Weather: overcast
I again got up at 9.30, and was duly delivered to the metro, which I took to Smithsonian station. I again unsuccessfully tried the Washington Monument, and decided to spend a little time in the nearby Museum of American History.
One of the principal sights of the museum is the original Star-Spangled Banner, a huge flag (originally measuring
metres) with both 15 stars and 15 stripes which famously remained flying
over Fort McHenry in Baltimore throughout a heavy bombardment by the
British during the War of 1812, inspiring Francis Scott Key to write the
words of what was later set to the tune of an old British song, eventually
becoming the US national anthem. One of the stars and parts of the fly end
were removed during the nineteenth century as souvenirs, and the remains of
this precious flag were undergoing careful restoration.
Other exhibits in the museum covered many aspects of American life throughout the years, and I spent some time in the money and printing galleries. I took lunch in the cafeteria and then decided to head up to the Capitol again, this time to see inside.
After a pass through strict security checks, I was allowed into the building, heading first into the rotunda, beneath the elegant dome which was constructed during the Civil War years in place of an earlier, lower dome which was ill-suited to the extensions being built at the time. The whole room is splendidly decorated from floor to ceiling, with paintings and statues showing notable historic figures and scenes from American history.
An exhibition in the basement showed some of the early plans for the Capitol building, and described some of its history, including its burning by the British in 1814. Another exhibition related to the filming of ``Advise and Consent'', the last time a movie crew were allowed into the building. This included portraits of some of the stars of the film, including Paul Ford, better known to me for his role as Colonel Hall in The Phil Silvers Show.
At the Senate end of the building were a series of elaborately decorated corridors by the Italian-born Constantino Brumidi, featuring natural an historical scenes and notable Americans. Later additions commemorated the Challenger astronauts and the Apollo 11 mission. The third floor leads to the public galleries above both the House and the Senate, both with a strict ban on photography, supposedly for security reasons though I failed to see exactly what was gained at a time when neither was in session. I spent some time admiring the decor before being ushered out at closing time, 4.30.
I next took a look in the National Gallery of Art, finding that the ``History of Art'' T-shirt I had purchased the previous evening attracted comment from one of the museum attendants. I spent a little time looking around the Impressionist and Dutch rooms, then left towards the tidal basin at the southwestern end of the Mall. This area, partially reclaimed from the river, is home to monuments to Thomas Jefferson and Franklin Roosevelt. I went as far as the former for a brief look, though it was partially closed off for restoration work. Running short of time, I then headed back towards the nearest Metro station, a considerable walk away, and returned to Alexandria.
Reba had arranged to meet up in Alexandria with a couple of old friends for dinner, Andrew and Sandy Cohen, now resident in the Washington area and having the joy of house-hunting in an area of rapidly-rising property prices, which admittedly were in part due to the growth of high-tech industries in the region, for one of which Andrew worked. We dined at an outdoor table at a small cafe near the centre of the town. Andrew and Reba particular were exchanging gossip relating to their home town in Florida, one of the principal items of news being the arrival of a new rabbi at the local synagogue.
Following dinner, Reba and I returned to the apartment and watched more Olympic coverage. Slightly bizarrely, the broadcasts were going out at a time considerably later than the all-important ``prime time'' on the East Coast, with highlights of that day's events going out at a time when the next day's events were already underway in Sydney. This had been much to the displeasure of some, since without any live coverage many people were following the Olympics by other means (for instance on the Internet) rather than following the television coverage obtained by NBC at vast expense. While watching, I conducted some packing in preparation for my departure the next day, since time in the evening would be a little short, and eventually retired to bed at 1.00.