The Castle

March 2011

Mui works in an office building in downtown Washington, DC.  In fact, he’s just a few blocks off the National Mall, which is a great place for him to go for daily walks when the weather permits.  And when the weather doesn’t permit, he can visit the museums that rim the mall.

Recently, he found himself near the Smithsonian Castle.  The Gothic Revival building, which dates back to the 1850s, is one of the most recognized buildings in DC and is the symbol of the collection of museums that comprise the Smithsonian Institution.  (If you’re into architecture, you can take a virtual tour by clicking here.)

The beautiful spring-day setting inspired him to pull out his Blackberry and take a few photos.

The Castle was the first Smithsonian Museum building.
Today, It is home to the Smithsonian administrative offices and the visitor center.

Spring has arrived in DC.

Gas, Grande Frappucinos and … a Graveyard

Sunday, 13 March

When the weather warms up, Mui and I start our daily walk regimen around the neighborhood. There’s not much in the way of entertainment, nor is there much scenery. Townhomes and houses, cars parked on the street, plenty of traffic (unless we choose a path through some of the side streets). The walks are for exercise, so no complaints.

There’s a shopping center that we pass by frequently when we're out walking. Amongst the stores is a Safeway supermarket and gas station, a Michaels, a Starbucks, and several small shops and restaurants. There’s also a cemetery with two headstones on a grass mound that overlooks busy Lee Highway. One of the headstones usually has a small Confederate flag stuck into the ground in front of it. Often, there are silk flowers too. Each time we pass that way, we wonder who’s buried in the cemetery. Sure there are names inscribed on the headstones, but much of what’s written is so weathered that it can’t be read.

Well, wonder no more. Today we got our answer in the form of an article in the Washington Post. In fact, the title of my post is taken from that article by John Kelly. The mound is a family graveyard that quite possibly dates back to the War of 1812. Neither of the remaining headstones are that old. No one seems to know for sure how many are buried here — as few as 9; or as many as 70.

Armistead T. Thompson was a Confederate soldier from Fairfax. He was captured during the
battle of Gettysburg and was taken to the Union prison camp at Point Lookout, Maryland.
He was one of 4,000 prisoners who died there. In the 1880s, his father brought his remains
back to Virginia to be buried in the family graveyard.

This headstone marks the grave of three members of the Tobin family, a branch of the Thompsons.

The inscription on this side (L) is reasonably legible; not so the ones on the other side.

For those interested in reading the Washington Post article that was the inspiration for today’s blog post, see the scans that follow. (Click the images for a larger, more legible version.)

Guest for the Weekend

Saturday, 5 March

Mui’s sister is visiting from Turkey.  On her way to a conference in Nashville, Tennessee, she’s spending the weekend with us.  After an 11-hour non-stop flight that originated in İstanbul, she landed at Dulles International shortly before 3:30p yesterday.  With 20+ international flights all landing within minutes of each other, it took her 1½ hours to get through Immigration and Customs … not something any visitor to a foreign country wants to face after such a long flight.

Happy Reunion

On the way home from the airport, we stopped at the Reston Town Center and had dinner at Jackson’s.  Good conversation; lots of laughter; plenty of reminiscing; tasty food.  A pleasant evening was enjoyed by all.

A good time at Jackson’s.

Işıl lives in Eskişehir, where she is a professor at the local university.

Google Maps image showing Eskişehir in relation to Ankara,
the capital city of Turkey.

Here are a few photos of Eskişehir that Mui took when he visited his sister in 2010.

The Porsuk River runs through the city.

Modern public transportation makes it easy to get around the city.

the Odun PazarI Evlerİ (Firewood Market Houses) are renovated
18th century structures in an older district of the city.

Kahve DünyasI (Coffee World)
a modern coffee house is a popular gathering place.

it’s all about coffee at Kahve DünyasI.
turkish coffee; candied chestnuts dipped in chocolate and pistachios;
kahve keyfİ (literally, coffee pleasure); chocolate-dipped coffee beans.

Brother and sister are out and about today.  On the agenda — some shopping and sightseeing.  It’s an overcast day, with some sprinkles early this morning.  The sun is trying to break through the clouds, so there’s hope that a pleasant day might be in store for them after all.  Not that they care about the weather; they’re just happy to spend time together.