Just Down the Road from Here

For the number of times I've driven past the Fairfax Museum and Visitor's Center on Main Street (Highway 236) in Fairfax, VA, it's amazing that I've never actually stopped in for a visit.  So, last Friday, Diggory and I decided to end that streak, and discovered a little gem of a museum.  The museum and visitor's center are housed in the former Fairfax Elementary School built in 1873.  It's a two story brick building with a lovely porch and well-maintained lawn and flowers.  Lately, I've been more motivated to visit museums with parking lots and air conditioning, rather than brave the metro.  (See my previous post to infer why.)  And the Fairfax Museum has both.  Also, since the museum is rather small, I decided to forgo the stroller and diaper bag, and let Diggory walk.  It's our new thing.  I had to hold is hand, of course, so he didn't go running off.  But, what better way to practice being a big boy, right?!

When you first step inside the building, you'll encounter the information desk, staffed by friendly volunteers, and rows of racks holding brochures for sights in Fairfax County and beyond.  (It is a visitor's center, after all.)  The building is completely handicapped accessible and stroller friendly, with an elevator that serves both floors.  The temporary exhibition space is on the mezzanine level, just a few steps up from the entrance and lobby on the first floor, and the permanent exhibition on Fairfax history is on the second floor.  We took the stairs!  Remember, no stroller!  The restrooms are directly across from the elevator on the mezzanine level.  No changing tables, but they are plenty spacious and very clean.

The current temporary exhibition, Collecting Fairfax: The First Twenty Years, 1992-2012, presents selected items collected for the museum's collections since its founding.  I really love exhibitions about "collecting" because it gives visitor's a little peak into what, why, and how museums obtain objects for a permanent collection.  Often more than the object itself, the story behind the object or what the object represents is the more intangible "thing" collected.  I particularly liked the section about collecting ephemeral items from events happening now.  It's an important act to decide what to hold on to now, that will be significant 100 years from now.  

Upstairs you'll find the permanent exhibition on Fairfax history called The Fairfax Story.  Once a major agricultural center, Fairfax county and city experience major population growth following World War II and is known known as a major hub of information technology and heritage tourism.  The exhibition follows the area's history from the first Native American inhabitants to the present day.  Many of the cases and artifacts are presented at ground-level, so I didn't have to do too much lifting so Diggory could see in the higher cases.

We were really only in the museum for about 30-45 minutes, perhaps less.  So the next time you're driving by, stop in to have a look.  As an extra bonus, there's a lovely park just behind the museum, on the other side of a seemingly rarely used parking garage.  Diggory loved the playground equipment and climbing up the slides.  Yes, up.  We didn't stay long...it was 105 degrees and humid...but we had a ton of fun, and I'm so glad we finally made the visit.

National Museum of African Art

Yesterday afternoon, Diggory and I met several of my former co-workers for lunch at District Taco in downtown Washington, DC.  I am definitely not opposed to making the trek into the city from our house in the 'burbs, but for heaven's sake!  Do you know how many elevators it takes to get from "here" to "there?"  EIGHT.  Yes, eight different elevators.  So, by the time we drove, parked the car, got to the metro, transferred trains, got off the metro, and walk to the restaurant, I was hot, slightly cranky, and in no rush to do the return trip all over again.  I'm not complaining, I'm just stating the facts.  After lunch, in which I was lovingly aided by three sets of extra hands in the carrying of food, baby situating, and packing up tasks, I decided NOT to go straight home.  Instead, Diggory and I accompanied our friend Colleen back to the National Museum of African Art where she works.  She said it was the perfect time to visit the museum because all of the exhibition galleries were open, so we just had to take her up on her invitation. 

I'm going to start rethinking horizontal stripes.  I look fat.  Diggory is scowling.  I think he wanted to go inside already!

In case you've never visited the National Museum of African Art, it's one of those Smithsonian Museums behind the Smithsonian Castle that is mostly underground.  From the surface it looks tiny, and it is small, but once you're inside there are two sublevels of beautiful art and exquisitely presented exhibitions.  I had been inside only twice before, but never for a full-on visit to the museum.  Once was for a mountmaking workshop and the other was to use the restroom for a quick diaper change.  Needless to say, our visit was long overdue.  Be sure to pick up a map at the information desk just inside the main lobby.  Because the exhibitions are on sublevels, it's easy to get turned around.  Sublevel one is the uppermost level of exhibition space, and sublevel two is the level under that.  Think of it as negative numbers with zero being the entrance/street level.  I think the best place to start is the African Mosaic galleries where objects from the museum's permanent collection are displayed according to geographic location, material, or theme, like womanhood or movement and gesture.  It's a great introduction to the collections, especially if you have time to read the small pocket guide "How to look at African Art" as you're browsing.    

Diggory was at the edge of his seat!

As you exit the last African Mosaic gallery, you'll cross through the mezzanine overlooking the exhibition gallery on sublevel two and go into the Disney-Tishman Collection gallery.  From here, you can cross into the Sackler Museum (another of the underground Smithsonian Museums) or go back the way you came to stay in the African Art Museum.  To work yourself back to the elevator (if you have a stroller), you'll encounter the Williams Gallery next.  Currently on view through February 24, 2013, is the exhibition Lalla Essaydi: Revisions.  Apart from the "subversive, challenging nature" of her work, I was immediately struck by the powerful graphic nature of her photographs and multimedia work, especially when the works are viewed as a whole.  Completely fascinating...I must learn more about her work.  

After a quick run through the gift shop, we took the elevator one level down the sublevel two.  As you come out of the elevators, and if you turn around to your left, you'll find the only women's room with a diaper changing table.  Just FYI.  Walk through the rotunda to get to the final exhibition gallery, but pause for a moment to take in the sights around you.  The view up to the skylight and the view down to the fountain are pretty neat.  If you've got the time, you can also take the elevator down to sublevel three to view a few more selections from the permanent collection and take the passage way to the Ripley Center.  The Ripley Center is mostly conference rooms, administrative offices, and the like, but there are a few exhibitions on view, both temporary and indefinite.  I once visited the display of posy holders for a museum studies course in graduate school.  Who knew?!        

The temporary exhibition on sublevel two, African Cosmos: Stellar Arts, just opened a few weeks ago and is on view through December 9, 2012.  It's a major exhibition of more than 90 works of art exploring celestial phenomena and African cultural and historical astronomy.  The two-story exhibition space is huge, and really lends itself to the topic.  I was particularly intrigued by the works of video and auditory art that were joint projects between visual artists and stellar and high energy astrophysicists.  Diggory was too.  At Colleen's suggestion, we were to not miss the star sounds interactive piece toward the end of the exhibition, if you turn left before you leave the gallery.  Across from the star sounds video, you'll find a small workshop with two tables and lots of stools.  For the older kids, or kids at heart, you'll want to sit down and draw your own constellation with the star maps and colored pencils provided.  I wanted to, but Diggory wouldn't let me.  From here we took the elevator all the way back up to the street level and the exit.  We were in the museum for about a hour and a half, but I could have definitely spent more time.  We'll be back.

Before heading back to the metro, which I wasn't terribly motivated to do, we took a gander through the Ripley Garden between the Arts and Industries Building and the Hirshhorn Museum.  I have to say, this is one of my favorite places in the whole city.  It's small, but it's beautiful, with hundreds of different plants (all labeled, it's the Smithsonian after all), old-school wrought iron benches tucked away in the shade, and a beautiful bubbling fountain.  Diggory liked it too.  See that smile?!  Near the entrance on the Jefferson Drive/National Mall end of the winding garden, you'll find a brochure box filled with pamphlets describing the ten gardens of the Smithsonian Institution.  Maybe I should do a whole garden tour one of these days?  Wouldn't that be fun!?    

In the Ripley Garden.  Diggory was thrilled that I finally let him out of the stroller!  He may or may not have picked some leaves off the plants before I could run after him.

Maritime Museum

At long last, I have received, scanned, and uploaded pictures of our visit to the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in St. Michael's, Maryland!  As you recall, I took photos on my mom's camera when she and my dad were here two weeks ago, so now I can get caught up on my posts.

St. Michael's is a quaint little town on Maryland's Eastern Shore, an easy hop across the Bay Bridge from Annapolis, south on Route 50 to Easton, and then west on Route 33 about 10 miles.  Route 33 becomes the town's Main Street, which you can follow past cute shops, restaurants, and ice cream parlors until you come to the long driveway and parking lot for the museum.  From the parking lot, walk toward the harbor (you can see it), and then turn left past the Patriot River Cruises dock and the Crab Claw restaurant.  (Note:  The atmosphere and good eats at the Crab Claw are not to be missed.  Plus, their restrooms are on the outside of the building, just steps from the museum entrance.  There's a convenient changing table as well, if you need it.)

The Maritime Museum is an 18 acre campus of buildings, working boat docks, historic displays, and hands on activities.  The buildings and paths are generally stroller accessible, but I wouldn't necessarily describe the pebbled portions of the walkways stroller "friendly."  We got quite the workout pushing the stroller through loose gravel until my mom came up with the ingenious solution of dragging the stroller behind us.  It worked even better with each of us holding part of the handle and pulling it beside us.  But, you won't have to drag the stroller so, so much.  There are ramps, boardwalks, and elevators in the modern buildings, and there are plenty of opportunities to let little ones wander about and experience the sights for themselves.  Case in point, the tiny boat just outside the museum admission's building was almost Diggory-sized and quite the enthralling prop.  Grandpa KP even climbed in for a photo, something he even says he "doesn't do for just anybody."  

Make sure you pick up a campus map from the welcome center so you can find your way around.  Everything is well labeled and easy to get to, but since the museum campus is so large and there's so much to see, you may need to pick and choose where you go.  You could certainly spend the better part of the day wandering about, especially if you partake in a boat tour or other special activity.  Your admission ticket will get you in and out all day, so don't rush if you don't need to.  

Just beyond the boat restoration buildings, you'll likely encounter several working boats or boats visiting from other ports.  In the picture above on the left, you'll see a replica of Leif Ericson's Viking ship docked along the museum's waterfront on the Miles River.  Make sure to check out the museum's calendar before you trek out to the museum.  There are lots of different types of activities taking place throughout the summer, including children's art workshops, races, and weekend festivals like the Chesapeake Folk Festival on Saturday, July 28th!

One of the highlights of the museum is the Hooper Strait Lighthouse, built in 1879.  The photograph above is the view of the St. Michael's harbor from the top of the lighthouse.  Unlike most museum exhibits, there are signs inside the lighthouse encouraging visitors to open every drawer, cabinet, and box, to pick up the tools and cooking utensils, and to even try on the lighthouse keeper's clothes!  Oddly enough, I didn't participate in the fun...something about my former museum collections manager self just couldn't do it.  

Moving on to the next few museum buildings, we checked out the permanent exhibits Oystering on the Chesapeake and At Play on the Bay.  Diggory even took a moment to humor us with his turn as a bathing beauty.  Lastly, we took a quick spin through the Steamboat Gallery building to view two temporary exhibitions.  Push and Pull, on view through 2014, explores the roll of tugboats on the Chesapeake.  Rising Tide in the Heart of the Chesapeake, on view through the end of this year, displays photographs by David Harp of the changes taking place in the bay's low-lying shoreline habitats and communities.

We could have spent much longer at the museum, but alas, we had to move on to explore Annapolis before heading back to DC by the end of the day.  I'll leave you with one last photograph, taken the evening before our museum visit as we cruised the Miles River aboard the Patriot.  Captain Diggory did a mighty fine job driving the boat!