D.C. day 2 part 1 Library of Congress

 It was a rainy cool day in D.C.  At least we carried rain coats for a reason!  Our first stop was the Library of Congress.  I had never been and it was more interesting than I ever thought it would be.

 The artists that were employed to work on the Library were not paid for the 5 years they worked on it (they were paid at the end).  So, they kind of took some personal liberties and did things how they wanted to.  Some things are interesting, some are strange.  These men below are playing football naked.  Kind of saying that we have our own things in the is country that are great but in the Greek art tradition.

 We were lucky enough to find out that there is a children's library at the Library.  The kids read and read and we got tons of book recommendations from the librarian.

 We took a tour and learned all about the Puttis.  They are the babies in sculptures.  In the Library, they represent different occupations and peoples of the US.  

 The reading room.  You can't go down there until you are 16 so we will be back.  Declan was a bit disappointed not to be able to go down.  Many movies have been filmed in the reading room!

 This painting was fascinating.  She was on the way up the reading room and her toes follow you wherever you go.  When you go up to the right, they are pointed at you.  When you came out on the left, they pointed at you.  So spooky!

 Our tour guide told us how in the 80s, there were cubicles in the lobby, the columns were black and these windows were kept open.  Smog and pollution had completely coated the inside of the Library with black dust.  Once they cleaned it out, all the employees were amazed at how beautiful it is.

We learned that the Library of Congress and 3 of it's surrounding buildings go 13 floors underground to store all of the books, magazines, maps and everything else they have.  And they are running out of room.  Currently, they are digitizing their collection which you can access online.  Interestingly enough, the Library collects items from around the world and is helping some governments restore their destroyed documents after conflicts/war.

On our way out...there is a new visitor's center at the Capitol which connects different buildings.  The kids loved walking underground.