Notti Bianche and the Kennedy Center

My sister and I had an interesting meal at Notti Bianche.

Salad with Baby Lettuce, Pine Nuts, Ricotta Salata, and ?

Parmigiano with red grapes

Bread Pudding

We then saw an extraordinary performance of Le Corsaire at the Kennedy Center by the world-renowned Bolshoi Ballet.

Lebanese Taverna and Washington By Night

Baklava with a birthday candle

My birthday celebration began this evening with a wonderful dinner at one of my favorite restaurants, the Lebanese Taverna in Pentagon City, with Andrea and Roger and Betty Jean Anderson.

Betty Jean, Roger, Chris, Andrea

The food, as always, was delicious!

Grape leaf

Delicious pita bread

After dinner Andrea took us on a marvelous tour of selected monuments. which were incredibly evocative at night. We saw the illuminated dancing fountains at the World War II Memorial and the faintly-lit soldiers trudging across the field at the Korean War Memorial. Each Washington monument should be seen in the daylight and at night. The view and the emotions are quite different. Perhaps the memorial that made the greatest impression on us in the dark was the 9-11 Memorial at the Pentagon. (See photos of this memorial in the daylight earlier in this blog.)

Smithsonian American Portrait Gallery

My old friend Roger from Washburn High School is in town with his wife Betty Jean. We spent all day at the American Portrait Gallery. I had been to this museum twice before but I had never viewed the Portrait Gallery of the Presidents, the core of the museum's collection. Enjoy the photos of my friends and of our illustrious presidents.

Betty Jean and Roger in front of the Lincoln Inaugural Ball Room

Enjoying lunch in the Kogod Courtyard between the two museums, the Portrait Gallery and the American Art Museum

A fan of the 44th president

Roger and Betty Jean with a portrait of Obama



Portraits of a few favorite presidents

Lincoln

JFK

Jimmy Carter

Bill Clinton

Obama Poster

African-American Museum in Alexandria

My friend George and I had a very interesting outing on a very rainy, gloomy day.

We met at the African-American Museum in Alexandria. We visited the exhibit area and then watched an 11-minute video. The focus of the video was a 1938 sit-in by a group of young African Americans at the local "Free" Library. They wanted free access to the library. It was probably the first sit-in in the country. The protest was partially successful. The library was not opened to them but the city did decide to build a separate library for African Americans. The museum is now housed in the former library.

We then had a delicious, authentic Italian lunch at La Piazza, close to the Braddock Road Metro station. Carlo, the owner, comes from Napoli. Excellent food, excellent prices.

It was a very special outing.

The DCDC goes to Founding Farmers - Again!

The DCDC broke one of its cardinal rules for the first time: Never go to the same restaurant twice. Mary, Synthia, and Christine had already been to Founding Farmers but Jodi had not.

Synthia, Jodi, Christine, Mary

We started out with flatbread - ricotta, pistachio, figs with balsamic vinegar.


Jodi had roasted tomato soup.

Jodi's Salad

Synthia's Entree

Mary's Chili Burger



Christine and Mary (note the cloud in the background)

Pentagon Memorial

Andrea and I took Charles and Alison to see the 9-11 Pentagon Memorial. It was opened to the public in September 2008.

Each victim of the terrorist attack has a bench with his/her name on it. If you read the name and see the Pentagon when you look up, you know that the person died in the Pentagon. If you look up and see the sky, the person was on the plane.

The benches provide a tranquil place to meditate or feel companionship with a friend.

The Phillips Collection and Zorba's Cafe

Alison and I went to the Phillips to see the permanent collection. Of course, the major attraction was Renoir's Boating Party.

Christine in front of the restaurant

After our museum visit, we had a delicious lunch at Zorba's Cafe, a few blocks away on Connecticut Avenue (right across from the Dupont Circle Metro station). Alison is an expert on Greek food and she approved of it!

I had delicious roasted potatoes, grape leaves, and pita bread.

Lovely photos of Greece graced the walls.

The National Mall

Charles and Alison standing in front of Smithson's tomb. We Americans are grateful to this generous Englishman.


The Reflecting Pool and the Washington Monument as seen from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on the spot where Martin Luther King gave his famous "I Have A Dream" speech

The Korean War Veterans Memorial

Obelisk in front of the National Museum of the American Indian

Aladdin's Restaurant in Shirlington

Andrea and I took Alison and Charles to one of our favorite restaurants in Shirlington Village.

We all start with hummus and pita.


We then have falafel.

Alison tries her first smoothie, a raspberry one.

Christine has her usual, Jasmine's Feast.

Alison tries her first tiramisu.

Visiting the FDR Memorial

The Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, located near the Tidal Basin, is one of the loveliest memorials in DC. It contains lots of water and rock. Here are Alison and Charles in front of one of the many waterfalls.

Alison and a tall Eleanor Roosevelt

Alison and Charles standing next to a seated FDR

A man listening to one of FDR's fireside chats

Men standing in an unemployment line during the Great Depression

Play Ball!

My grandson is my favorite baseball player of all time!

Phil Rizzuto and Derek Jeter are tied for second.

Founding Farmers - Again!

My friend Gertraud and I went to Founding Farmers for lunch.

We had a table on the ground floor and it was rather noisy. The best part of the meal was the delicious corn bread.

The pumpkin ravioli were OK but not great. The sauce tasted a bit like vinegar.


Gertraud liked her deviled eggs.

Visiting Annapolis With Alison and Charles

Our English friends, Alison and Charles, came to visit us. One day we took them to Annapolis.

We had lunch at Carrol's Creek, Charles' treat. Thank you, Charles!

After lunch we had some delicious Italian gelato at Aromi d'Italia.

We took a walk around the U.S. Naval Academy.

We saw the monument to Alex Haley's African ancestor, Kunta Kinte.

P.F. Chang's

I had lunch with my dear friend Nancy and her husband at P.F. Chang's.

Lorton Prison Becomes the Workhouse Arts Center

My friend Susan, a fiber artist, has a studio in a prison! No, it is actually not a prison anymore. The Lorton prison in Fairfax County has been transformed into a center for the arts. One hundred artists have their studios here. It is a beautiful, vibrant place.

With Susan in her studio

Susan with one of her special creations

Studio 10

Bluebells at Bull Run Regional Park

Now is the time to go to Bull Run Regional Park to see the bluebells in all of their glory!

A Roman Birthday Party

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ANDREA! MAY YOU HAVE MANY MORE!

My husband celebrated his birthday with friends, Roman style.

We started out with a delicious pasta dish, fettuccine Alfredo.

The dessert was similar to Andrea's Delight, ricotta, coffee, and chocolate.

A special guest graced us with his presence.

Good friends - the spice of life!

A good time was had by all!

Sports in Loudoun County

My grandsons participate in sports activities, Christian baseball and Colin soccer.

Norwegian Fiddlers

I went to the monthly meeting of my Sons of Norway lodge. The program was a concert by Norwegian musicians. Loretta Kelley and Andrea Hoag are well-known fiddlers (playing on the Norwegian Hardanger fiddle). The guitarists are the Berntsons, mother, son, and granddaughter.

Founding Farmers, A Green Restaurant

The DC Dinner Club chose the new restaurant, Founding Farmers, for its April outing. This restaurant on 20th and Penn NW serves only organic food, most of which comes from local farmers. The ambiance was pleasant and the food very delicious indeed.

We began with cornbread, a choice from the list of "small plates." It was delicious and it actually had whole kernels of corn in it. It tasted very, very fresh.

For their main course Synthia and Mary both chose the chicken salad.


Christine chose the butternut squash ravioli. They were extremely tasty.


The drinks were exotic. Synthia chose a cranberry-cucumber cooler while Christine ordered a mint limeade.


The consensus was positive. We shall return!

National Gallery of Art

My favorite Smithsonian museum is the National Gallery of Art (even though it is technically not part of the Smithsonian complex).

On the Saturday before Easter I took my grandsons to this museum. They had never been to an art museum before and they enjoyed it. One of their favorite statues was David and Goliath.

FDR Memorial

One of my favorite memorials in Washington is the FDR Memorial, dedicated to President Franklin Roosevelt. I went there the other day to get a view of the cherry blossoms. The FDR Memorial and the Jefferson Memorial can both be found on the Tidal Basin.

Here are two photos of the statue of FDR at the entrance to the memorial.

Cherry Blossoms

Spring is the most beautiful time in the nation's capital. The cherry blossoms are in bloom. My grandson Colin is in seventh heaven. All he talks about these days is "the pink trees."

Celebrating CAL's 50th Anniversary

Hotel Monaco

I went to a marvelous reception this evening to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Center for Applied Linguistics. It was held in the Paris Ballroom of the Monaco Hotel at 7th and F Street NW, just across the street from the Verizon Center.

It offered a wonderful opportunity to see old friends.

Joy, Shelley, and Christine

An opportunity for delicious food as well!

Shelley helps herself. Christine abstained since it is Lent.

St. Patrick's Parade in Old Towne

Andrea and I took the boys to the St. Patrick's Parade. It was a marvelous local event. The parade went down King Street for 12 blocks. I especially liked the bagpipers. Christian liked the sheriff and the Fairfax County police motorcyclists. Colin loved all of the dogs, especially the littlest ones. We all found the Irish wolfhounds very impressive (they looked like ponies!).

The weather was perfect. Can you believe 74 F on March 8th in DC? Wow! Below is a photo I took of our house four days ago!

Arianna's Lebanese Restaurant

Chas, Rosemary, Christine, Andrea

Andrea and I went out to dinner with friends Chas and Rosemary. We dined at a new neighborhood restaurant called Arianna's that is located in Bradlick Shopping Center in Annandale. It was my kind of restaurant. I would highly recommend it!

We began our meal sharing two appetizers, falafels and sambosas.

Chas and I had the vegetable platter which included eggplant, pumpkin, spinach, and rice with lots of afghan bread. It was all delicious!

Rosemary had the chicken platter that included large pieces of chicken, eggplant, and rice.

Andrea had lamb and rice. It was not interesting enough to photograph! And he complained that there was too much rice and too little lamb.

Morandi at the Phillips Collection

George and Andrea at the entrance

Andrea and I met our friend George at the Phillips Collection to visit the Morandi exhibit. It was quite a remarkable exhibit. Morandi is an Italian artist who specialized in still lifes. I will provide more information about Morandi soon.

George and Christine at the entrance

Smithsonian Museums: My Kind of A Day!

I had a wonderful day today! I visited three Smithsonian museums.

Ripley Center


I attended an all-day workshop on Memoir Writing presented by GW Professor of English H.G. Carrillo in the Ripley Center. It was stimulating and informative.

During the breaks I visited the two new photographic exhibits, "Road to Freedom:Photographs of the Civil Rights Movement, 1956-1968," and "After 1968: Contemporary Artists and the Civil Rights Legacy."


National Museum of the American Indian

A view of the Indian Museum

Another view of the Indian Museum

For lunch, I dashed down to the Indian Museum. I love its food court with foods representing the cuisine of all the Indian tribes in North and South America. I had a wild rice and watercress salad and a red beet potato side dish.

Wild rice and watercress salad

Red Beet and Potato Side Dish (hard to photograph white on white)

Hirshhorn Museum

The Hirshhorn Museum (affectionately known as The Doughnut/Donut)

On my way back to the Ripley Center after lunch, I ducked into the Hirshhorn to see the much-publicized exhibit of American artist Louise Bourgeois. It was fascinating! I particularly liked the spiders and the cave sculpture in which she and her siblings feast on their father's remains.

This advertises the exhibit and shows the first sculpture in the exhibit which is breath-taking (notice the body has no head).

Crouching Spider

Georgia Brown's: Southern Cuisine

Jodi, Christine, Synthia, Mary

The DCDC lunched today at Georgia Brown's, a restaurant located at 950 15th Street NW on McPherson Square. This lovely restaurant offers delicious Southern cuisine. Its website says it best:

"Unique in design, Georgia Brown's warmly opened its doors in 1993. Part of the visual appeal lends itself to the bronzed ceiling scroll reminiscent of grand Oak trees outstretched like a lace border over Southern streets. Blonde woods cascade through the restaurant giving a sense of calm motion, like a summer ride down a lazy river. "

Guests are encouraged to eat slowly and savor the food. We did just that. We began with mouth-watering corn bread. Then we ordered the following:

Synthia began with the split-pea soup followed by a black-eyed pea cake and Carolina red rice.

Split-Pea Soup

Black-Eyed Pea Cake and Carolina Red Rice

Jodi too began with the soup. She then savored fried green tomatoes which were, according to the menu, "stuffed with Herbed Cream Cheese and served atop a bed of Green Tomato Relish with a zesty Lemon-Cayenne Mayonnaise."

Fried Green Tomatoes

Mary opted for the Carolina Gumbo, which was "a Stew of Shrimp, Andouille Sausage, Crab, Chicken and Duck with Okra, Celery, Onions, Peppers and Red Rice."

Carolina Gumbo

I ordered the Vegetarian Sampler, which included a Black Eyed Pea Cake, a Fried Green Tomato, Carolina Red Rice, sauteed Spinach, and cole slaw.

Vegetarian Sampler

Since we were all quite full at this point, we decided to share one dessert.

Two-Dessert Sampler: Key Lime pie and sweet potato pie

The Presidents Collection

Presidential Busts, 1-44

A glass case with miniature busts of each US president stands at the entrance to the restaurant. It is very up to date. Our 44th president sits on top of the case.

President Barack Obama

Is this why the First Lady dined at this restaurant soon after her arrival in the nation's capital? She was accompanied by Second Lady Jill Biden and Mayor Fenty and his wife.

For more information on Georgia Brown's, go to its website at http://www.gbrowns.com/.

The DCDC plans to go to the new GREEN restaurant, Founding Farmers, on its next outing in April. (Click on Founding Farmers to go to its website.)

Sons of Norway Lodge

On Saturday morning I went to the meeting of the Genealogy Interest Group of my Sons of Norway lodge. Here is the lodge. Note the US and Norwegian flags!

Here is the group. I am not in the photo because I took it.