Marla and I connected with our grandson Paxton for a trip to Washington DC last week. I asked friends on Facebook for their favorite DC restaurants and Del Mar Restaurant popped up a few times. One Facebook friend I haven’t had contact with in many years asked when we were coming? More on that story later. We were able to walk to the restaurant from our hotel, The Salamander, which was super convenient.

The Wharf area was full of interesting people, restaurants and bars.

She loved her veal chop!

So great to see Paxton again! He is a junior at Boston College.

We planned today’s museum visits at breakfast. The Smithsonian Castle in the background, houses museum administrative offices. It was built in 1855.

The Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History was our first stop and is totally fascinating!

The museum is incredibly interesting with over 1.1 billion objects from around the world. The Hall of Human Origins provided a chance for me to visit an exhibit of my people…The Neanderthals. After a quick lunch we headed upstairs to see the Mineral and Gem collections, an area I’ve been passionate about since I was a small boy. Their total collection consists of 350,000 mineral specimens and 10,000 gems!

Paxton points to a beautiful blue mineral in the case.

Tiffany and Co. created this stunning necklace with a giant Spodumene (kunzite) faceted crystal surrounded by pearls and diamonds.

I simply LOVE Beryl specimens. I almost purchased some while at the Tucson Gem and Mineral show, but the prices were really too high!

Check out this totally amazing twin Elbaite Tourmaline crystals.

This specimen is incredible!

Paxton loved this Quartz (smoky-citrine) specimen.

Quite a crowd gathered around the Hope diamond. It was a gift to the Smithsonian by jeweler Harry Winston in 1958. It is valued between 200-300 million dollars.

Amazing!

The history of the Hope Diamond reads like a novel and would make a great Netflix series! Click on the link to read the story of a 112 carat diamond’s journey that began in 1668 and today is 45 carats with a value of 200-300 million dollars. More about it: https://www.si.edu/spotlight/hope-diamond/history

On the way back to the hotel we made a quick trip to the National Museum of Asian Art. This is the name since 2019 for the “Freer” and the “Sackler Gallery” next door. The “Sackler” name is still engraved at the top of the gallery.

A seated Ganesha statue from the 12-13th century in India.

Asian art is a fascination for our whole family!

Anyang: China’s Ancient City of Kings is the first major exhibition in the United States dedicated to Anyang, the capital of China’s Shang dynasty (occupied ca. 1250 BCE–ca. 1050 BCE). The source of China’s earliest surviving written records and the birthplace of Chinese archaeology, Anyang holds a special connection with the National Museum of Asian Art

Left to right: Ritual wine pouring vessel (gong) with masks (taotie), dragons, and real animals, Anyang or middle Yangzi region, ca. 1100 B.C., bronze; Ritual wine-pouring vessel (gong) with masks (taotie) and dragons, middle or late Anyang period, ca. 1100 B.C., bronze;; Ritual wine-pouring vessel (gong) with masks (taotie), dragons, and real animals, middle Anyang period, ca. 1150–1100 B.C., bronze.

With Paxton’s great interest in Chinese art, he loved this exhibit. He has completed 6 years of Mandarin language studies.

“The Tibetan Buddhist Shrine Room includes more than two hundred bronzes, paintings, silk hangings, and carpets that were created in Tibet, China, and Mongolia between the thirteenth and early twentieth centuries. Arranged to reflect Tibetan Buddhist concepts and customs rather than museum conventions, the glittering room evokes the Himalayan portals that bridge the mundane and the sacred worlds.“

And now back to the story of a Facebook friend. Dena asked, “When are you coming to DC?” I gave her some dates and she invited us over for dinner. She said her parents were in town from California as well. We had a lovely evening reconnecting with everyone. I was on a 2010 bike tour with Dena and husband David as well as her parents, Jeannette and Alan, in the Piedmont region of Italy. I was with her parents on another bike tour in France in 2013. We were honored to dine with them as they are very interesting people…and all have beyond busy careers and lives. Thank you so much, Dena and David!

A 2010 photo of Dena and David in front of the Royal Castle of Racconigi, a Residence of the Royal House of Savoy in Northern Italy.

A 2013 photo of Jeannette studying maps prior to heading out on the roads in the Languedoc region of France.

Next week “Part 2″ of our Washington DC trip with more fabulous museums and a superb dinner with my good friend since high school!

Photos: Dick Gentry. Not to be used without permission.