The Waiting Game

Still not working, still no word on the status of my security clearance. Just... waiting.

So instead of mope around for the day, after a leisurely morning and breakfast, I decided to go out and see stuff in D.C. And by see stuff, I mean go to the National Gallery of Art, because I am me.

I spent about 3 hours there, taking my time through the museum's West Building. It took me a while to figure it out, but it is on two floors. I started in the (basement? Not-main) floor. There was much colonial furniture from just prior to the Revolution, to about halfway through the 1800s. There was also much statuary and sculptures. One thing I did learn, was apparently Edgar Degas (of ballet dancer paintings fame) made a bunch of models for small sculptures, but never had them cast. After he died, the family found them, and had them cast. The National Gallery has the largest collection of these small statutes, and had many of them on display. So you learn something new every day.

I finally made my way to the main gallery on the main floor. And pretty much saw European paintings from the 1300s through about the 1600s or 1700s. This means: there were many portraits, ALL OF THE JESUS/MARY STUFF, and much representation from Italy and the Netherlands, with some French people thrown in for good measure. It was informative to look at, as I don't usually seek out this type of art; while I appreciate the insane skill it takes to paint like they did -- particularly in the 1500s and 1600s-- with exacting precision, I don't find Renaissance art particularly interesting, aesthetically or artistically. But it is good to see this stuff once in a while, if for no other reason to appreciate where modern (as opposed to art from antiquity) started, to then understand where it went and why.

Here are some of the works I came across. I took pictures of particularly famous works, because it was cool to see them in person.

Little Dancer by Edgar Degas

The Thinker by Rodin

If you are in D.C. and like art, here is the information for the National Gallery. Like so many things in D.C., admission to the Gallery is my favorite price: Free

Address: Between 3rd and 9th Streets, on Constitution Ave. NW

Hours: Monday-Saturday: 10:00AM-5:00PM, Sunday: 11:00AM-6:00PM

After I was done at the museum, I headed over to the DuPont Circle neighborhood. I went there looking for needle and some thread, which is kind of absurd, but I am glad I went. It is my new favorite neighborhood. I think it is somewhat arty and hipster-y, but I liked that because it means that there were a lot of funky, not-chain stores to check out. Like this one bookstore that was a combination bookstore, cafe, and grill. It was pretty awesome. There was another store that was like a walk-in, public art studio. Any person from the public could just go in, grab and canvas and some paint, and just create art. While I am definitely not that artistically-inclined, I definitely intend on going back and painting up a canvas some time while I am here. I love funky neighborhoods like that.

One thing I really love about the East Coast, is just how everything is old. I am a huge history buff, and find it fascinating that you can get things out here that date from the 1600s and the 1700s. Some of my most favorite "old" stuff, is definitely the architecture. You get styles that you just don't see much of out west, at least in ways that are authentic. In D.C., it is an interesting mix of the colonial and early-1800s style from New England, with some Antebellum Southern Plantation styles. And the resulting product is just so interesting, intricate, and often colorful. The pictures below will show what I mean. You just don't get that anywhere else.

Repurposed mansion in DuPont Circle

Row of houses in DuPont Circle. I particularly like the curvy, intricate form of the red house on the right

Row of houses on Monroe Street at 16th Street NW. Just love it

So it looks like I might be on my own for the next few days, trying to figure out what to do. I am going to try to explore D.C. some more, and find things to do that are not necessarily "typical." There are always the Smithsonians and the monuments, but I have been a tourist in D.C. three times before, and honestly, you can only go to the Lincoln Memorial so many times.

Until next time.

Maybe I should go here. Not going to lie, I want to know what makes this gallery "very special." Will have to go back to DuPont Circle to find out

Summer Adventure 2: Washington, DC

So, I realize I did not post much over spring break. I blame that on my boyfriend, who came to visit during the second week off. But you know what? Between blogging and spending time with the significant other, I am glad I spent more of my time doing the latter, and not the former. So no regrets.

Rather than blabber on about what we did, I will give you the sparknotes version, and post some pictures from spring break. For context: one day we went to Monterey, CA. The next day we went to San Francisco. The last day, we went to Napa, CA and Berkeley, CA. The pictures are assorted pictures from those trips. Here they are:

View of the Pacific from The Great Highway, San Francisco

View of ruins along the coast. They look ancient, but are only about 50 years old. Used to house pool complex of some sort

The Cliff House. Iconic and old San Francisco establishment, dating to before the 1906 earthquake. Used to be quite built up and fancy, back in the day

Awesome view of the sunlight setting over the Pacific

Wildlife chilling off the coast of Monterey, near the Monterey Bay Aquarium

Beach and ruins of an old dock at Cannery Row, Monterey, CA

Famous Chinese gate at the entrance to Chinatown in San Francisco

I did accomplish one nice thing over spring break: my ongoing quest to find a legit Chinese wok finally came to an end. The boyfriend and I finally found one in Chinatown in San Francisco. The nice lady even threw in a free pair of long Chinese cooking chopsticks. So you know, that only took looking in three different Chinatowns in three different cities over a 3000-mile span of the entire country.

Then spring break ended. And I came back to school. I arrived the day after Easter; I guess some people were getting in the spirit over break, because I found this on display in the library when I got back:

"Jury of your Peeps"

Not going to lie, seeing that was kind of awesome. Whoever made that is my new best friend.

So school started, went on for about five more weeks, and then reading week and finals. I am now done with another year; another one bites the dust, and only one more to go.

I finished on Thursday with my last final, and by Saturday I was on a plane to Washington, DC, to settle in and start my internship with the government. In theory I start on Monday, but some of my paperwork hasn't cleared as of Friday, so I may not be able to go in until later in the week. Kind of annoying, but if I can't go to work, I guess I will go to the National Gallery or something.

Haven't done much since arriving here. I got in later yesterday evening, so kind of just hung out. Today I unpacked and ventured to the nearby Target, to stock up on some supplies I didn't bother packing. Then I went on a reconnaissance mission to figure out how to get to work, so I do not end up lost and late for work on whatever day it is that ends up being my first day. I have been to DC before, but I always forget how epic some of the buildings are. They aren't very tall (due to a rule in place since the city's founding that no office building or anything, can stand higher than the Capitol Building. But what the buildings lack in height, they make up for in heavy stone architecture of imposingness, engraved quotes of weightyness, heavy quasi-Greek/Roman statutes of allegory, and intense-looking, huge doors.

The other thing I forgot, but then was reminded of, about DC is the absurd crosswalk timers. When the "walk" sign is on, it also helpfully counts down the time you have until the light is going to change. While most crosswalks I have seen counting down in other cities give like, 10-ish seconds, it is not unusual for the timers to give 30 second, 45 second, 60 seconds. And it is not just a few crosswalks. Like every crosswalk gives a ridiculous amount of time to cross what, 10 or 15 feet. I don't get it; are there a lot of really old, slow people in DC? I remember when I was last in DC, the spring break of my senior year in college, my boyfriend and I were endlessly amused by these crosswalks. Glad to see not much has changed.

Anyway, that's all the news that's fit to print. As I get around the city more I will post more pictures. So it all begins.