Monday, January 18, 2010

Terra Cotta Warriors, Mt Vernon and a New Sweater

In the last post I said that we were heading into DC to the National Geographic Museum to see the Terra Cotta Warriors. It was very interesting, but no pictures were allowed, so the only pictures you get are after the tour. ES did spend quite a bit of time reading each display. C hurried, looked and then sat around waiting for us. I took my time, looking at what I wanted to see and reading what I wanted. C and I were in line at 5 pm, remember we were standing in line for free tickets for the 6 pm admittance. We were number 50 and 51 for tickets for the event. Each numbered ticket
was worth two admittance tickets at the door. ES ended up getting there just about 5:20. It was interesting to read about the whole burial area and what that entailed. I really liked seeing if I could see any color on any of the warriors and I could. Sometimes it was very faint, but it was there. We left the museum about 8:30, so we didn't do too bad time wise. Afterward, C and I had our first taste of Indian food. I can't say we were too fond of it, but it was good to try it.


Our other adventure was today. We went to see Mt Vernon, George Washington's home. I remember going there with Aunt Gloria thirty years ago this summer, but I don't remember much of the experience except for the porch facing the Potomac. That is still a grand view! The mansion is quite something also. The dining room is the first room you get to visit on the tour. It is decorated with an agricultural theme on the sealing and fireplace. The fireplace mantle has a wonderful relief of some sheep in the center section of it. I really would have liked to get a picture of it, but no cameras allowed. We spent a lot of time there today. We got there about 11 am and didn't leave until about 4:15. C didn't put up much protesting about having to go with us and I think for the most part he enjoyed it, but he would have liked to have left an hour or two earlier. Oh well, he survived and is now hanging out with some friends enjoying the last of the long weekend.

The mansion was the perfect place to show off my new sweater, the February Lady Sweater (Ravelry link). I spun the yarn for this sweater with some fiber purchased from Wasatch Watercolours at the Idaho Falls Fiber Festival in 2007. It had been sitting in the stash until January 2009 when I decided to pull it out and start spinning it. The yarn has been sitting in my kitchen holdall for about four months waiting for it's bath which I completed the end of November. The trip to Idaho was the perfect time to make this sweater and I am quite pleased with how it turned out. I wore it to Church last week with a black dress and a friend asked if I had made the sweater to go with that dress specifically. I told her no. I made it to go with a number of clothes in my closet, because I can dress up for work now and wear all the sweaters I want.

Well, off to get ready for the work week. Happy knitting and spinning.

3 comments:

Anita said...

At first glance, I had to do a retake. I never though of the terra cotta warriors as being short. Then I remembered that it was ES standing next to it. When I compared it to you my perspective was back in balance!

Love the sweater! And it's a great picture of you in front of the mansion.

DC Dad said...

Nice picture at Mt Vernon - who took that?

Nice buttons on the sweater! :)

LDSVenus said...

It looks like you had a wonderful time at the museum, I'm really sorry they would not let you take pictures, I know they would have been awesome.

That sweater turned out really nice. It's such a ego boost to spin and then knit your own items. I checked out the fiber - when I get that full time perm job I will some place else to go and buy fiber from, you're such an enabler ;P.