Washington, DC

The National Museum of American History will reopen on November 21, 2008, just in time for those visiting D.C. for Thanksgiving and the winter holidays. Part of the reopening includes a rare chance to see the White House copy of Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address on display. This is not a new permanent part of the museum, but it will stay on display until January 4, 2009.

The museum has been closed for 2 years for a $85 million renovation of the building. The main renovation was the redesign of the museum core making it into an atrium. The museum has also been reorganized to give it a fresh feel (I know history and fresh may sound contradictory to some, but that is how I thought it was best to describe it).

Part of the new exhibit space created is a new housing for the recently restored Star Spangled Banner. The entrance to the exhibit has a waving flag made out of polycarbonate reflective tiles. The room the historic flag is kept in is climate controlled and made to give the feel of it being dawn’s early light all the time in the exhibit. The exhibit will still have the extra object and history about the flag and the National Anthem, which I am sure has been improved and will have multimedia aspects.

A major aspect of the reorganization of the museum is related to the incorporation of landmark objects for the six wings of the museum. The six landmark objects are a Dumbo ride vehicle, the Greensboro lunch counter, Clara Barton’s Red Cross Ambulance, the John Bull locomotive, Horatio Greenough’s George Washington statue, and a telescope used by America’s first woman astronomer. Read more about the landmark objects in this blog post I posted in June.

I was very excited to read the July newsletter from the National Museum of American History because it mentions that the Dumbo ride vehicle will remain on public display. Actually, it will hold a place of honor as being one of the six landmark objects in the new layout of the museum. The landmark positions mark the East and West wings on the three floors of exhibit space. Dumbo will be the landmark object for the West Wing on the Third Floor.

The Dumbo ride vehicle was donated to the museum back in June 2005 in honor of Disneyland’s 50th anniversary. It is fitting symbol for Disneyland, as it is one of the original 1955 rides. Disney and Disneyland are important parts of American history as representative of the “blend of imagination, technology, and business acumen.”

The other Landmark objects that have been profiled in past newsletters are the Greensboro Lunch Counter for the East Wing of the Second Floor and Clara Barton’s Red Cross Ambulance, 1898 for the East Wing of the Third Floor. The other Landmark objects that will be profiled in upcoming issues are the John Bull locomotive for the East Wing of the First Floor, Horatio Greenough’s George Washington Statue for the West Wing of the First Floor (at least I think that is right), and a telescope used by America’s first woman astronomer for the West Wing of the Second Floor (again, my guess and may be switched around with Washington if I am guessing their locations wrong).

I cannot wait until the museum reopens, but currently the date of reopening appears to still be a vague Fall 2008. Hopefully, that means September.

Today I stood along the Pennsylvania Avenue part of the Popemobile route from the White House to the Vatican Embassy. I got there around 10am (left home as soon as the Metro rush hour fare time ended to save $0.65). There were a lot of people near the beginning of the route on Pennyslvania Avenue near the White house, but I easily got a spot in front on the curb just a few blocks from the White House. I sat there and read a book and enjoyed the great weather (was not too cold or too hot on the sunny side of the street I was on). The popemobile drove by a little after noon. It did not zoom by like the Presidential motorcade does, but it also was not as slow and parade like as the police officer led us to believe. The Popemobile went from being seen to out of view in only 15 seconds. I did get a few photos using consecutive shot mode, but mostly the Pope was facing the other way. Understandable, though, because right across the street was a group of students from a seminary and they had a large sign. Nevertheless it is likely a once in a lifetime thing and was totally worth waiting two for only a 15 second glimpse of the Pope. At least I did not have to stand the whole time like the two hours I did for the Cherry Blossom Parade last weekend and instead I mostly sat on the curb as I waited.

The rain may have stopped some from coming down to the Cherry Blossom Parade and did send some people running before and during it, but overall a lot of people stuck it out. It was after all not that hard of a rain and the parade was worth sticking around for. Below are a few of my photos I took of the parade.

National Cherry Blossom Festival Flag

Confetti After 1st Performers Start the Parade

Take Pictures Not Blossoms Sign on Park Service Float

Southwest Presents Parade of the National Cherry Blossom Festival

(more…)

Last summer when my family came to D.C. on vacation I thought of taking my little brother to the Newseum because I remember enjoying it on my 8th grade trip back in 2001 and I thought he would enjoy it. Well, that was when I discovered it was no longer open in Rosslyn. We soon learned it was being moved when we walked by the construction site on our way to the International Spy Museum (big disappointing attraction by the way!). Since then I had forgotten about the museum (I was not blogging on D.C. back then) and I was just reminded of it watching the news earlier this week. The Newseum is opening to the public at its new location in downtown D.C. tomorrow, April 11, 2008. Best of all it is a free admission day (meaning I plan to go and probably be doing a post about it tomorrow or it will be next week’s Special Topic Tuesday or both like I did with the Lincoln Cottage).

Before the 9am opening there will be a block party from 7am to 8:45am on Pennsylvania Avenue between 4th and 6th Streets. This will include The Newseum News Hound (mascot, I assume), New York Express Roller Dance Company, caricatures, historical newspeople, and free refreshments.

The museum has 14 galleries including The New York Times–Ochs-Sulzberger Family Great Hall of News; News Corporation News History Gallery; NBC News Interactive Newsroom; 9/11 Gallery; Internet, TV and Radio Gallery; Pulitzer Prize Photographs Gallery; Berlin Wall Gallery (this is one of the main galleries I remember from seeing the old museum, it has a section of the wall); Cox Enterprises First Amendment Gallery; Time Warner World News Gallery; Pulliam Family Great Books Gallery; Today’s Front Pages Gallery; Journalists Memorial; ABC News Changing Exhibits Gallery; and Hank Greenspun Terrace on Pennsylvania Avenue.

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The routes for the Popemobile in D.C. have been announced. I found the info looking at the Washington Post today. I am kind of disappointed that it did not come from my regular checking of the official site for the Papal Visit, which has it very buried to find that they in fact posted it yesterday. Both public routes will be on April 16 and a more private one is on April 17, but it is does not seem as exclusive as the Mass (I know it is also public, but in the end it is exclusive because of the limited tickets).

The first public route is at around noon on April 16, as I already knew from the itinerary. This route will be from the White House to the papal nunciature (*see note at bottom of post). He will start the Popemobile route by exiting the White House from the East Executive Entrance. He will then go west on Pennsylvania Avenue past Washington Circle. He then goes on Rockcreek Parkway and exits on Massachusetts Avenue, which he takes until he gets to the papal nunciature.

The second route will be at 5:15pm on April 16. This route is from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops headquarters at 3211 Fourth Street NE to the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. For this route you can line up along the west side of Fourth Street and on Michigan Avenue. The grounds of the Shrine are by ticket only.

The final Popemobile Route is on April 17th. It is at 6:15pm and is a route from the Catholic University of America to the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center. Tickets are required for standing along this route. According to the Washington Post, though, there is still possibility of local church-sponsored organizations to get blocks of 50 tickets or more as long as the request is sent by tomorrow, April 10.

*Papal Nunciature is what the Archdiocese of Washington called the end point of the route. According to my research it is a fancy way of saying office and is from Italian. The Washington Post puts it in lay men’s terms and calls it the Vatican Embassy, which as far as I know is also an accurate term for the building.

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Pope Benedict XVI is making his first visit to the United States as Pope and he is starting his visit in Washington, D.C. He is scheduled to arrive next Tuesday, April 15, and will be celebrating his 81st birthday in D.C. on April 16. According to the itinerary, he will be doing a Popemobile route at noon on April 16, but the exact route has not been released yet. The Frequently Asked Questions on the Official Website for the visit says that there will also be a Popemobile route on April 17. I will be on the lookout for when the routes are released, as I probably will try to see the Pope go by, and if I remember I will do a post with the details.

Pope Benedict XVI will be saying mass on April 17th at the Nationals New Park (I wonder if this is why there is such a delay in when ballpark tours not starting until April 19, for which tickets went on sale for today and I got the first ticket for the first public tour). Tickets are free, but you got to be able to get them from your parish. Basically, though, if you do not have them you are not going to get them. They have implemented a strict non-transferable policy and will be checking government ids. Only ones that could possibly sneak in are minors using someone else’s ticket because minors (under 18 years old) will not need to show id. If you do have tickets, then plan to be there before 8:30am when the Procession begins, although the pre-Mass program begins at 5:15am when the park opens. Do not worry about getting breakfast before you leave home (Metro specially opens at 5am to handle mass goers) because the Concession stands will be open at 6am. Also, contrary to attending to a Nats game you cannot bring in any food or beverages to the Mass.

For those that want their souvenirs related to this Papal Visit, there are plenty of options. My favorite is the special Metro Card that you can get at the Metro Center ticket office. It is a Metro One Day Pass for Mass Day (April 17, 2008). It costs $9 and is good all day on the Metro and is even valid during Rush Hour, which normal one day passes are not. Another interesting souvenir I have personally seen is the Build-a-Bear shirt, which is on sale at the Nationals Park Build-a-Bear as well as other D.C. area Build-a-Bear stores. Other souvenirs are available online here and the same stuff is available at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception on the Catholic University campus.

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Opening Night tonight was colder than yesterday’s exhibition game in part due to the later start, but also just it being a colder night temperature wise. It was totally worth sticking it out, though, as the game ended with a bang. Lots of people left early and boy did they miss out by not sticking around. The long lines at concessions continued today, but I got to give a big thumbs up to the continued efficiency of the Metro system. They did an awesome job with the bigger crowd tonight before and after the game. In particular, I appreciate that they held the yellow line to Huntington train for some extra time at L’Enfant Plaza to ensure those that just got off from the green line from the stadium were able to make the transfer. That just went above and beyond what I would have expected them to do and greatly increased the speed I got home.

Balloons greeted fans to the park today for Opening Day along with a red carpet with Nats logos and Coca Cola logos. It most definitely is a Coke park.

Opening Day against the Atlanta Braves with First Pitch at 8:15pm. Taken about 4 hours before game.

Official Home of the National Pastime in the Nation’s Capital

I was not planning to get a Build-a-Bear, but I just could not pass up the special Opening Day shirt. I got a bear with the Inaugural Season logo on his foot and the shirt.

Welcome Home still of the video progression they showed of the ballpark being built

They unfurled two giant United States flags in center field and they held them here as the lineups and rosters were announced for both teams and the National Anthem was sung.

Those on the Nats line up ran between the flags to the first base line as they were announced.

President George W. Bush throws out the Ceremonial First Pitch and yes there was a general booing heard from the crowd.

The real first pitch of the game.

Nationals start the season out with 2 runs in the first inning.

Chipper Jones hits the first home run in the Nationals New Stadium to bring the score to 2 to 1 with Nationals still winning in the 4th inning.

Appropriately George Washington wins the first President race at the new ballpark.

Cool promo they gave out after game, which I did pick up. It is a newspaper print of the first pitch. The first thing that made me realize it was most definitely worth sticking it the game even though I was cold.

We were in the only section that had lights not working from above. Kind of odd, but hey it is only Opening Night at the ballpark.

The Braves score a run to tie the game in the top of the ninth forcing a bottom of the ninth. Some people began to leave and many had already left. Boy did they not have faith.

Ryan Zimmerman running the bases after he hit a home run to win the game in the bottom of the ninth with 2 outs. First home run by a Nationals player in the new ballpark and a better than Hollywood ending to the first official game in their new stadium.

The team comes out to congratulate Zimmerman as he reaches home plate after hitting the game winning home run.

Final Box Score of an amazing Opening Night that turned out to be an awesome game to attend and worth braving the cold to see it to the end. Now lets root for an awesome season. A World Series win would not be bad, although if the Cubbies play the Nationals in the post season I would have to loyally still root for the Cubs. I have been a Nats fan since they came to the Capital, but I have been a Cubs fan longer and they are still overall my team.

The new temporary exhibit called Color as Field: American Painting, 1950-1975 opens today (February 29) at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. This exhibit continues until May 26, 2008. This exhibit is being called the “first ever full-scale examination of the sources, meaning, and impact of the Color Field movement.” This type of painting emerged in the 1950s in America and was part of the larger postawar art movement of American abstract art. This type of painting was done with colors of paint being put on “canvas to create vast chromatic expanses.” The exhibit contains over 40 painting and artists include Gene Davis, Helen Frankenthaler, Morris Louis, Kenneth Noland, and Jules Olitski.

While checking out this temporary exhibit, why not also check out the other recently opened exhibit Obata’s Yosemite.

Today (February 23, 2008) two new exhibits open at the Smithsonian’s Freer Gallery of Art. Both exhibits are to continue indefinitely, thus I am guessing that they are new permanent exhibits or at least semi-permanent. One is called Freer and Whistler: Points of Contact. This exhibit is contains over 20 oil paintings done by James McNeill Whistler, who influenced the aesthetic education of the founder of the Freer Gallery of Art, Charles Lang Freer. This influence is seen in how the Freer Gallery displays American and Asian art together.

The second exhibit is called Surface Beauty: American Art and Freer’s Aesthetic Vision. This exhibit is related to the other exhibit opening today as both relate to showing Freer’s aesthetic vision. This exhibit shows some of the early things that Freer collected. His early collecting was focused on a small group of American artists that created works similar to Whistler’s and focused on surface beauty (his aesthetic vision that carries over into his Asian collections). This exhibit contains decorative painting by Thomas Dewing and Dwight Tryon as well as Detriot Pewabic Pottery.

I just read an interesting story on the Washington Post’s website. It talks about a new way they are trying to keep people from being meter feeders and parking longer than the 2 hours allowed. They are starting a program of using a mobile parking camera that will identify cars that have been parked in the metered spots for over the maximum time limit. The metered parking is not meant to be for people working in the area or planning to spend more than 2 hours in one place. Basically they are meant for customers of various businesses and with the spaces being hogged by non-customers it is believed it hurts businesses. Certainly sounds like an interesting technology, but personally I think it is useless to be worrying about street parking. People should be encouraged to just ride the Metro. Within the District there is very little need for a car. It is way more hassle than it is worth. I mean even if you find a parking spot it is more expensive than taking the Metro when you take into account not just parking fees, but also gas prices.

I meant to write this post sooner, but just did not get around to it. At least neither of the changes have occured, yet. The MetroBus Schedule changes begin December 30, so if you use one of the effected lines to get to work like I do you might want to make sure you know what time to catch the bus now to need to catch the bus to be on time and so that you do not end up waiting longer than necessary at the stop because the bus comes later than you thought. Bus Lines effected are 60, 64, 62, 66, 68, 90, 92, 93, D8, G8, H1, H2, H3, H4, N6, U4, U8, W2, W3, X1, X3, 85, C11, D12, D14, F4, F14, J7, J9, P12, P17, P19, T2, T18, Y5, Y7, Y8, Y9, Z2, 3A, 3B, 3E, 9E, 10A, 10E, 12C, 12S, 16Y, 22B, 23A, 23C, 25A, 25F, 25G, 25J, 25P, 25R, 25B, 28B, and 38B. Go here to download the PDF files of the new timetables for these lines.

Now about the fare increase. This is something that has been discussed for months here and all along Metro has been quite clear that some kind of increase will happen early in 2008. The confirmed fare increases and the date for the increase has now been given. The increases start on January 6, 2008. The increases include a 30 to 60 cent increase to rush hour rates depending on how far you are going. The base fare of $1.35 will rise to $1.65. Daily parking fees will increase 75 cents and may rise another 25 cents late in 2008 if Metro decides to use the option they made for themselves. The metered parking fees will increase to $1 an hour. Monthly reserved parking will increase anywhere from $10 to $55. Bus fares remain at $1.25 if you pay with a Smarttrip (making it well worth the low price of $5 it costs to get it if you ride the bus at just once a week, plus it is just more convenient overall for riding the Metro). If you pay with cash, bus fares will now cost $1.35. Metro is providing 50,000 Smarttrip cards to be given for free to low-income people who cannot afford the $5 fee, thus making it possible for them to also keep the same budget for their bus riding.

Please note that paper bus transfers are to be eliminated in January 2009 and after that you will only get the transfer discount if you use a Smarttrip, so if you ever ride the MetroBuses you definitely should invest the $5 in the Smarttrip card. It is also a much greener option, as you are not wasting paper with bus transfers or paper MetroRail tickets.

Metro, fare increases, bus schedules, MetroBus

I was excited this morning when I stepped out of the Metro and it was snowing. I love the snow and have been long awaiting the first snowfall, since this is the first winter that I have lived somewhere where it usually snows. I, of course, got some photos to share of the snowfall. I was going to go to the National Mall after work to take some more snow photos, but I then realized it was already dark (also, first time I have lived somewhere where it gets dark so darn early) and I had not thought about bringing my tripod with me when I left for work (actually lucky that I even thought of my camera). Anyways here are some photos of the first snow in the D.C. area this winter.

snow, d.c.

I know this proposal has been going on for a long time and it is not exactly new news for most long time Washington area residents, however I thought I would bring it up today because I was reminded of it by this news article that appeared in the Washington Post today. This additional line would be mostly for Maryland suburbs. It is proposed to link Bethesda to New Carrollton. The cost of the line is projected between $1.6 billion and $1.8 billion. There are still logistics problems such as the fact that the proposed line goes through Capital Crescent Trail and the University of Maryland’s College Park Campus.

purple line, Metro, D.C.

Yesterday Redskins safety Sean Taylor was shot in his home in Miami, Florida. Last night he was still in critical condition, but was considered to be responsive as he squeezed the doctor’s hand and made some facial expressions on the doctor’s request. He did not recover and it the Associated Press just released news that he has died. Here is link to yesterdays article on the incident.

special topic, football, Redskins