THE AWESOME SMITHSONIAN CASTLE

front view

When I was browsing through the pictures in the folder on my PC, then only I realized that there was something from my trip to Washington D.C. that I forgot to publish. Let me now present to you the amazing SMITHSONIAN CASTLE (a.k.a Smithsonian Institution Building), one ancient structure that appeared in the midst of other modern buildings surrounding it. To me, it looked like Disneyland from far away.

It was not actually a castle even though it was originally designed as such. This huge building was the administrative building for the Smithsonian Museums and it was opened to the public. There was some items on exhibit that I saw on the ground floor. However, I arrived there quite late and the place was about to be closed in approximately 20 minutes. Hence I spent more time outside admiring the beautiful architecture, wondering if I was in one of the fairy tales.

There were also two other museums attached to the building but they were already closed by the time I discovered them.

rear view

Like a fairy tale, just by observing this spectacular castle had made me feel I would live happily ever after.

THE LAST DAY IN VIRGINIA AND WASHINGTON DC

And suddenly I was on the last day of my visit to the USA. How time flew. There were a string of activities that I did with my friend, Puan Khairul Bariah before leaving. First of all, we went for lunch at an Indonesian Restaurant called Satay Sarinah located in a place called Alexandria and there was someone else coming too. He was Mr. Wilkinson, my friend's student who was learning the Malay language.  The dishes comprised of noodles soto, fried rice and rice with duck.

So the lunch was educational in a way as I was expected to converse with Mr. Wilkinson in my mother tongue, it was something like a field trip for both of them. Initially it was a bit awkward and funny as well, especially for my friend and I, as we had to converse using complete sentences and accurate vocabulary which does not happen in real life. Anyway the session was a success. Mr. Wilkinson had done really well, the lunch chat went without a hitch  and I would not hesitate to award him an A for being a fluent speaker of the Malay language. And my kudos to the teacher for a job excellently done.

the interior decor

lunch Indonesian style

my new friend

Other than the lunch date, my friend took me to two shopping malls around Virginia. The first one was at Dulles Town Center and the other one was Leesburg Corner Premium Outlet - something like JPO that we have here in Malaysia. Actually there was one more shopping mall we went to before lunch but I could not remember the name of that place. I did not really shop when I travelled (nor when I am at home) so these were just mostly window shopping trips. 

shopping for Eid t-shirt:
angry bird for
this year

Coach handbag anyone?

The weather was actually a bit unkind on that day. It was more than the usual thunderstorm. While we were on the road, my friend received a message alarming the residents of tornado watch which had never happened in that area. In fact, when we were in the car, we saw this black cloud with two long tails but were not sure whether that was the tornado. Actually it was the tornado that did not touch down. (OMG!) And that was a big relief. Just imagine what would happen especially when I was expected to leave that very evening.

from someone's twitter
(copied from a website
"washingtonexaminer")

In the evening, Puan Khairul and Mr. Gupta took me for dinner at an Italian restaurant which served authentic Italian food.

going Italian for dinner

 

 

Mr. Gupta stopped at a spot where I could observe the Washington Monument and the other building if I a not mistaken was Thomas Jefferson Memorial. I guess that was one of the most beautiful sights of Washington D.C. that would remain imprinted in my mind. I miss Washington D.C. already.

Then only we bade our goodbyes at Union Station where I had to board my bus to my next destination, Toronto, Canada. I did not go to other cities in the USA but I think at least I had explored the essential sites of Washington D.C. and maybe, next time I will go to other part of the USA, or I will come back to DC for more. You will just never know.

I WAS ONCE A BUTTERFLY HUNTER

I was still in the building of the National Museum of Natural History but there was this still sanctuary for butterflies that had caught my attention. After paying USD6, I was officially turned into a butterfly hunter. I spent quite some time in the colourful and brightly lit cabin looking for butterflies, and so did everyone else. The room was quite small actually so only a few people were allowed inside at one time. I didn't know it could be that fun looking at these beautiful but fragile insects and surprisingly I did the same thing when I was in Toronto Zoo a few days after.

the butterfly zoo

bright and colourful garden

Feast your eyes on the butterflies of the Museum of Natural History....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There is a butterfly park in Kuala Lumpur and I think I should go there one day too.

THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY

This was the last museum of the day - The National Museum of Natural History. Free entry for a world class museum. For parents thinking of taking their kids for a holiday, actually Washington DC will be a good choice as there are many places which are educational in nature that can be visited free of charge.

Once inside, I was first greeted by an elephant at the lobby - another figure that could be seen coming alive in the movie "Night at the Museum" and the elephant was itself an attraction to the visitors. How would I describe the museum? Just too many things to see but too little time. I hope I will be able to come back for more.

 

the museum building, the entrance
and the foyer

some of the crowd

dead animals on display

... and more animals

bones and skeletons

.... more bones and skeletons

the forefathers?

skeletons in abundance

stones: raw and processed

every woman's best friends

having a whale of a time

I spent about 3 hours here and I believed there were exhibits that I had missed. And I could not take all the interesting exhibits as there were too many of them. But still, I had had a whale of  a time there and felt much wiser and knowledgeable upon leaving.