The joy of quick & easy museum outings

Good morning, DMV! It’s Wednesday, April 22.

We are so lucky to live in a city where we can swing by museums on a whim, for free (thanks to our tax dollars). I went yesterday to the National Museum of African American History and Culture for the orchid show, which closes Sunday.

It was pretty easy to click and get a timed-entry pass for the museum, which was abuzz with visitors. Walking into the room of orchids, I noticed a light floral scent in the air. I made a mental note that I’d find it hard to identify the flower by its perfume. After a few moments in the room, I could no longer sense the smell.

Some of the orchids seemed small and delicate. Others looked like spindly creatures.

The exhibition features hundreds of orchids from the collections of the Smithsonian Gardens and U.S. Botanic Garden and has been held annually since 1995 (with the exception of 2021 during the pandemic).

There are flowers named after celebrities and luminaries, including Michelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey and Tina Turner (which I find the coolest of these three). According to Smithsonian magazine, the Michelle Obama orchid is “part of a tradition of naming orchid varieties after First Ladies that dates back to 1929 beginning with the Mrs. Herbert Hoover orchid.”

This big boy is named after Winston Churchill.

The show ends Sunday. I’m glad I went. It reminded me of all those times I’ve stumbled across charming flower shops and ducked in for a glimpse and a whiff.

I soaked up a touch of museum energy. I felt very much like a local — who could make a drop in for a quick 20 minutes then carry on.

On my way back to the Metro, I also popped into the Renwick Gallery for the state fairs exhibit. I was impressed by the quilts and the life-sized cow made of butter. How much butter? Click the Instagram post below to find out. If you’re curious to learn more, here’s a Smithsonian magazine deep-dive on the butter cow.

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Last week, I shared with you an article about the National Park Service removing from the historic Senator Newlands Memorial fountain a sign that explained Sen. Francis G. Newlands’s racist past.

Josh Calder, a resident of the Chevy Chase neighborhood of D.C. (near the fountain), shared this photo he took in 2024, in case you want to read it.

Share your recent photos of life in the DMV here.

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