Capital City

Grr, browser crashes. Second try. So you like vacation photos? Neither do I. Sorry if I bore you.

Leaving Richmond and the capital of the csa behind, it was time to journey to the capital of the grand ol' usa. We made our way to Fairfax county, where Kevin and his father Tom welcomed me into their home. We went to Old Town Alexandria to see Kevin's dad's painting on display at the Torpedo Gallery (see here), and all the other work displayed there. The gallery itself is quite a work of art, with a distinctly modern feel, which was surprising to me considering its heritage as a torpedo factory during WWII.

We then toured Old Town Alexandria (which, btw, is nothing like Old Town Pasadena. Roughly 200 years difference, I think). Today it consists of small galleries, sidewalk cafes and quiant shops. And of course, really old buildings; most dating back to the revolutionary war. We got a quick glimpse of the Old Presbyterian Meeting House, one of the churches from which George Washington spoke, and the church which gave his services when he died. I'm told the bells rung out at his funeral, continued as he made his way to Mount Vernon (his home) and did not stop until he was finally buried there. How they knew when he was finally put to rest, I don't know. Cell phones, maybe.

We had dinner at Pad Thai, a tiny little restaurant that Kevin had built up over the last several months to gargantuan proportions. Needless to say, it didn't quite live up, but it was tasty nonetheless. As you can see, Amit and Umakant joined us for dinner.

Afterwards, we went to out to Georgetown, in the heart of DC (now this place is like Old Town Pasadena). A tiny lounge called the Blue Gin. Deep inside a shady alley. Loud music. Would you like to open the top of the bar? Don't bother trying to understand. I couldn't hear anything. Amit, right before he started trouble with the regulars over the honor of a lady (of course):

The next day, Kevin and Heidi took me to the National Gallery of Art, where we spent a record-breaking 6 hours. Heidi did her best to teach me a little art appreciation (especially for modern art, her passion and specialty). I did my best, but Kevin and I kept things somewhat irreverent anyways. We were reprimanded by a security guard for getting too close to the art. "You have big eyes, use them!" We mocked him when we thought he couldn't hear us, whereas reality mandated instead that he would be standing right behind us. Oops. He took things with good graces, however, and even gave us an introduction to Jasper Johns. I was quite thankful for that, as there is really no way I could have interpreted Johns' work without help.

Between the two wings of the gallery, there was a big waterfall; I braved near-certain death and the destruction of my definitely-not-waterproof camera to take this photo:

So my laundry list of places to see in Virginia shortens! Now I can take Richmond and DC/Fairfax co. off the list. I still have to check out Charlottesville, Fredricksburg, the Shanendoah Valley and of course Tangier Island (before graduation, not on this trip). But first, off to Maryland!

More to come before this vacation is over. More photos past the fold. And I'm sure Kevin will post some more Richmond/DC pics.