Our first stop was a sporting goods store where I found a replacement pair of running shoes - this was very exciting! I've started running and have needed to replace my kicks for some time now but prices in NZ are prohibitive. We also found that the store had SmartWool socks - Tim converted me early on and I've been wearing SmartWool ever since. If you haven't tried them they are well worth the cost! Picking out a few pairs for both Tim and I it felt like Christmas-come-early. :)
After that we moved on to DSW Shoe Warehouse - I hadn't expected there to be a DSW so close to our hotel and since they have so many different shoes it was a place we had to visit. Always overwhelming I started walking up and down the aisles and trying on shoes. In the end I found a great pair of choclate brown Born wingtips with velvet laces to match. I needed a pair of shoes that could be dressed up or down and these fit the bill perfectly. I also found a pair of boots and couldn't leave without them. While Wellington weather is never extreme I'd wanted to find a pair of boots like these to wear on rainy days when I have to be out walking. Upon leaving the store with shopping bags in hand I was on cloud nine. :)
From there we returned to the hotel to drop off our shopping bags and set off for the Metro. We zipped down to the National Mall and started making our way towards our destination: The Library of Congress. The Library is located just outside the National Mall on the other side of the Capitol Building. Seeing the Capitol Building was anticlimactic because it was completely encapsulated in scaffolding. This produced a strange effect making it look more like the "Beehive" here in Wellington (Executive Wing of Parliament) than the Capitol Building.
Following the route mapped out in my head we made our way around the side of the Capitol Building and across a green expanse of lawn saw the Library of Congress. While it wasn't labelled as such I was sure we were in the right place. We snapped some photos before going in, through security, and meeting up with the tour group that would start within a few minutes.
The tour began soon after and we were escorted through some of the main areas of the Thomas Jefferson Building. It is one of three buildings that comprise the Library and house its 150 million items!!! Upon hearing this factoid my jaw hit the floor. I knew the Library was the largest in the world but I had no idea of its scale or the fact that it not only has books but magazines, newspapers, maps, comic books, sheet music, manuscripts and photos.
What was most striking, and what I found most surprising, was the Great Hall. This area of the Library was nothing short of breathtaking; murals, mosaics, sculpture, engraved quotes and stone carvings graced every surface of the mammoth space. The Great Hall was built and adorned as a "statement" of sorts to tell the rest of the world that the US, while in its infancy, could build something just as incredibly beautiful as anything in Europe. Hearing this I thought to myself, "That makes sense". Because it immediately reminded me of the Renaissance architecture and style that graced so many building (inside and out) that we saw when visiting Europe last year.
Partway through the tour we were escorted to a balcony overlooking the Main Reading Room. Remember National Treasure: Book of Secrets where they run into the Library, through the Main Reading Room, and up to a specific book on a specific shelf? Yeah, I have to bust this one! There is no strolling into the Main Reading Room unless you've gone through the process of getting a "Reader Identification Card". If you want to set foot in there and do work you have to follow the Library's protocols. So the movie, not surprisingly, did a bit of embellishing on that one. :)
I found it most incredible that there were people sitting in the Main Reading Room presumably reading, writing and doing their day to day work. But in the Library of Congress! I thought, "If I lived here I would most definitely study at the Library!".
Our tour ended at Thomas Jefferson's personal library. In 1815 the Library purchased this private collection for what was surely, at the time, a large fortune: $24,000. The books were displayed on round glass shelves that you could walk around. Apparently, the books are arranged this way because he had always wanted a round library so he would be surrounded by his books. Being a book fiend myself I felt a kinship with this man and couldn't agree more with one of his famous quotes: "I cannot live without books". Upon close inspection of the 6,487 titles you could see that some of them had ribbons sticking out from the top of the pages. Some where green denoting that they were original items from his library: the actual books that sat on his shelves. Other books had gold ribbons meaning they were not original items but those of the same edition that had been collected and added to this recreated library. Lastly, there were some items that, to date, had not been found and they were signified by placeholders that displayed their title and author. As you might imagine after seeing his library I've added "round library" to my ultimate wishlist. Simply incredible to see.
After pulling ourselves away from the Library we talked about coming back the following day to get our Library Identification Cards and spend some time in the Main Reading Room. :)
From there we went in search of an Artemide showroom that Google Maps told me was nearby. When my mom and I lived in Minneapolis, MN, a few years back she ran an Artemide Lighting showroom. Artemide is an Italian lighting firm that makes modern, high end fixtures. I even worked at the showroom briefly when I was finishing my undergrad at the U of M, Minneapolis. I only did clerical work but enjoyed working in such a fancy place of business. All that to say we researched and located a DC showroom and, of course, wanted to visit. Unfortunately, upon arriving at our destination we immediately realized there was no showroom to be found. After some head scratching we determined that we had been snookered by Google Maps. The correct street address had been entered but with the wrong direction; instead of NW, where the actual showroom was located, it directed us to SE. Sigh. A bit dejected we caught the metro, via one transfer to another line, back to our hotel. We regrouped, went out for Thai food and then headed to the movie theater around the corner from our hotel.
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