Gallery of Art, the Post Office, the Supreme Court, the Capital

Today was another marathon but extremely interesting.  We started off in the National Gallery of Art West.  As you enter the Gallery you walk through a massive rotunda.  We saw a lot of Renaissance Style work, a Leonardo Di Vinci, and a Section of American Artists.  There were artists painting reproductions…how I wish I could do that!

Moving on we trekked to the Postal Museum.  What a fun place with lots of interactive exhibits such as scanning mail and being a Truck Driver for the Postal Service.  Did you know that Benjamin Franklin was Postmaster in Philadelphia in the 1730’s? 

I learned about the Postal Mascot Dog, Owney who (in the 1880’s) walked with the Postman on his route every day in Albany New York until he moved away and then Owney followed the scent of the mailbag with other Postmen who would “tag” him with their route tag.  He became so popular among the carriers that when he died, they took up a collection to preserve him.  He has been in the Smithsonian since 1911.

As you can see they are doing some repair and cleanup work on the Supreme Court building.  There are two grand figures on the sides of the front stairway.  On the left side is the female figure representing Contemplation of Justice and to the right is a male, the Authority of Law.  We walked up through the Great Hall and into the Court House. 

Truly magnificent!

Last stop was The Capitol.  This is the center of the greatest Democracy on earth.  As you walk in, there is very intense security.  When they say no food, they mean it.  I had half of my Chipotle Burrito wrapped up in the bottom of my bag from lunch and they made me go all the way back outside, throw it away and start the process all over again.  I know, this is for my protection.  Once you get inside Emancipation Hall you must get a “Timed Ticket” for your tour.  Lucky for us we were able to catch the next tour which was just beginning.  All tours start off with a movie about the history of Congress.  Our first stop after that was to The Crypt Room where under the center of the floor is a crypt that Congress wanted to bury George Washington in.  His family had to produce a will entailing his wishes so he could remain at Mount Vernon with his wife Martha.  Throughout the Capitol there are marble and bronze statues.  Each state gets two statues to represent their state.  We found one of ours for Colorado, an astronaut.

Next stop, the room where John Quincy Adams died.  Our tour guide also demonstrated how there are specific spots in the room where the acoustics are such that you can hear what others are whispering from across the room…very handy in certain situations I’m sure.

Finally, the Rotunda.  This is an architects dream.  The painting in the dome and the frieze that surrounds the room took the artist 25 years to complete.