ktravula - a travelogue! » Washington DC

NYT #Fail

Kola — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 10:30:36 +0000

If the headline in the same article facetiously associating the erection of a new monument in Washington DC to the realization of Martin Luther King’s famous dream doesn’t irk you as being silly enough, the first paragraph in today’s NY Times article on the opening of the Memorial makes sure of it. It reads:

WASHINGTON — Now we know: The arc of the moral universe is long, but it leads to a picturesque glade beside the Tidal Basin, with the Washington Monument providing sentry.

Maybe isn’t it enough anymore to simply describe.

National World War II Memorial

Kola — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 14:00:54 +0000

Looking through pictures I took during my famous walk through Washington DC in December 2009, I realized that I had in fact visited the National World War II Memorial. Two weeks ago, I visited the National World War I Museum in Kansas and had been wondering if indeed there was one dedicated to World War II so that I could go visit it sometime. It turns out that I have actually done so. The only thing I can say is that the experience did not come close to that of being in the Museum at Kansas City which is bigger and has more to see. This could explain why I could have seen it last year without noticing what it was.

It was night though, and I was already being pummeled by the a brutal cold to return to my hotel room on time to check in for the conference I’d gone there for. I was however egged on by a stubborn desire to complete my trek to the destination – the Lincoln Memorial where Martin Luther King had delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech many years before. Thinking about it now, I do not remember seeing the WWII Memorial on my way to the Lincoln Memorial at all (even though I remember taking this picture of a sign that pointed towards it.).

However, on my way back I remember walking through the cove of lights surrounding a fountain and pausing to admire its beauty. There were very large pillars of like shapes standing around in a big circle. The warm glow from the lights there made it look like a night gathering of hunters in an East African jungle. I thought there were fifty pillars, because on each one of them was written the name of a different state in the United States. I managed to take a few pictures of the states I recognized, and moved on. I didn’t know that where I was standing was the newly constructed National World War II Memorial. I could not have guessed it from the appearance either. Nothing from the looks of it made it even remotely suggestive of that kind of theme. It was an open space just across the road, facing the Washington Monument. It was however a charming experience.

It was my pleasure then to realize a few days ago that I’d actually (almost) already completed my tour of duty as regards the two major world wars and their memorials in the country. It only took me one year to find it out, and it comes with fond memories of my visit to the nation’s capital. Reading up the wikipedia entry on the WWII Memorial in Washington, one of the criticisms of the memorial that seemed to rhyme with my own reflection on passing through the structure was the fact that the pillars standing there were named after the states rather than fallen heroes/soldiers from the war. Of course, a closer reading of the article also suggests that there is a wall within that complex which was erected for the purpose of honouring them. It has 4,048 gold stars, each star representing 100 soldiers that died in the war.

When next I find myself in the capital, I hope to pay a second and most detailed visit. Until then, I’ll keep scouring the internet for links to more places that have relevance to the Second World War. I have already found two, one in Massachusetts near Boston, and the other in New Orleans.

Old Man’s Winter Guide To Beating The Snowpocalypse Blues

Kola — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 02:09:40 +0000

This is a guest-post by the blogger Rayo from Washington DC. All I know about her is that she is Yoruba, from Nigeria, and that she once attended Howard University. She also takes some very nice pictures. You can check her blog here. I’m featuring this post because for the first time in a long time according to the news, there was snow in all the states of the United States, except Hawaii. The people in the Washington DC and East Coast area were the worst hit with many feet of snow. Rayo has humorously captured her reaction to the season in twelve short informative nuggets. Enjoy.

_____________________________

In the wake of the current record-breaking winter weather in the Washington, DC, area, I decided to explore my neighborhood and assess the damages that this record-breaking snowfall has caused. Boy was I surprised when I came across Old Man Winter! This little guy hasn’t been sighted in over 110 years—since the “Snowmageddon of 1899”—so it caught me by surprise when I saw him just chilling by the side of the road a few days ago. After much coaxing (he’s camera shy), my friend and I were able to convince him to pose for some photographs as well as give us some Do’s and Don’ts for surviving the Snowpocalypse. It’s a pretty good guide, especially for those that aren’t used to so much snow.

1. DO go grocery shopping before the snowfall gets too heavy. If you don’t, you might find that when you get hungry and realize that there’s nothing in the fridge, the grocery store will be closed.

2. DO take caution when “ice-walking” more than two miles under white-out conditions to your favorite Chinese food carryout because the grocery store is closed and the carryout is the only place crazy enough to stay open. Remember that, since the sidewalks will become mountains of snow, you will have to walk on the road. Make sure you’re walking in the opposite direction of traffic. This way, you’ll know when to jump when a car is sliding towards you.

3. DO buy thick gloves and a ski mask (or thick scarf) in order to prevent your hands and face from freezing and falling off while walking in hurricane-like winter conditions.

4. DO make sure you have at least two back-up means of transportation. You might wake up and find (or not find) your car in this type of situation. Not good. You might also find that the Metro buses are either out of service or are only running on “special routes,” or that only underground train stations are open and even those stations have special delays. In short, be prepared to walk.

5. DO be patient with the public transit employees. Remember that even though you don’t have to work and you’re only on your way to a snowball fight, they have to work. Plus, there’s nothing like the comfort of feeling like you’re in a meatpacking factory.

6. DO try to make it into work at least one day during the Snowpocalypse. Although you might be annoyed to discover how many people are actually going to come into your office with complaints, do try to smile as much as possible.

7. DO NOT WEAR HEELS!!! You WILL fall! Safety before vanity. If you must wear heels or open shoes, put them in a bag and change into them when you arrive safely at your destination.

8. It’s sad that I have to say this but I just saw someone wearing a pair.…DO NOT WEAR FLIP FLOPS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

9. DO invest in snow boots or shoes with good traction. There’s nothing funnier than seeing someone fall face-first in 50-something inches of snow…unless the person falling is you. Although the snow might cushion your fall, it’s still better to have not fallen at all.

10. DO attend mass snowball fights—they’re a great way to get your daily exercise; practice your war-game skills; have fun in the snow; and they also help to prevent the dreaded cabin fever.

11. DO go to the movies…FOR FREE!!! There are many websites out there that allow people to attend movie premieres for free (i.e. www.eventful.com). This way, you can get a first-hand look at new movies even before they start playing in theaters. You might have to trek though the snow to get there but if the movie is good enough (and hopefully it will be good), it’ll be worth the trek.

12. DO pay homage to your fallen comrades. Here’s to the trees and umbrellas and power lines and even cars that did not survive the hurricane-like winds and heavy snow.

____________________________________

Thank you Rayo for this wonderful post.

A Nice Old Pic

Kola — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 17:37:26 +0000

“One day your life will flash before your eyes. Make sure its worth watching.” – Anonymous.

Picture taken during the Fulbright conference at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, Washington DC.

Memories of Washington

Kola — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 02:07:19 +0000

Today is Dr. Martin Luther King Jnr Holiday in all the states of the US. It is a public holiday so school is closed. I don’t know if I like holidays a lot, but I can’t complain that I have got a chance to rest in preparation for work on Wednesday.

Today in memory of that youngest winner of the Nobel Peace Prize and civil rights activist whose words, deeds and activism has challenged so many people across races, beliefs, age range and countries towards harmony, peace, quest for justice and non-violence, I am putting up these few photos that we took on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in December while we were in Washington.

It was on those steps in August 28, 1963 where Dr.King delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech. (See last image, obtained from Wikipedia images.)

Of Townships and Ownerships

Kola — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 23:10:12 +0000

I was not too surprised when a fellow FLTA from France said to me two weeks ago over dinner at the Union Station in Washington DC that the city was developed by a French person. Then, as she said so, everything had just fallen along the line of positive French stereotypes. They designed the Eiffel Tower and the Statue of Liberty, they must also be the big brilliant brain behind the planning and beautiful layout of the country’s capital. It was my first time of hearing the story, and though she didn’t have the name of the said designer, I believed it.

Today, I had a different conversation with Papa Rudy who says the city was developed by a black man. Now I’m confused. I told him of my discussion with the French girl, and he insisted that a black man did the city’s design. And somewhere in the conversation, the name Du Pont came up. Now I am familiar with a DuPont Circle in Washington DC, and reading more on it this afternoon showed me that it was named after a man Samuel Francis Du Pont (from the famous Du Pont family who really were originally from France). However, he is neither black, not an architect. He was a rear admiral during the civil war. The wikipedia article on the beautiful Paris-like city does not say much about the “designers” of the city, so I’m giving up.

Or not. I now have my own theory, that the person who conceived the brilliant layout of the city with the Washington Monument obelisk standing almost in its centre, could only have been the son of Oduduwa (the fabled progenitor of the Yoruba people). That’s the only explanation that can suffice to clear the air on the similarity between the Opa Oranmiyan obelisk in Ilé-Ifè and this Washington Monument obelisk. The Opa Oranmiyan was erected at a spot once believed to have been the burial site of Oranmiyan, a grandson of Oduduwa. Archeological evidence has now shown it not to be standing on any burial spot at all, but to be just a visible memorial to the fabled progenitor whose name it bears on it’s body. On the Opa Oranmiyan, as has been since its (undated) erection is an inscription in middle-eastern letters that archeologists have accepted as corresponding in sound to “Oranmiyan”.

It’s not the same in height and size to the Washington Monument, but that’s beside the point. Sue me if you like, but the muse behind that American capital city came from Ilé-Ifè in Yorubaland. Deal with it, will you?

Why Fulbright?

Kola — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 10:05:48 +0000

The heaviness on my person since I returned from Washington DC on Monday, I have realized, has to do with more than just my delirious nostalgia for the taste of a certain thrill and an unexplainable positive strangeness that dominated that trip to the East. It could easily have been because of the food, because it was the one thing that almost equally matched the large number of workshop sessions that followed each other one after the other, sometimes without much of a breathing space. We got out of one conference workshop session and we hopped right into another. It was mostly worth it, but it will take the whole of my holiday to truly catch up with the details of all that we were taught. The food however was a different matter. They were diverse as they were elaborate, and I left that hotel on Sunday feeling that I’d committed an unforgivable sin of indulgence – as my mum would have called it. In any case, it was scarcely two hours after then before I entered another cycle of feeding, this time in the neighbouring state of Maryland, and the foods (most of it) were Nigerian for a change.

Fried eggs, bread, pringles, mangoes, (green) tea, orange juice…

and then later in the evening: pounded yam, rice, beans (note: not baked beans or anything American, but Naija style cooking), snails, cow leg and other beef parts in pepper sauce, vegetable soup, Hennessey cognac, and finally some red Malbec Argentinian wine…

I should probably confess that I have never ever eaten this much food in one day. On the one hand, it could be some form of indulgence which I immediately justified from previous frustrations with pizza and long queues at pastries food stands. On the other hand, it just was a very convenient acquiescence to the warmth of my Nigerian hosts who were more than happy to have me around. I felt loved.

It is in returning to my base now that the value of those warm connections are making their presence felt on my wandering self. But again, more than just the thrill, I have been very humbled by the responsibilities the Fulbright tag, and slightly worried that I may have been irreparably changed by the week-long indulgence in a way that I might not yet recognize. Oh well, give me another week or two in this now gradually emptying University campus and I will regain my required pungency. Until then, let us drink to life, and to hope for the parts of the world where there is none. And to peace and understanding – no matter how elusive it gets. Yea, it’s still me speaking. I told you that I’ve changed. Where did the old cynical travula go? I too have no idea.

At The Airport Again

Kola — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 19:08:41 +0000

My trip to the East has brought me great rewards, just like the fortune cookie predicted. I have tried to count my blessings but they were too much to number, so I have stopped.

I’m heading back right now to the Midwest. My flight was cancelled this morning due to the fog that had settled all over the Washington DC area. It was rescheduled to the afternoon, and I’m here once again reading faces and counting time. I hope there is someone waiting for me at St. Louis when I get there. They must have waited too long for me to get in touch with them. All that time, I was here agitated and wondering how to get access to the Airport internet. I have now succeeded, after some payment. I hope the email I just sent to my University has been delivered, and is seen on time.

There’s so much to tell you about the East Coast. I will begin as soon as I find the time to. I am grateful for good times: The Fulbright Organization, The State Department, my fellow FLTAs from Nigeria (Mohammed, Folake, Morakinyo, Shade, Omar, Zainab, Clement and Nanchin), my new and old friends (Diana, Tulika, Maha, Hilal, Osama among many others), my host for the night – the Nigerian writer Ikhide Ikheloa (and his family), and all the other new people I was meeting face-to-face for the first time: Bumight, Vera, Sweet&Sour and Chinny. There was also Tyrone at the hotel parking lot who was very nice. I will remember Maryland, DC, and this experience, because of them.

Till later.

The Nation’s Capital

Kola — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 04:43:57 +0000

Just photos… all taken on my first day in Washington District of Colombia. Those familiar with the famous landmarks in the city would recognize the Capitol (which houses both legislative houses of the country, and in front of which each new president takes his oath of office), the Lincoln Memorial (which houses a larger than life marble structure of President Lincoln, and in front of which Reverend Martin Luther King delivered his I Have A Dream speech), the Washington Monument (which was at one time the tallest structure in the whole world before being overtaken by the Eiffel Tower in France and later the St. Louis Gateway Arch among others. Now, it’s just the tallest structure in DC), and the White House which houses the president.

The rest were random shots taken on the streets as I walked along. Around the Washington Monument is a fountain which is surrounded by walls that bear the name of each of the fifty states of the country. I am guessing that this was where Nigeria got its own idea for a “Unity Fountain” in Abuja that bears the name of all the states in the country. Or else, maybe the Americans “stole” our own idea. Hmm. No, I won’t bet on this one.

There were scores and scores of beautiful buildings, government houses and cathedrals along the way which I couldn’t shoot for lack of time. There is also the President Jefferson Memorial somewhere close, but I couldn’t see that either.

One more notable thing about this capital city is the abundance of aircrafts in the sky. From the hotel to the Lincoln Memorial, I counted more than ten aircrafts either flying towards where I suspect the airport to be, or hovering around the city like the few military helicopters that I saw.

The design of the city places each notable monument or memorial at very accessible points. There is certainly an order to this city. And if there is a chance in the next couple of days, and we get to go out for sightseeing, I will definitely take more pictures. I was speaking with a French FLTA earlier today who told me of her surprise and happiness that Washington DC was planned and designed by a French man. “Hmm, I see,” I said. “The French seem to have their hands in everything.”

PS: I have noticed that all the public structures looked really nicer at night. You will see it too in the last pictures of the Monument and the Capitol. It is because of a set of powerful lights placed in vantage points around them that make them look so bright against the background of the night. It’s definitely a sight to see.

Washington DC, On Foot

Kola — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 11:00:57 +0000

The first thing I did after checking into the Hyatt hotel and finding out that the registration for the conference will take place much later in the evening, and that I had more than three idle hours to burn, was to pick up a map of the capital, and set out to discover it, on foot. Because of the so many American movies I have seen I had a certain confidence that I knew just where everything was located. The Capitol, a magnificent Dome that houses the two houses of the United States Legislature stood just a stone throw from the Hotel, so it was the obvious first choice. The first thing that I noticed was the not so adequate number of traffic lights. The traffic lights were indeed different in design from the ones I’m familiar with at Edwardsville, but they were not enough. Some times, I just had to cross the road the Nigerian style – after looking left, right, left and right again – when there was no light to guide.

After I left the Capitol, whose interior I could not access only because it had closed to the public just a few minutes earlier, I headed to the Washington Monument. The Washington Monument is a brick obelisk structure built to commemorate the life of the city’s founding father President George Washington. Just like the Capitol, the Washington Monument was closed to the public, or I would have loved to go up to its top if there was such a chance, and look down on the city. According to Wikipedia, it is is both the world’s tallest stone structure and the world’s tallest obelisk, standing 555 feet 5⅛ inches, and representing the dead president’s overlooking eyes over his capital.

From the Washington Monument, I had two choices: The White House or the Lincoln Memorial, both of them almost equidistant from the Washington Monument. I chose The White House first. The long walk across public parks and winding roads to the White House took almost twenty minutes, only because I walked fast without stopping even for air. It was beginning to get dark. I got there in time, peeped through the black iron gates to look at First Lady Michelle’s garden project pictures displayed within reach inside. I could see the South Lawn fountain at a stone throw in front of me. on the second floor of the side of the building facing where I stood was also the Oval Office, where the president spends most of his office time. I was indeed looking at the magnificent mansion in which most of the world’s most important decisions were reached. I have never seen the State House of Nigeria. I don’t know what it looks like, nor do I know where exactly it is located.

I then went, still on foot, towards the Lincoln Memorial – the site of the now famous “I Have A Dream” speech. It comprises of a small building which houses a larger than life marble sculpture of President Abraham Lincoln staring out towards the Obelisk of the Washington Monument. Actually, between the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial is a long Reflecting Pool around which hundreds of thousands of supporters and civil right activists stood and sat while Reverend Martin Luther King Jnr read his speech. Looking at the sculpture of the late president did not fail to humble and inspire. On the walls to either of his hands were inscriptions from Abraham Lincoln’s famous speeches, and right behind the large marble sculpture are the words: “In this temple, as in the hearts of the people for whom he saved the union, the memory of Abraham Lincoln is enshrined forever.” Those words, along with the ones on the wall, bring a kind of solemnity and awe to the already hallowed feel of the memorial, and I left feeling quite inspired, especially when I think of the fact that on those same steps out of the building was where the words “I have a dream” were first uttered in a way that sowed a seed of hope whose result is now being felt all over the United States.

The walk back to the Hyatt was not easy nor short, but the sense of fulfillment and enlightenment from the trip gave me a lift that I would never trade for the world.

NOTE: More pictures coming soon

ktravula - a travelogue! » Washington DC

NYT #Fail

Related Posts

National World War II Memorial

Related Posts

Old Man’s Winter Guide To Beating The Snowpocalypse Blues

Related Posts

A Nice Old Pic

Related Posts

Memories of Washington

Related Posts

Of Townships and Ownerships

Related Posts

Why Fulbright?

Related Posts

At The Airport Again

Related Posts

The Nation’s Capital

Related Posts

Washington DC, On Foot

Related Posts