![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Back last April, at B.C. in D.C., I won the raffle for a free weekend at the Sheraton Crystal City (the convention hotel). When I went to New York last July, I volunteered to be bumped from the plane in exchange for travel vouchers. So this past weekend, I put the two together and went to see the cherry blossoms.
I arrived on Friday by early afternoon, plenty of time to dash off to the National Gallery of Art for a very excellent exhibit, Marks of Ownership, of books drawn from the NGA's library showing bookplates, coats of arms, and just plain signatures. I had hoped to see another small show there at the same time, but the gallery was closed that day (guard shortages, apparently). I was able to see that exhibit, The Fleeting Structures of Early Modern Europe the next day, though.
The NGA people aren't dumb. To get from the West Building to the East Building, you must pass through three gift shops. Seriously. Two books and a necklace later . . .
After resting up a bit at the hotel, I went to Alexandria, wandered about a bit, and had a good pizza sitting outside at a restaurant on King St.
I started the next day at the Sackler, where an exhbit of Hokusai's Thirty-six Views of Mt. Fuji was opening, just in time for the Cherry Blossom Festival. There was also a koto concert going on just outside that gallery:
(I have no idea why this is sideways, and I can't rotate it. But enjoy the music.)
There was a light mist happening, which caused them to move the bento boxes from the garden to inside the museum, so I decided to head for the Tidal Basin before the rain got more serious. The cherry blossoms were seriously beautiful, and it really did look like a postcard:
I walked back to the mall, to catch the Fleeting Structures show at the NGA, pausing to listen to a bit of the Reason Rally, which was, in fact, only
and had a quick bite to eat at the Museum of the American Indian.
Back to the hotel to rest up, and then have dinner with my friend Soching and her husband, both retired foreign service. Good dinner, good conversation.
The plan on Sunday was to go to the Folger, but as they did not open until noon, I first went to the U.S. Botanic Gardens, where there was an orchid show going on:
I got a bit too distracted by the flowers, because it was already 1:00 by the time I got to the Folger, just as a tour was starting. I joined the group, but peeled off after a bit so I could spend more time with my reason for being there, namely, the Shakespeare's Sisters exhibit. Lots of gorgeous books, written by, owned by, translated by, women from 1500-1700 (well, a few were later). Including (nod to the NGA exhibit) marks of ownership:
Uneventful flight home (as they all should be).
I arrived on Friday by early afternoon, plenty of time to dash off to the National Gallery of Art for a very excellent exhibit, Marks of Ownership, of books drawn from the NGA's library showing bookplates, coats of arms, and just plain signatures. I had hoped to see another small show there at the same time, but the gallery was closed that day (guard shortages, apparently). I was able to see that exhibit, The Fleeting Structures of Early Modern Europe the next day, though.
The NGA people aren't dumb. To get from the West Building to the East Building, you must pass through three gift shops. Seriously. Two books and a necklace later . . .
After resting up a bit at the hotel, I went to Alexandria, wandered about a bit, and had a good pizza sitting outside at a restaurant on King St.
I started the next day at the Sackler, where an exhbit of Hokusai's Thirty-six Views of Mt. Fuji was opening, just in time for the Cherry Blossom Festival. There was also a koto concert going on just outside that gallery:
(I have no idea why this is sideways, and I can't rotate it. But enjoy the music.)
There was a light mist happening, which caused them to move the bento boxes from the garden to inside the museum, so I decided to head for the Tidal Basin before the rain got more serious. The cherry blossoms were seriously beautiful, and it really did look like a postcard:
I walked back to the mall, to catch the Fleeting Structures show at the NGA, pausing to listen to a bit of the Reason Rally, which was, in fact, only
and had a quick bite to eat at the Museum of the American Indian.
Back to the hotel to rest up, and then have dinner with my friend Soching and her husband, both retired foreign service. Good dinner, good conversation.
The plan on Sunday was to go to the Folger, but as they did not open until noon, I first went to the U.S. Botanic Gardens, where there was an orchid show going on:
I got a bit too distracted by the flowers, because it was already 1:00 by the time I got to the Folger, just as a tour was starting. I joined the group, but peeled off after a bit so I could spend more time with my reason for being there, namely, the Shakespeare's Sisters exhibit. Lots of gorgeous books, written by, owned by, translated by, women from 1500-1700 (well, a few were later). Including (nod to the NGA exhibit) marks of ownership:
Uneventful flight home (as they all should be).
