My last Sunday in DC was low key... until I went to see Eddie Vedder at the Warner Theatre. (If you don’t know me, you don’t know my love for the Pearl Jam, and how pumped I was for this.) First off, what a lovely venue. Felt so regal. Eddie’s on a solo tour, just him and his guitar(s) playing his own tunes. Lots from Into the Wild, which I have yet to see, though the Netflix envelope is sitting on my dining room table. He also snuck in one PJ song — Porch — and, to my supreme delight, three Dylan songs. Girl From North Country, Forever Young, and All Along The Watchtower, his second to last song where he was joined by the drummer from Fugazi! Bad. Ass. In typical Vedder fashion, his between-song banter was thoughtful, hilarious, stammered, and potent. His story about ‘surfing’ in the Potomac had it all. Guess you had to be there…
Monday, Monday... Lazy bones. Packed. Walked to and around Dupont Circle, ate the worst Thai food of my life, and got harassed by a homeless man. Two of my classmates from last year had just moved to DC (with many more on the way), so I met up with them for some drinks. My bike broke on the ride home. Some how the chain became lodged between the chainring and the outer casing of the chainring (don't know the term), there by bending the whole thing. Can't believe I didn't take a photo. RIP, Schwinny.
Tuesday, last full-day in town... Met up with my ol' pal Jim from high school for lunch, thereby bringing my DC excursion full circle as he was the very first soul I saw when I arrived. From there, it was a whirlwind museum tour. I had a very disciplined agenda, though.
First stop: Jim Henson's Fantastic World. What an amazing man. I believe the show is down now, but trust me it was fabulous. Not 'dumbed down' in any way, as a Crayola-hued exhibit space featuring fuzzy puppets might lead you to believe. The curators did an admirable job of presenting JH's vision, mission, and worldview in a most accessible, engaging, and fun way without being over pedantic or elementary. I most appreciated the inclusion of his early, pre-Muppet work, from comically un-PC commercials starring a primordial Kermit to Time Piece, one of his many more 'experimental' films.
Next: Permanent collection at Hirshhorn. I'd seen The Cinema Effect twice, but the museum closed before I ever made it to the top floor. Eh.
Next: Afghanistan at the National Gallery. Also been here twice without making it through the special exhibits. Nice exhibit, great story, gorgeous artifacts.
That evening, my housemates (minus one) and I went out to West End Bistro, Eric Ripert's DC restaurant. Of the mind that I would eat pretty much anything prepared under the hand of that man, I had the halibut. Yes, Maria the vegetarian of 13 years ate a fish. And it was delicious. Apres ça, we met up with our fourth housemate for dessert at Kramerbooks & Afterwords Cafe. I had the apple pie with cinnamon ice cream. Also amazing.
And that, as they say, was that.
No comments:
Post a Comment