Tuesday 29 May 2018

We had a leisurely day in Baltimore. Went to see the movie Book Club. Some cute lines and Jane Fonda did a good job, but don’t bother. In the evening we attended a designer house tour at a house that used to belong to decedents of Edgar Allan Poe. It was a benefit for the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra where Kathleen is a board member. Different interior designers did each room then explained their idea and process. The house will soon go on the market for $3.45M.

We did have a little time to catch up with Priscilla, Randy’s daughter who is finishing her sophomore year at Johns Hopkins in Political Science. She is currently working on the political campaign for the reelection of Maryland governor Larry Hogan and likes it.

Wednesday 30 May 2018

We picked up our Enterprise rental and drove to Philadelphia - ~2 hours. We are staying at the Alexander Inn, a small “boutique hotel” in center city. We had lunch/dinner at Reading Terminal Market – Lauve Thai, me Philly Cheese Steak. Then we went to see how bad the security was at the Liberty Bell – not bad. Just your standard bag check. We finished off with cocktails on the 37^th floor of the One Liberty building. Nice view west, but cloudy.

I couldn’t pass up highlighting the latest Starbucks blunder. The sign below is in most of the local Starbucks stores attached to the Dyson hand dryer in the bathrooms. Only problem is there are no towel dispensers in any of the bathrooms! And they didn’t mention the door handle. Check it out. 

Sunday 27 May DC – Baltimore

We took Amtrak from Union Station to Baltimore Penn Station where Lauve’s brother, Randy, and his girlfriend, Kathleen picked us up. We walked around the Inner Harbor area and had lunch till a tremendous thunderstorm had us hunkered down in the Marriott Waterfront till it let up enough to get back to the car. It was refreshing to see rain and lightning after so little lately in AZ, but 8 inches of rain caused flooding in the suburb of Ellicott City for the second time in two years.

Monday 28 May 2018 – Memorial Day

We had planned to join festivities at Ft. McHenry, but the drizzle and gloom made us switch to a movie – RBG. Great for discussions afterwards. Kathleen hosted cocktails at her house and we met her oldest son, Mark. He is a rock climber who recently started as an analyst for T. Rowe Price mutual funds. He has a very promising future in financial services but would like to be able to rock climb and have a career, so he is looking at options. He is very personable with a feel for personal finance. We encouraged him to consider personal financial planning. 

Our day to walk the Mall – Saturday 26 May 18

When we got to the Mall we couldn’t resist the National Gallery of Art (NGA). They were featuring Cezanne portraits – we like his landscapes better. He did paint at Les Lauve near Aix – a special place for Lauve’s roots.

It was another sunny day but getting very humid as storms were forecasted. So, it was sweaty as we headed towards the Vietnam Memorial. We knew it would be crowded being Memorial Day weekend, but there was a waiting line to pass by – many motorcycle groups of veterans. I can’t imagine how uncomfortable a leather vest would have been.

 The White House was our last stop, but Donald wasn’t there so we weren’t invited in. Although the picture doesn’t show it, security was heavier than we remember from our last visit a few years ago. The Secret Service manning the fence were very alert. One woman put her shopping bag down to take a picture the guy was right there to have her pick it up.

We took the Metro to Tyson’s Corner for dinner at Wildfire Restaurant with cousin Lauve and her husband, Dick. The Metro trip was a snap. What a hassle it would have been to drive.

The National Portrait Gallery is not just portraits. First it is a wonderfully restored building reminding us of the Library of Congress – high ceilings and plenty of marble. The portraits are the feature, but there are modern paintings and sculpture, satirical graphical displays and some antique furniture. The way they organized all the displays made perfect sense. There were lines, short one, for the new Obama portraits.

Carl Sandburg

Plenty of Obama groupies

 "Portraits" of America too

We spend the day at the Portrait Gallery with cousin Lauve who came in from Vienna, VA and had a lunch mid-gallery time at a Greek/Middle Eastern restaurant – Zatinya.

The evening event was a performance by the Capital Steps. They are a troop that does political satire like Saturday Night Live skits only funnier. They skewered Democrats and Republicans alike. I enjoy comedy, but rarely laugh out loud. This was the exception. 

Today exploring DC on our own - 24 May 2018

Smithsonian Air & Space Museum - We got there just at opening and there wasn’t much of a line. Imax Aircraft Carrier Exercises emphasized the vast amounts of coordination required to engage in a sea battle – air, surface, under-sea and between allied forces. All the significant (and insignificant) space hardware was on display – Apollo and all it carried was overwhelmingly big. Later in the day the masses arrived, but the museum has immense capacity, so it didn’t seem crowded.

We stopped for lunch at the Rayburn House Office building. None of our Congress people were there, but we had a great lunch obviously subsidized by our tax dollars – we split soup, a sandwich and a Dr. Pepper for under $10!

On the way to the Library of Congress we dropped in at the US Botanic Garden and got a couple of interesting angles on the Capitol.

The way we see Congress these days

The Library is way more than books. It’s an architectural masterpiece. Perfectly restored with marble from all parts of the world. Saw the Guttenberg Bible - one of three in the world in perfect condition.

Ceiling of the lobby

Reading Room only for pass holders

Great stained glass

Dinner at Farmers & Distillers on Massachusetts Ave was delicious and economical. For dessert we had their fresh baked doughnuts.

Other buildings:

Supreme Court (not in session)

National Archives

Washington DC 23 May 2018

Arrived today for our East Coast swing: DC sites, Baltimore visit with Lauve's brother Randy and New Jersey for granddaughter Lydia's wedding.

The locals say we brought the first sunny weather that DC has seen in weeks - a lovely evening to be out on the town.

Calvary Baptist Church on the Way to China Town

We are staying at the Henley Park Hotel Mass Ave and 9th. It is well located and comfortable.

China Town entrance

Had dinner in China Town at Royal Thai which was almost as good as Bai Thong in Tucson.

Iron Relief on Historic Woodward & Lothrop Dept. Store

New York City Christmas Present Trip

Lauve and I gave each other a trip to NYC for Christmas and it has finally arrived May 8^th!

We stayed at our favorite, Park Central Hotel on 7^th Ave just south of Central Park. It’s a good location for walking the park, visiting the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the theater district. Lauve usually gets us a deal!

To stretch our legs after the long flights we did Times Square – electric, but always seems to be mobbed.

Wednesday May 9^th

Ellis Island and the Hard Hat Tour were recommended. The package includes ferry service to both Liberty Island and Ellis and a guided tour of the yet-to-be-restored hospital wings where sick or mentally ill immigrants were detained before granted entry or barred - they didn’t say deported because they were never considered immigrated. Only ~ 2% of those that came were eventually barred.

First stop on the ferry was for a brief walk around the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty.

One thing the Ellis Island exhibits made clear was that the nation’s attitude about immigration went in cycles from positive after WWI to negative in the 1920’s and so on…till today. Ellis was open from 1892 till 1954 when immigrants started coming more by air than ship and a central location for processing was no longer practical.

The hospital at Ellis was one of the most modern and much sought after for treatment by New Yorkers at the time.

Photographer, JR, placed pictures of immigrants at various places on Ellis

Original fixtures around the hospital

We met Shafer Smith (son of my high school friend, Kendall and Bea Smith) and his girlfriend, Wendy for drinks at Shafer’s apartment near Washington Square. Shafer is a professor at NYU and Wendy is a finance writer at UBS Investments. Both have interesting jobs and enjoy living in NYC. We had a great evening with them at a Cuban restaurant near Shafer’s apartment.

Washington Square near Shafer's place

Thursday May 10^th

Today was Metropolitan Museum of Art day. We did the 30-minute walk from the Park Central through our favorite parts of Central Park to arrive at the Met just as it opened. The special exhibits today were Vatican/Papal vestments, Catholic inspired fashion and the parks of France from Paris to Provence. We also always visit the impressionists section.

Central Park was magnificent

Tonight, we saw Come from Away – a Broadway musical about Newfoundlanders who took in trans-Atlantic passengers stranded in Gander on 9/11. It brought back memories of where we were on the day and all the uncertainty about travel following.

Busy day – dinner was M&M’s at the play and cheesecake for dessert afterward. We walked home in a light rain.

Friday May 11^th

Downton Abbey has an exhibition in NYC. We went at 11 for the self-guided tour. It was well done reminding us of how many historical issues the series covered related to WWI politics, economics, the class system and British/American relations. It demonstrated how world events and technology combined to cause dramatic changes in the viability of the society and establishment represented by Downton Abbey.

We had dinner with Lauve’s nephew, Dan Ward, at The Topaz Thai near our hotel – still haven’t found any place as good as our Tucson Bai Thong. Dan is just finishing up his master’s degree in education and is looking forward to teaching.

Saturday May 12^th

The trip home through Houston on United was routine.