Old Town Alexandria, Part II

Today is my last day of freedom--tomorrow it's back to the grind.  So with that in mind let's clear out some unfinished business from the old year, namely our visit to Old Town Alexandria.

King Street is basically old brick houses now turned into restaurants and boutiques.

Most shop windows were still in Christmas mode.

However this Irish specialty shop wanted to remind us that there's only 78 days left before St. Pat's Day.

This lingerie shop which opened a year or so ago was initially controversial and in some minds thought to be a bit too risque for genteel King Street but it has apparently weathered that storm and looked to be doing a roaring trade.

"Why Not" is a toy store.  Remember, back before shopping malls took over, when just about every town had a shop dedicated strictly to toys?

I was pleased to see that Babar the Elephant is still in vogue.

An apron in a fetching pirate motif, complete with a variety of kitchen tools, was on offer for the aspiring domestic Goddess on your shopping list.

Missing some animals for your Noah's Ark display?  They can be obtained here, two by two.

The next Punch and Judy show will be held at 6:30.  Bring your own pig's bladder...

After all this the diaristwomen were getting peckish.  La Madeleine is a good place to take care of that.

Can't afford to pop over to Gay Paris to see the real thing?  Not a problem mon ami, you can study this scale model of Gustave's masterpiece while waiting for your Croque Monsieur.

Absolutely NO dessert unless you finish your lunch!  Sadly we didn't have room for dessert and so headed back out on the street.

Oh dear, oh dear...  Your old diarist told diaristwoman he'd touch base with her in a half hour's time.

  

Walking uphill from la Madeleine one passes Market Square with it's large fountain (drained for winter).  City Hall is the building in the background with the large flag draped over the entrance.

Adjacent to the fountain is this pleasant garden.  The sculpture is BRIO by Jimilu Mason.

Zooming in on these interesting trees just beyond BRIO.  I think they are sycamore trees but I'm not entirely certain.  Can anyone identify them?

Further along, King St. crosses Washington St.  I've always wanted to take a look at Christ Church.  Let's pop in.

Construction of Christ Church began in 1767 and was completed in 1773.  This building replaced the initial C of E chapel-of-ease which dated to 1753.   The architect of Christ Church was James Wren (not a relative of the better known Christopher Wren).

The interior of the church looking towards the altar.  Several of the box pews are associated with notable people from U. S. history.

This is Geo. Washington's pew.  I asked where in the pew did George sit?  The answer: "Wherever he wanted!"  In the early days of World War II FDR, Winston Churchill and FDR's wife Eleanor used this pew during a National Prayer for Peace.  FDR sat closest to the camera with Churchill beside him and Eleanor beside Churchill.  I briefly sat in Churchill's lap.

Another well known parishioner was Robt. E. Lee. He and his family used this pew.

The building abounds with interesting details such as this "wine glass" pulpit which was installed in the 1890s.  The two tablets which flank the pulpit, containing the Apostles' Creed, Ten Commandments and Lord's Prayer, are original to the building and were hand lettered by James Wren, the architect.

It being Christmas, there was of course, a Creche.  We see the animals, shepherds, Joseph, Mary and Jesus, but where are the wise men?

The wise men are here on this window sill just before the Creche.  They haven't "arrived" yet and so will not be moved to the nativity scene until Epiphany.

My half hour of freedom was quickly evaporating and just as I stepped out of Church my mobile rang.  Diaristwoman was shopped out and ready to head for the barn.  And so, dear reader, I wish you the best for the new year!

Old Town Alexandria walkabout; Part I: The Torpedo Factory

Diaristfamily has the days between Christmas and New Year's Day off from work.  Your diarist has been using the mornings to go ice skating thereby allowing diaristwoman the luxury of sleeping late into the morning.  After returning from yesterday's session at the rink (I won't bore you with a lot of moaning about falls or post any pix on my spectacular bruises--just use your imagination) we decided we needed a day trip.  We hadn't been to Alexandria, Virginia in a while so that's where we went.  As usual, your diarist took way too many photos of our wanderings through out the old part of the town so I'll break them up over the next couple of days.

After parking the car we walked downhill on King Street towards the Potomac River.  Alexandria is just over the river from Maryland and is an easy 45 minute drive from out house.  Here we see the exterior of the former U.S. Naval Torpedo factory which is right on the river front.

As the name suggests, this building was a site of torpedo construction during the second world war.  This display of a Mk XIV submarine torpedo and period artifacts briefly describes those times.  This particular torpedo had a range of 4500 yards and a top speed of 46 knots.  It retains the bright green color used during test runs for easy sighting and recovery. 

That was then; now this huge, airy three story building has been converted into a center for local artists and the town's archaeology finds.

This Dromedary was one of several Christmas animals which the artists had built for the holiday season.

Other animals included this elephant

A zebra

A hippo

This giraffe

and even a human animal.

The old factory building has been broken into a collection of artist's lofts.  The artistic talents on offer run through various disciplines including ceramics, weaving, graphic art, painting, sculpting, and jewelry making.  Opportunities to speak with the various artists abound as do opportunities to purchase their work.

Some of the lofts are quite small while others are expansive as is the case of this painter's studio.

She has a wonderful view over the Potomac looking back at the Maryland shore.

Around the next corner I encountered more animals, this time "Christmas" fish.

Even the duct work had fish!

Evert Hill's loft had a number of eye catching geometric paintings on display.

The Alexandria Archaeology Center had a number of interesting displays including this one which encouraged hands-on interaction.

Of course, this being America, there were T-shirts, etc. on offer to satisfy shopping urges at all price points.  Your diarist was sorely tempted by the soft toy version of Edvard Munch's "The Scream" seen on the display below the T-shirts.  However just as I was reaching for my wallet, the mobile phone rang: diaristwoman, who had already moved on to a clothing shop up the street from the torpedo factory, was on the other end and was wondering what was taking so long and what on earth was I looking at (this time)?!