Memorials and Museums

Starbucks

Although the day was destined to be a busy one, it started at the same place as yesterday: Starbucks near the National Archives. It met my criteria for patronage: (1) It was open, not a given since many were still closed in DC. (2) It was within walking distance, which required me cross the National Mall from South West DC. (3) It had an outdoor seating area, which is always preferable to indoor stuffiness. For those who know me, it will come as no surprise that I spent at least an hour and a half there, sipping coffee, eating breakfast, and watching YouTube. But, I would be getting company today, so I knew when I had to get back to the hotel and then to L'Enfant Metro Station to meet my friend Kieran. He took the day off and came in from Annapolis. Neither of us had a must-do list, so we let the day unfold as it wanted. And the day wanted us to walk the mall, enjoy the memorials and museums, and sup on 7th at Jaleo, which should be on everybody's must-eat list if they visit DC. You may have heard of its innovative chef, José Andrés, a well known celebrity, author, and humanitarian. St. Christopher, the patron of travelers, must have been smiling on us because we completely escaped the downpour that drenched those who arrived later than we did.

Eisenhower Memorial

The Eisenhower Memorial 

It stretches an entire block just south of the National Air and Space Museum, so not far off the National Mall. It honors Eisenhower as both General and President, but both Kieran and I agreed it has to rank as one of the most poorly designed memorials in the District. I had walked by it several times already, and it took me a while to figure out whose life it was built to commemorate. "Dwight D. Eisenhower" does not appear very prominently anywhere. The tall vertical cylinders were also a mystery to us: What did they represent? Pillars of virtue or mal-proportioned Kansas silos? And the block-long, gray-tone mural was impossible to decipher, but a woman we met told us it laid out the invasion of Normandy. The statues themselves seem like they are out of the 19th century. So much for architect Frank Gehry's reputation in my book! He was the architect who designed it. But, I guess I should end on a couple of positive notes: (1) The statues of Ike as a small boy was intimate and appealing. (2) A diagonal swath through the memorial site preserved the full view of the Capitol. (3) It's probably magnificent at night! So, what constitutes the best memorial to Eisenhower as President? The Interstate Highway System we have today. That's his legacy.

African American History Museum

The Smithsonian Museums seem to be reopening on different schedules. More were closed than I thought. In fact, we were going to make a run through Natural History, but it was completely closed, so we decided on the American History Museum, but it was closed to us! We had not made a reservation on line and the doors were locked. Another visitor sitting outside said they only open the doors at appointment times. We had been to both of these museums anyway, so we set our sights on the newest: the African American History Museum. Once again, though, you had to make an appointment for an entry time: No exceptions said the guards outside. A few moments later, lady luck intervened. Two young men were approaching the entrance and I overheard them say to another group that they had four passes (on their cell phone) but were only using two. "How much do you want for them?" I asked, almost without thinking. For $5, we both got to follow our temporary brothers into the museum on their cell phone passes. Then we were all on our own. The exhibits were comprehensive, detailed, and engaging. But the most moving part of the visit was some impromptu performance art I got to observe. A mother was there with her tweenage daughter. The mother made sure her girl understood what she was seeing, and that she was seeing it as an African American, as a woman, and as the offspring of a mom who had lived through or vicariously remembered a lot of it. The mom really knew her stuff! When 4 o'clock came, though, we had to leave but we did manage to at least get a glimpse of all five floors.