destination was the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum – the Udvar-Hazy Center which is located near Dulles International Airport.

Udvar-Hazy Center of the Air & Space Museum

The center was a modern space-age building which was opened in 2003 and named for Steven F. Udvar-Hazy the wealthy Hungarian-born man who financed this annex to the National Air & Space Museum.  The original Air and Space Museum is still located on the mall in downtown Washington, DC.  

The Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird

The museum was huge and was a living history of flight from early aviation to space exploration.  One of the highlights was seeing an SR-71 Blackbird.  It was a supersonic reconnaissance aircraft made of titanium in 1964.  On its last flight in 1990, the pilot set a speed record by flying from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C. in 1 hour and 4 minutes.  On that flight, the Blackbird flew 2,124 miles per hour.

A Hangar and a Flying Plane

We had fun walking among some of the most famous airplanes in the history of aviation.  The air craft were organized in categories, for example Aerobatic, Cold War Aviation, Human Spaceflight, Pre-1920 Aviation, Korea and Vietnam, Ultralight, etc. etc.  The museum was large with several connected hangars.  There were multi-level stairways in the hangars which led  to higher observation platforms.  A visitor could spend an entire day at this museum.

Flight Simulator

We saw several different flight simulators.  Several people were inside getting shaken up as we watched the pods rotate and move up and down.  I passed up this stomach-churning activity!

Front View of the Space Shuttle – Discovery

The Space Shuttle Discovery was located in the James S. McDonnell Space Hangar.  It was considered a “national treasure” by the national Air and Space Museum.  According to historic records, Discovery flew 39 times from 1984 through 2011 which was more missions than any other shuttle.

Side View of the Discovery Space Shuttle

We did not have enough time to see everything in this amazing museum.  However before we left we visited the hangar with several important airplanes.  One of these was the Boeing B-29 Superfortress,the Enola Gay.  This was the propeller driven bomber of World War II which dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan.

Specialized Hangar

A variety of smaller planes were suspended from the ceiling which gave the illusion of airplanes flying in the sky.  Below these were several noteworthy commercial airplanes.  There was a Boeing 367-80 jet Transport which revolutionized commercial air transportation it was developed and became the Boeing 707, America’s first jet airliner.  Nearby was a real Air France Concorde, the first supersonic airliner which flew passengers across the Atlantic for 25 years.

A Wing in the Sky

Sunday, May 11, 2014

Le Cafe du Parc

Today is the centennial celebration of Mother’s Day. This morning, the hotel had a wax figure of Woodrow Wilson in the lobby to greet everyone.  He had issued a proclamation which established the first Mother’s Day.  There were groups of people in 1914 costumes milling about the lobby and a couple of musicians played period tunes.

The weather was sunny and warm with a cloudless bright blue sky. We had a leisurely Illy coffee and pain au chocolat outside at the sidewalk cafe, then took a taxi to the National Gallery of Art.

Rotunda of the National Gallery

It was strange to enter a museum and not be expected to pay an admission fee, but we probably do support the museum through our taxes.  The National Gallery has an excellent collection of art from around the world in an austere building.

Taking a Break in the East Garden

We saw works of art by some of our favorite artists: Renoir, Rembrandt, Monet, Matisse, Botticelli, Sergeant, Cassatt, Degas, etc.  There were three Vermeer paintings and the only Da Vinci painting in North America.  After several hours, we had a light lunch at the Cascade Cafeteria.  We splurged on some excellent gelato for dessert, then passed through the tunnel to the contemporary art building.

Tunnel Connecting the Buildings

Contemporary Art of the National Gallery

Unfortunately the exhibit galleries were undergoing renovation, so we just walked around the huge atrium, took  photographs of the space, and then left the gallery.  We walked to Pennsylvania Avenue and took a taxi back to the Willard.  After resting for a few hours, we went to the historic Ebbets Grill for dinner and I had my last crab cake for this trip.  I eat crab cakes only in this part of the world, within a few miles of the Chesapeake Bay.  Crab cakes from Maryland are definitely worth the trip.

The Atrium

Saturday, May 10, 2014

This trip was a mini-vacation and celebration of our 12th wedding anniversary.  We went downstairs to the Cafe du Parc where we enjoyed Illy coffee outdoors on the sidewalk.  The weather was warm and humid with rain forecasted for the afternoon.  It was a treat to sit outside after such a long winter.

Escalators to the Metro Platform

Afterwards, we walked to the nearest Metro station to take the subway to the Library of Congress.  I remember reading about the completion of the first line of the Washington Metro in 1976.  The system has grown in thirty-eight years and is still expanding with planned completion in 2018.  According to Wikipedia,  the Washington D. C. Metro is the second busiest rapid transit system in the United States after the New York City Subway System.  There are almost 800,000 riders per day. 

Waiting for a Train at the Station

The Washington Metro had a complicated fare schedule depending on which stations a rider gets on and off the train, as well as an extra cost of $1.25 for using a paper ticket.  Plastic commuter tickets were preferred but the five dollar per person additional purchase fee did not make sense for one day.  We rode five stops to the Capitol Building Station and then walked to the  Jefferson Building of the Library of Congress.

United States Capitol Building

I suppose some day we will visit the Capitol Building, but our interests lean towards museums and libraries, not politics or government.  The Library of Congress, which consists of three buildings, is the research library for our elected officials on “Capitol Hill”.  The library has an excellent website: www.loc.gov for additional information.

 The Library of Congress – Jefferson Building

The Beaux-Arts style Jefferson Building which was completed in 1897 is very impressive with a magnificent center staircase leading to the main entrance.  The Great Hall leads to the Main Reading Room which is off bounds to tourists.  There is supposed to be a tunnel which connects the library to the Capitol Building across the street.

Staircase to the Library of Congress – Jefferson Building

After passing through security gates similar to boarding an airline, we entered the magnificent Great Hall.  There were several interesting exhibits being held.  We eventually climbed up to a bird’s-eye view of the Main Reading Room from the third floor balcony.

A Corner of the Great Hall

One of my reasons for going to the Library was to gather information for a mystery story that I’m currently writing.  I wanted my main character to attend to a reception for a new exhibit at the Jefferson building.  I asked at the information desk if this was possible and the woman said that the library held many receptions during the year.  She led me to the Great Hall and said that tables could be set up on the balconies for up to two hundred people.

A Balcony and Partial View of the Ceiling

She pointed out the place on the balcony where a small orchestra could be positioned and the area under the stairs where the bars were usually set up.  The woman also stated that dancing took place on the mosaic floor of the Great Hall.  Then she asked me, “Do you want to see where your character can hide the body?”  Oh course I did, so she led me to the large case which holds the Mainz Bible.

The Mainz Bible Case with Tourists

The woman described how someone could open the case and hide a body in the large empty space behind the bible.  She also described in detail what was behind two doors on the wall behind the bible case.  This information was too delicious and will be a great help to me.  Now all I have to do is write that chapter!  On the opposite side of the hall from the huge Mainz Bible there was a similar case which held a Gutenberg Bible.

The East Balcony

After exploring, we left the Library and walked to a local place called “We The Pizza” which was just a few blocks away.  The pizza was excellent!  Then we found the Metro station again.  It was raining so we decided to return to the hotel to rest.  Unfortunately, we’re not as young as we used to be and we got tired after several hours of walking.  We rested for a while and then took the elevator down to the Round Robin Bar for a light supper of crab cake sliders and good tomato soup.  It was a good end to a busy day.

Friday, May 9, 2014

This morning, the bay was shrouded in a dense fog giving everything on the water a ghostly appearance.  We had a continental breakfast and decent coffee overlooking the peaceful harbor and then checked out of the St. Michael’s Harbour Inn.  I wanted to explore St. Michael’s and visit the Maritime Museum.

We watched as an eery black ship’s form appeared out of the mist and sailed into the harbor.  A short while later, a second black square-rigged ship silently coasted in and they both tied up at the docks at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum.  I expected Captain Jack Sparrow and the Pirates of the Caribbean to jump off the ships to loot and plunder St. Michael’s.  We later learned that they were exact replicas of the Nina and the Pinta which carried Columbus across the Atlantic five hundred years ago.

It was a short drive through the village to the museum on the other side of the bay.  We freely explored the grounds and looked in at the wooden boat building shop where several dinghies were being created.  We climbed the circular stairs to the top of the original Hooper Strait Lighthouse, pictured below, for a great view of the museum grounds.  There were many interesting buildings and ships to explore.

The Maritime Museum is a wonderful treasure trove to see and ride historic wooden boats.  There are several antique skipjacks and bugeyes which plied the Chesapeake Bay in search of crabs and oysters.

Before we left the Maritime Museum, I asked several locals for a recommendation of the best crab cakes in St. Michael’s and they suggested Town Dock Restaurant.  So that’s where we had lunch.  Yes, it was an excellent lump-meat crab cake. After lunch, we drove out to Tilghman’s Island just to see what was there and then drove south to Washington, D.C.

It was generally an uneventful drive between St. Michael’s Maryland and our National Capitol, but it became an interesting ride across the impressive Bay Bridge.  The traffic increased as we approached the District.  After driving around in heavy traffic, we checked into the Willard Intercontinental Hotel, unloaded our bags, and set out to explore the neighborhood.

The hotel was near the Washington Monument and The White House.  We learned that the monument reopens tomorrow afternoon after being closed for several years due to damage from an earthquake.

Then we walked to THE White House to pay a visit to the Obamas.  Unfortunately, they were away for the weekend so we joined the other tourists who posed for photos outside the world famous house.  I took a photo of the building with a man who was exercising his First Amendment rights among the visitors.

Afterwards, we walked to the Hamilton for dinner.  I had to try another crab cake and was not disappointed.  The restaurants and streets of D.C. were filled with tourists as we walked back to our Intercontinental oasis.  The city was pulsating and alive with traffic and people.  Springtime in D.C. was a great time to visit the city!

Thursday, May 8, 2014

Who knew we could drive five hours south and find summer? When we left Westchester County this afternoon, it was a chilly fifty-five degrees and raining. We arrived in St. Michael’s Maryland by six o’clock and it was sunny and eighty degrees.

We checked into the Harbour Inn and then went out to explore.

Maryland is the home of the crab cake. This is the broiled succulent, delicious, lump meat of the Chesapeake Bay blue-claw crab. They are the best in the world!

What a treat it was to sit outdoors along the harbor and have a great dinner of crab cakes and soft-shell crabs. Yumm….