The Smithsonian is a wonderful strange museum. its almost as if they catalogged everything from your grandparents house-- which had also been your great and great, great grandparents house.. It has the "star spangled banner" that Key saw, moth-eaten and thread bare, and pineapple cloth from the phillipians, and indian shawls.. the doll house collection along is enough to make you think you are in your grandparents attic-- or the attic of some ones grandparents.. and then just when you think there isn't a worth while thing in the whole place.. you find your self in rooms filled with the history of technology.. old computers, and mechical adding machings and counters.. or the camera developed for the U2 spy plane.
the collection is at once eclectic and totally complete. and the museum, spread out over several building on Washintons mall (and 3 more buildings in NY!) is huge. You'd like visiting DC, bingley-- its as hot and humid as any tropical area in the summer.. Once when there, i met a friend of friend-- who remarked how wonderful it was to exit the (air-conditioned) airport.. the air was as hot, thick and as moist as it was home--Bangladesh.
