Cutest license plate ever
This was a busy travel week. I flew out Sunday for Curaçao, a tiny island 35 miles off the coast of Venezuela that is a former Dutch colony. We have a very small Consulate there, so my trip was a relatively short three business days.
The downtown waterfront where I stayed was very pretty – the buildings are all beautiful colors, and cruise ships come and go.
See the resemblance to the license plate?
The team took me to a very local place on Tuesday. Wednesday was on the opposite end of the spectrum at a swanky waterside restaurant. Monday night I enjoyed a nice dinner with the Consular officer and his family at their lovely home. The other two nights I walked around the waterfront and enjoyed the sights. Click to see all of my photos from Curaçao.
Local lunch spot
View from the Consulate
Sand infinity pool with cruise ship at dock
I arrived home late Wednesday night, with just enough time to do a little work on Thursday and get packed for our long weekend in Philly at the PAX gaming convention. We loaded up at Marcus and Simone’s house well before daybreak Friday and headed to Philly. John has been like a pig in mud at this huge convention! Yesterday the Ambassadorks (gamers who work at the State Department) met for a fun and delicious lunch.
While John was having fun gaming, I did some sightseeing. Friday I went to the Mütter Museum, a collection of medical oddities and maladies. Some might consider it grotesque, but I had a blast. There are lots of real specimens in jars, plus a huge collection of human skulls and bones. For example, they have some slices of Einstein’s brain and the tallest full skeleton from a man 7’6”. The highlight for me was seeing the actual liver of the original Siamese Twins, Chang and Eng, and their death mask, which included their conjoined torsos. Really, really interesting. I was interested in going because I read a book about Dr. Mütter a couple of years ago. He was a teaching physician in the late 1800s and a pioneer in the use of anesthesia. Unfortunately, photography was not allowed inside.
Outside the Mütter Museum
Museum lobby
Saturday morning I had an appointment at a Ouidad-certified hair salon, and had a good experience there. In the afternoon I visited the lovely Barnes Museum, where Robin Muse use to work. I believe their collection of Renoir is the largest in the world; also lots of Matisse and Cezanne.
Barnes Foundation
After a full day of fun, John and I went to a local restaurant, Marmont, and had a good meal.
This morning I played in a Scrabble tournament at the convention. I didn’t win, but had a good time! I walked down to see the Liberty Bell, but the line was really long, so I left it for the next time!
City Hall
Macy’s, with huge pipe organ and Christmas tree