Silver Linings 4 ME

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

HIGH CLASS READING!

Library of Congress ~ 4.19.11

"A library is the most enduring of memorials,

the trustiest monument for the preservation of an event or a name or an affection; for it , and it only, is respected by wars and revolutions, and survives them."

~ Mark Twain, American humorist, author & lecturer (1835-1910)

Library of Congress ceiling

We visited the Library of Congress - getting there in time for a FREE docent-led tour. Each docent provides basic info about the Library of Congress, and then shares tidbits of trivia that they have a passion for! This was my second tour & our guide was particularly interested in the hall "themes" that told the story of the ornate, colorful ceiling & wall paintings.

Minerva ~ Goddess of Knowledge

A tiled mosaic of Minerva, Goddess of Knowledge, is located at the head of the marble staircase that leads to the LOC Reading Room.

BTW, pictures can only be taken of the architecture (Italian Renaissance style) and it's a NO-NO!! in the special exhibits & collections halls.

wall art & quote

If you don't see yourself calendaring a visit to Wash DC in the near future, the LIBRARY OF CONGRESS website will provide an amazing peek at this public facility.

dedicated to SLE & MB

AND - I don't imagine your library has statues like this...

flowers that remind you of Easter eggs...

...or a view of the Capitol Building.

What an incredible day!

Monday, April 18, 2011

EVERY BOY'S DREAM??

Spirit of St Louis

Charles A. Lindbergh flew the Spirit of St Louis on May 21, 2927 ~ the first solo nonstop transatlantic flight from Long Island, New York to Paris, France, in 33 hours, 30 minutes.

Isn't it every boy's dream to fly?

or at least check out planes ~ UP CLOSE!!!

JPE & I visited the Air & Space Museum (part of the Smithsonian Museums)... Monday was busy, busy with families on Spring Break, Boy Scout troops, high school, middle school and after-school programs...

but it's nice to see so many people enjoying Washington DC.

WWII exhibit

JPE's dad served during WWII - so this exhibit was especially interesting! Amazing murals set the tone & gave viewers a "realistic visual" for understanding what the pilot may have seen from the cockpit.

another WWII airplane

WWII display case memorabilia

THIS CAUGHT MY EYE!!!

A Public Affairs Committee pamphlet ~ wondering what men going off to war needed to know about women / girls? umm... any ideas? I'd like to know if any bloggers have the answer!

Of course, we checked out the Apollo Lunar Module. This is the second stage that ferried the astronauts from the orbit capsule to the lunar surface.

On the second level was one of my favorite exhibits... "Pioneers of Flight"... which included Amelia Earhart's plane, a Lockheed Vega! and this unusual plane...

an enterprising aircraft...

...a WRIGHT EX airplane!

...which was the first aircraft which advertised a product, a grape-flavored soft drink, VIN FIZ. Rodgers, owner of the plane, painted the drink logo on the bottom of the wings, and was paid $4-5 for each mile he flew... you'll want to click THIS LINK to learn about the outcome of his advertising venture.

Water Exploration was not left out of the picture...

a National Geographic diving cage!

A full day of exhibits - the crowds followed us to the METRO - our last experience with negotiating a crowd while using the wheelchair. URGGHH... difficult!

SPRING-ING ALONG!

Tulips are blooming everywhere!

SPRING in

WASHINGTON DC!!

Arrived in Wash DC on Saturday evening!

the plane landed between thunderstorms...

bumpy-ist flight ever!!

Sunday = awesomely SPRING-like!!

...kites dotted the Washington Mall!


...spent some time at the FDR Memorial

FDR's dog, Fala + Sea-Bass (MB's guide dog)

Tulips everywhere!

Did you hear?? the Potomac River overflowed on the Mall!

...walked to the Jefferson Memorial

...Jefferson was our 3rd President

But, did you know??

:: he knew six languages ::

:: he invented the wooden coat hanger, swivel chair,

sliding door, & the dumbwaiter ::

:: he introduced broccoli to America

& made tomatoes popular ::

Thursday, April 14, 2011

WHISTLE WHILE YOU WORK?

UH! OH!

Can't believe it!

Time to get packed for Washington DC!! Tomorrow evening we'll stay with ACE as we're leaving from SFO on Saturday am... Saturday evening, SLE & MB will meet us at Dulles Airport!

My LEAST favorite task before traveling = PACKING! what's the weather? what to wear? what shoes? (well - that's fairly easy - for this trip! anyway) what coat?

did we print our boarding pass? are we checking bags? It's like playing "50 Questions"...

TO LIGHTEN THE MOOD - I'm sharing this "UH! OH" face... which is actually an adorable, handmade clay Peruvian OCARINA. My seven-hole WHISTLE is painted with colorful geometric designs on the top.

PERUVIAN OCARINA ~ gift from SLE

SO - are you asking?? "What's the difference between a WHISTLE and an OCARINA?"

WELL - ALL ocarinas are whistles; but not all whistles are ocarinas!

A WHISTLE plays one note (or 2 or 3 notes, depending on the number of holes); they are usually made to get a clear tone & generally are not tuned.

An OCARINA is a whistle (with 4-12 fingering holes, with a range of an octave to an octave and a half); they are usually tuned & songs can be played on them.

WELL - my OCARINA has four holes on top... & three holes on the bottom... plus the hole you blow into... BUT, I can't play a song... perhaps I need some lessons?

ABOUT PACKING ~ casual dress (jeans, tshirts, sweater, raincoat - basically layers)... one pair of dressy pants (after all, it is Washington DC = nice restaurants)... shoes (jogging shoes - got the DR okay to begin transitioning to shoes) + air-cast (yep! still wearing that gray monster)... taking crutches! SLE ordered a wheelchair for transporting me from Metro Station to the door of the Smithsonian Museums... just-in-case!

CHECK back for "Wanderings from Washington"...

FOR NOW - I'll whistle while I WORK (ie, finish packing)!!!

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

A TASTE OF THE RHINE...

make a wish?
BACHARACH, Germany ~ summer 2005

On Tuesdays, CAROLA, my German friend (who now lives in California), has been posting pictures of her native country. She asked bloggers to post any pictures taken during their travels to her country...

The summer of 2005, JPE & I took our first Rick Steve's Tour, the "Best of Europe in 21 Days" - here is our JOURNEY.

We stayed at the HOTEL KRANENTURM, located about 15 feet from the train tracks. The towers of this medieval town were originally used to load barrels of wine onto the Rhine boats. YEP, the water used to come clear up to the walls of the hotel we slept in. Our tour guide, Herr Jung, showed us the height of the last flood. Amazingly, the water crept up to the fourth of the seven steps to our hotel entrance.

You might wonder if the trains bothered us?? NOPE!! they were pretty noisy the first time they roared by, but we got caught up in the beauty & ambience of our view of the Rhine River. Did we sleep okay?? YEP! Rick Steve's Tours gives you a set of ear plugs... worked like a charm! didn't hear a train whistle either night we slept there... AND, how many people get to sleep in a CASTLE??!

During our walking tour (you walk A LOT on Rick Steve's Tours) to check out the view from the Stahleck Castle, we walked past this well (first picture). YES! we were panting when we got to the top! but the view was magnificient.