Seein’ the DMV: Peaking Cherry Blossoms and a National Cathedral Tour-032626
With a Cherry (Blossom) on Top Late March in the DMV is pretty much like many spots on the East Coast, with weather temps going from the 30’s to the 80’s and freeze warnings following heat advisories within the same 24 hours. So, it’s not surprising that it’s difficult to predict what day will begin the peak bloom period for the cherry tree of Washington’s Tidal Basin. Thus, I was stunned to hear the news report that the morning I had scheduled to visit the Washington National Cathedral had been declared the beginning of peak season! What was even better was that the route Google Maps gave me to drive to the National Cathedral (see the dark blue route indicated on the map above) took me through the heart of the florid display, from the Washington Monument to the northern edge of the Tidal Basin. I took advantage of every…
From Richmond to Charlotte (Sorta) to the NC Outer Banks-March 2026
Spirituals in Richmond I had been invited to be a panelist for a discussion of spirituals for the 2026 Society for American Music (SAM) annual conference in Richmond, Virginia, so I decided to add a side trip to the Outer Banks of my home state, North Carolina. It would be only my second visit to the area, when my mother and I made it as far as Buxton, NC, in 2017. Shortly before the trip was scheduled to begin, I saw a Facebook notice that the American Spiritual Ensemble (ASE) was scheduled to perform in Charlotte, North Carolina, the Sunday after the conference. As the departure date neared, however, two events caused me to debate whether I would complete the trip as planned. First, I got an email notification that a different conference had just experienced numerous confirmed cases of COVID. While I had gotten my annual COVID vaccine a…
California (and Oregon), Here I Come?!?
As I contemplated driving to the Southwest national parks this fall, I considered adding the parks I missed in California. However, the extra mileage and physical wear and tear to me and my car, the Silver Bullet (SB), didn’t seem feasible, even to me. Then, Uncle Sam’el came to the rescue. I received a notice on my Amtrak app that the train service was offering a 50% discount on its USA Rail Pass. The pass restrictions that come with the standard $500 price usually turn me off, but the timing of the half-price offer was perfect because it gave me the option to travel from Washington to Los Angeles using only two of the ten segments that come with the pass. Even the restrictions–starting the first segment within four months of purchase–would be workable. Plus, if I don’t use all ten segments within 30 days of beginning the first segment–another…
A Day at the MET(s)–New York City (Again)
After a quiet Christmas holiday, the family turmoil began slowly to settle. I read that mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves-Montgomery was giving her final Metropolitan Opera performance in Porgy and Bess during the last weekend of January. I decided to take the opportunity to get out-of-town and witness the performance. This would be the second time I’ve traveled to New York to see the opera/musical (depending on the approach of the musical presentation one used)–previously for the 2012 Broadway production with Audra McDonald and Norm Lewis. I also saw the 2019 production via The Met in HD, so I was really looking forward to seeing it live. I took Amtrak to New York because it’s so hard to drive and park in the city safely that I feel like the Silver Bullet is much better off parked at the train station. I’m no longer used to getting up early enough to make…