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.

Wildfire: American Cuisine

After the lodge meeting, I met my sister for lunch at Tyson's II. We had a nice lunch at Wildfire.

Katie had crab cakes.

I had field greens with wood roasted vegetables.

Katie in front of the restaurant

Me in front of the restaurant

Katie's destination after lunch

Valentine's Day at La Tasca

My husband and I celebrated Valentine's Day at La Tasca, a Spanish restaurant in Old Towne Alexandria. Andrea ordered beer but I drank a delicious sparkling Spanish wine, Espumosa.

We enjoyed the nice ambiance.

We started with olives for our appetizer.



I ordered three tapas:

Eggplant with cheese

Spinach with pinenuts and raisins

Roasted potatoes with green and red peppers and onions

Andrea ordered the following:

Scampi

Clams

Calamari

I ordered dessert, of course. I cannot resist flan, my very favorite dessert (actually it is tied for first place with creme brulee).

Although we did not find the food quite as delicious as that at the other La Tasca in Clarendon, we enjoyed our evening out. The ambiance was nice and the service was excellent. The food was good.

Andrea approved!

I did, too!

National Museum of American History

My husband and I went back to the American History museum. We wanted to share some of the treasures there with our grandchildren.

THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION

Christian with a Revolutionary War musket. It was heavy!!




Colin with a musket

A uniform for a British solider (a Redcoat or a Lobsterback) in the Revolutionary War

General George Washington's Uniform

Christian photographing the Battle of Yorktown and the British Surrender

THE CIVIL WAR

An Army Ambulance

General Sheridan's Horse

THE WAR IN VIETNAM

US Helicopter

CINEMA HISTORY: STAR WARS

Colin with C3P0

T.H.A.I.

We had lunch today at T.H.A.I. in Shirlington Village. The food and service were, as usual, excellent. Here are some photos:

Appetizers

Spring Rolls

Potstickers (filled with butternut squash)

Main courses

Debbie had Pad Thai.

Christine had vegetables and tofu in ginger-soy sauce.


Andy had a pork entree.

Andrea had seafood soup.