White House China Display and DAR Building

As you know, I love dishes so I thoroughly enjoyed the Smithsonian's White House china display that was part of the First Ladies' Collection. While not as extensive as the China Room at the White House, it's a nice sampling.  

Not every First Lady gets to select and purchase new china.  It's only ordered when there's not enough pieces to accommodate the large number of guests at a state dinner, and replacement pieces are not available.  

I hope you enjoy seeing the china as much as I did. Wouldn't it be grand to dine at the White House?  Only in my dreams!  ;-)

Nancy Reagan took a lot of flack for ordering this china, but it wasn't purchased by taxpayer dollars. The Lenox china was paid for by the J.P. Knapp Foundation.  

~ By Haviland and Company - Paris, France ~

Laura Bush ordered the last set of White House china which arrived just before they left the White House.

Sandy and I left the Smithsonian and headed for the DAR building on foot.  We discovered it was a bit of a hike!

But we saw some great sights on the way such as the Washington Monument and the White House, which was just two blocks from the DAR building.

We finally arrived at our destination at 1776 D. and 17th Streets. The DAR is one of the largest buildings of its kind owned and maintained exclusively by women, and is ranked among the top 75 attractions in D.C.

The current exhibition at the DAR is "Eye on Elegance: Early Quilts of Maryland and Virginia," but unfortunately we only had time to browse their gift shop as we had a 4:00 o'clock reservation for Afternoon Tea at Lady Camellia's Tea Room in Georgetown.  Below are my two purchases: a teapot picturing the DAR building, and a plate with a pineapple, the symbol of hospitality reflective of the Daughters of the American Revolution.  Both pieces will go on the built-in shelves in my living room when my hubby gets them finished.

The Metro doesn't go to Georgetown, so we called a taxi to pick us up at the DAR building. After being on our feet all day, Sandy and I concluded it was the best $14 we ever spent! ;-)

Next post will be about Afternoon Tea at Lady Camellia's.

Washington D.C. Night Tour by 'Big Bus'

After Hillwood Museum, we got on the Metro and headed to Union Station where we bought tickets for a 'Big Bus' night tour of Washington D.C.  The bus departed from Union Station just before 7:30 p.m.  A guide shared highlights of key landmarks throughout the 2.5 hour tour.  We saw Arlington National Cemetery, and the U.S. Marine Corps' Memorial [statue of the battle of Iwo Jima].  The bus stopped at Roosevelt's Memorial, the Korean War Veterans Memorial, Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Memorial, and the Lincoln Memorial. 

~ Union Station ~

~ U.S. Capitol Building, with the dome undergoing restoration. ~

~ World War II Memorial ~

~ The Jefferson Memorial ~

~ The Washington Monument ~

~ Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial ~

~ FDR Bronze Statue ~

~ "The Fireside Chat" Bronze Statue at FDR Memorial ~

~ "The Bread Line" Bronze Statue at FDR Memorial ~

 ~ Bronze Statue of FDR and his dog, Fala ~

~ Eleanor Roosevelt at the FDR Memorial ~

The Roosevelt Memorial was by the Tidal Basin, so we got to see the Cherry Blossom trees in bloom, but because it was night I didn't photograph them.  Another tourist who had been in D.C. a few days, said they had just opened prior to our arrival. 

I didn't take any photos at the Korean War Veterans Memorial or Martin Luther King, Jr's. Memorial.  We had planned to take a day hop-on, hop-off bus tour to see the memorials better in daylight, but we ran out of time and it didn't happen.  Guess that means we'll just have to go back!

We were too tired to even think about climbing the steps of the Lincoln Memorial since we had been up since 4:00 a.m., but seeing it was the perfect ending to our first day in D.C.  We caught the Metro and shuttle back to our hotel, and were happy to call it a night!  My girlfriend remarked that in the course of our day we had been in an airplane, car [taxi], train [Metro], and bus!  Day #2 tomorrow...