Ok, water was not involved in this adventure–at least not natural, free-flowing water in the form of rivers or oceans However, this trip was a few years in the making and personally “epic” so I’m gonna share! First, a little backstory… I wrote several years ago, about an excursion I took with my mom and sis to the Newport Aquarium to see an exhibit about fossils, created by an artist and scientist. While there I became fascinated with paleontology and “deep time” but also decided it would be fun to grab a beer with the creators of this exhibit (the artist and scientist) since they seemed fun, funny and smart! I assumed they were local but after a minute of research found that the artist was somewhat legendary with his wacky compositions (famously on t-shirts) and the scientist…well, he was the director of the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History and star of several PBS documentaries. The strange thing, without going down a rabbit hole, is that I still reached out and have somehow become friends with both of these characters. And that is what inspired this trip to DC where Kirk lives and runs the Museum.
Fast forward to last week when busy schedules finally aligned. I flew out to Dulles arriving around dinner time. I was exhausted to the point of dizziness, having awakened at 1am to catch an eeeeearly flight out of PDX. But since this trip hinged on Kirk, I rallied when he invited me to dinner. Thank goodness I did, because it launched me into an immediate whirlwind experience that shook me out of my routine here in Central Oregon–in such a great way! Sidenote, my Airbnb was the perfect location to everything…really cute neighborhood two blocks from awesome restaurants, chic little boutiques AND (without me knowing) an aquatics center? (What?!…and for some reason I’d packed my swimsuit for a trip to Washington DC?!?). Kirk showed up at my place and we walked to a fabulous Ukrainian restaurant. An authentic one where the entire staff was seemingly Ukrainian. In fact, the foursome seated next to us were speaking Ukraine and they suggested we try the Honey Cake, a traditional dessert that “grandma” would make. Endearingly, the woman said “hers was better but the restaurant’s was very good”….and it was! This was the real deal. The whole time I was in DC I never ate at a pub or any place that served American food. I get plenty of that in Bend where diversity is…. well, non-existent. Turns out, food was a big part of this trip. I treated myself to pretty much anything that I came across and sounded good. Everything I ate was incredible and I felt like my taste buds were uniquely sensitive to how fabulous everything was.
In fact, I had what seemed, like an explosion of senses. Everything sounded extra special and there was a lot to listen to…like the guy playing the steel drums at Dupont Circle, as if for a concert, yet he was just hanging out. It was a great way to spend a sunny 10 minutes resting on the bench observing a fairly large group of 20-somethings laughing, sort of dancing–mainly flirting with each other and having a great time.
The Capitol Mall and Embassy Row are obviously architecturally beautiful, but the experience compared with Baja last month, and the Pac West in general, was really stimulating because it was different. And I LOVE different! I’m not moving to a city, but on this trip, taking in its energy was really fun. Figuring out the metro, hearing the many languages spoken due to diversity (and a national hub for politicos), being virtually the only white woman in the pool among other places…all of this is very energizing to me. I loved listening to the “suits” having, clearly high-pressure and/or heated conversations on the sidewalks. In fact, I loved looking around and seeing so many people dressed in suits! I know we adore our ubiquitous puffy jackets and jeans around Bend, but damn it’s nice to see people get a little more fashionable. Or a lot-a- bit! Personally, I brought and wore clothes there I rarely (or never) wear here.
And of course, there was the Museum. It was my first time seeing the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, and it didn’t disappoint. The main floor, in the rotunda is home to “the Elephant” (Kirk’s and my meet-up spot when he had a free hour or two, to tour me around different private collections or areas of the museum). I saw drawers and drawers full of fossils from all over. Ammonites and leaves and partial skeletons of so many things. Also, I learned I’m wildly bad at recognizing fossils and the bones that lie therein. Ha! Doesn’t mean I don’t love seeing and hearing about them, and how big our past was, way before humans walked the earth.
So why do I write about this trip? No rapids were run, no trails hiked or biked, yet this was a challenge from beginning to end. What I mean is, I saw two guys in a movie short at an aquarium almost three years ago. It was a ridiculous thought to begin with, but I went for it, and ultimately saw the goal to the end, and I feel pretty good about that. Maybe give that crazy idea you’ve got a second thought? You never know what could come of it…
Thanks for listening…see ya out there on the frisky ripples.
Frisky Ripples 