Smithsonian Castle

We started our day in DC with a visit to the Smithsonian Castle on the National Mall - the original Smithsonian museum.

In the garden were several unusual plants including this one - the Dhobi Tree - apparently a member of the same family of flowers as coffee and gardenia!

The inside of the castle contained a number of 'relics', souvenirs and curiosities - a very eclectic mix - including a fragment of the Berlin Wall and, more unusually a tiny piece of the Bastille!

There were several very large Chinese porcelain vases.

And by contrast, a series of vintage seed catalogues..

Outside on the National Mall the annual Smithsonian Folklife Festival was in full swing, under a blazing hot sky.

Each summer several different countries are featured at this festival and showcased with art, dance, music, food and anything else which evokes the spirit of the nation.  This time the countries were China and Hong Kong and Zambia.

This extraordinary Chinese edifice created with bamboo and fabric gave a real splash of colour to announce the start if the Folklife Festival area.

Having crossed the National Mall and queued to have our bags searched by security staff, we visited the Museum of American History.  A vast museum but we concentrated on several sections, including transport..

Also a few familiar domestic items from the past..

And finally this rather unusual item, said to be an eighteenth century jelly mould..