D. C. Continues

Bennett is enjoying several firsts with this visit of his grandparents. One was a delicious sushi dinner at Taz, an excellent restaurant in DC after which we went to another concert, a combined performance by military chorals at the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church. The soloist from the U.S. Army Chorus had a voice so deep it was subterranean. His rendition of John Henry gave us chills. On Monday Jerry spent time at the National Archives researching family history. He has been able to ascertain the exact date when his grandparents arrived from Russia and was trying to find further information about where they came from. Our National Archives only has US information so the search did not yield much. Anna Lee keeps hitting a blank wall on her search but she keeps trying. We then enjoyed lunch at a popular DC eatery, the Pot Belly. Good sandwiches and an amusing picture of a shirtless Jason Alexander posing ala Playboy in the ladies room.

Jerry’s favorite store in the whole wide world is Costco. He is like a kid in a candy store and loved taking Ben for his first shopping spree.

Hillwood Gardens was the home of Marjorie Merriweather Post, the sole heir of the Post foods fortune which company evolved into General Foods. She built her home in DC with the intent of it becoming a museum. A movie giving her background and training as a art collector is narrated, in part, by her daughter Dina Merrill. Even in this heat the gardens were lovely but it was the home that was magnificent. Though a skilled collector of fine furniture, her greatest love was pre-Soviet china, icons, and Faberge eggs. The two floors open to the public are filled with the beautiful pieces she rescued from destruction when her ex-husband, Davies, was ambassador to Russia.

A special exhibit of Pret a Papier by Isabelle de Borchgrave featured over a dozen dresses and accessories made solely of paper. It was hard not to touch them to prove they were not fabric.

Jerry and Anna Lee spent the morning of the 4th of July at an organ recital at the National Cathedral. What a magnificent building it is and the acoustics are phenomenal. The duet of piano and organ performing Rhapsody in Blue was almost tactual. Our skin seemed to tingle while our ears were filled with one of the best rendition we have heard. The duet of two organists presenting Concert Variations on “The Star Spangled Banner” was also outstanding. With the threat of another storm hitting D.C. (we have had wind, thunder, lightning and driving rain), we chose to avoid the Mall and enjoy the Independence Day celebrations on television. Before kissing Ben farewell until the fall, Cheryl and Anna Lee went through Anna Lee’s mother’s cedar chest. Among the treasures rediscovered were afghans and sweaters knit in 30s and 40s as well as some for Cheryl in 1970s. These treasured heirlooms will be part of Ben’s possessions and history.

This trip and blog has had a new twist and we appreciate your willingness to follow this new journey of ours. Thanks for all the warm comments.

Belated 49th Anniversary

We took a 10K walk through the historic African-American neighborhood of Adams-Morgan. This is the birthplace of Duke Ellington and where many early black musicians performed for black audiences. This statue is in tribute to African-American Civil War veterans.

And this is just a fun piece crawling on a store wall.

We feasted on a wonderful belated anniversary dinner. Cheryl and Dave’s friend Jeff had recommended 1789 Restaurant when we were here for Valentine’s Day a few years ago. The restaurant defines itself as “the quintessential DC dining experience.” There are six dining rooms in a centuries-old Federal house. We were delighted with a personalize menu congratulating us on our anniversary. We shared an apple pecan salad. Jerry had Point Pleasant, NJ, Diver scallops and Anna Lee had lamb shoulder cooked with hay and lavender. Our shared 1789 Chocolate Coin dessert of whiskey, chocolate and caramel mousse, whiskey dark chocolate ice cream and a gold and chocolate coin was scrumptious. With no photos to show how good the service, food and ambiance were, please trust our rating of 5 stars on this lovely evening. As stated, our celebration was delayed five days so the souvenir menu has the wrong date but the right sentiment

Sunday was Shower Day

Two of Cheryl’s friends held a lovely shower for her. Another sign of times changing, this was a couples shower. We enjoyed seeing friends we knew and meeting new ones.

The hostesses had a cute idea. They had white onesies for everyone to decorate. Some were thematic, like UCLA and Duke, others humourous like beer, lollipops and penguins.

They were all very cute. Daddy Dave had to fly to London for a couple of weeks. He tried to pack Ben in the suitcase and sneak out but we stopped him and promised to Skype instead.

On Tuesday, Jerry wanted to get out of the house for a bit so he went on a 10k Volksmarch. This one was a revision of a walk that he had done a year or so ago and went past many Embassies and through interesting Washington, DC neighborhoods.. New revisions on the walk included the Israeli embassy, the National Cathedral and the Peirce Mill, the last operating mill in DC. It was a great walk although very hilly. The three of us won tickets to see The Merry Wives of Windsor at the Shakespeare Theater Company so we left Ben with a trio of sitters. The production was delightful. We paid particular attention because we will be seeing The Very Merry Wives of Windsor, Iowa in Oregon in August. Thursday, after passing his physical with flying colors, we took Ben out to celebrate with burgers at Good Stuff Eatery. Then the Presidential Marine Band put on a concert for us in front of the Capitol Building.

Ben really got into the rousing music by Sousa, Saint Saens, Rimsky-Korsakov, Copland and others.

This was music befitting the upcoming Fourth of July.

Food, food, food

We spent the day in Annapolis, MD (not at the Academy but the town). This centuries-old city, the capitol of Maryland, is charming. The narrow streets are lined with shops, restaurants, and ice cream parlors. We started with a tour of the State House. It was here that then General George Washington resigned from his post as commander of the Continental Army to assume the role of President of the United States. The capital building is much like it was in the 1700s. Maryland has a bicameral government that meets for three months per year. We got into a political discussion with a store manager who informed us that he was unhappy with their legislature due to their inability to pass a balanced budget. Not much different than the problems we Californians face on a yearly basis. Travel shows one that the issues are the same no matter where you go. This John Shaw flag is a reproduction of the one that flew over America’s first peacetime capital. Touring the capitol worked up our appetites so we got in line for Chick and Ruth’s Delly, a cramped restaurant with huge portions of delicious food. Their menu states “No sharing.” We didn’t order the milk shake or hamburger, but enjoyed crab and shrimp sandwiches. Some of the dishes, including the three pound hamburger, were featured in the TV show “Man vs. Food.” If we had the RV, we would have loaded up the refrigerator with leftovers. After a bit of shopping, we got in line for our next meal. Cantler’s is a waterfront restaurant specializing in blue crab. We shared a mountain of crab with family. At the end of the meal arms, hands and faces were covered with crabs and stomachs were full. But there is always room for ice cream, especially penguin-approved ice cream. Our hands and faces again displayed our tasty delights.

The National Zoo

Ben’s first day at work and one month birthday. Our daughter Cheryl works for the Smithsonian Museum at the National Zoo. Though she is on leave, she continues to work on some of her projects, so we went to the zoo where Ben met some of her co-workers. He again seemed underwhelmed by the exhibits though the triceratops caught a bit of his attention. Worn out by his busy day, he collapsed on Daddy Dave’s shoulder.

Ben Blog

The best laid travel plans are made to be changed. We were within an hour from heading out in the RV to the Dakotas and Glacier Park when we got a call from our daughter asking if we wanted to be Bubba and Zaida (Yiddish for grandma and grandpa). So instead of driving to South Dakota, after a brief waiting period, we flew to DC to meet Bennett. It was a family gathering with our son Jeff flying in from Troy, NY and extended family coming from Baltimore. Unlike the days when newborns stayed home for at least the first month, we have enjoyed introducing Ben to ethnic restaurants, grocery shopping, and enjoying the surprising lovely weather in DC. Ben even joined friends for his first pizza.

Bennett

Two pictures are worth two thousand words.