Sunday, March 27, 2022

Crowds at the Tidal Basin

Yesterday evening I went down to the Tidal Basin in Washington, DC to check out the crowds, and maybe see a cherry blossom or two.  I wasn't disappointed, the crowds were there (though maybe there would have been more people if I had gone earlier in the day) and the cherry trees were in peak bloom.

Since I was there late, the sun was going down, while playing hide and seek with the clouds.  For a little while the clouds over the Jefferson Memorial were lit up.

As I was leaving, the sun was setting, lighting up the clouds with bright reds and oranges behind the Washington Monument.


Bikeshare and scooters were popular ways to get around, the Capital Bikeshare station near the Washington Monument had loads of extra bikes to handle the crowds.


Today is cooler than yesterday, so if you go, dress warmly.




 

Saturday, March 26, 2022

Cherry blossoms in Kenwood


 It is cherry blossom time!  One of the more poorly kept secrets about Bethesda is that we have some neighborhoods with really great cherry blossoms.  You don't have to drive to DC and brave the crowds around the Tidal Basin, instead you can skip the drive and brave the crowds right here.  

Yesterday I went to the Kenwood neighborhood to walk around.  There were numerous people out walking and more than a few cars traffic wasn't bad.  Of course, it was a Friday afternoon.  This weekend I expect it to be much more crowded.  If you want to walk, don't plan on driving into the neighborhood and parking, many of the roads have temporary parking restrictions.  I parked up near the Bethesda Pool (not to be confused with the Pool of Bethesda) on Little Falls Parkway and walked down the Capital Crescent Trail to Kenwood.

This is peak of the blossoms and this weekend will be a great time to see them. Saturday will be partly cloudy with a high of 52. Sunday will be colder with a high of 42 and wind.





Sunday, March 20, 2022

Where is the steeple?


 Not much has changed at Christ Lutheran Church in the past couple of days. It looks like recent work has concentrated on disassembling the steeple and the tower it was mounted on.  The building next to the church, Luther Hall, is nothing but rubble and there are small piles of wood and metal that have been recovered from it.

The steeple is gone and the tower it was mounted on is in the process of being disassembled.  There is a lot of debris on the roof that used to be part of the tower and steeple.

The tower the steeple was mounted on, from the front.  This is the only part of the tower that still has windows in it.


 

Saturday, March 19, 2022

Visiting the new Trader Joe's in downtown Bethesda

Last night I went to visit the new Trader Joe's at 7900 Wisconsin Avenue.  This is the second Trader joe's on Wisconsin Avenue in Bethesda.  The old Trader Joe's remains open.

When you enter the store, there is a mural on the wall that says "Your Culinary Chariot Awaits" and below that are, you guessed it, the shopping carts.

On the walls above the food are various Bethesda themed murals.  Here is one of downtown bethesda from East-West Highway.  Instead of the new Marriott Headquarters there is a giant salt shaker.


The store opened for the first time at 8 am last Thursday, March 17, 2022.


One thing I do find odd is where checkout counters are.  Once you pay you have to make your way down a very narrow aisle to get to the exit.  I suspect that when the store is busy there will be a traffic jam there.


 

Wednesday, March 16, 2022

Dismantling the steeple at Christ Lutheran Church


 You can see a lot has changed since my last post about the Christ Lutheran Church dmolition just a few days ago.  The building next to the church is now completely gone, only a flattened pile of rubble remains.

When I was there around lunch time today, they were dismantling the steeple on the church. To disassemble the steeple they would pound on a portion of it with a sledge hammer, then push it out from the rest of the steeple and it would fall to the ground.


I got a short video of the last section of the steeple dropping to the roof of the church below.

Here's a wider shot so you can see a bit more context.  The hole in the back of the building has been there for a few days, it doesn't look any bigger yet.




Sunday, March 13, 2022

Demolition has started at Christ Lutheran Church

 

 

The demolition of Christ Lutheran Church has started.  Here the right side of the building has been knocked down, but most of the building still stands.


This is the view from the back of the church.  Demolition is underway on both the right and the left sides.


With he demolition of Christ Lutheran Church underway, you can see part of the interior of the building.


Demolition is also starting at the back left, there was also a house on the right side of this picture that has been completely knocked down.




Thursday, March 10, 2022

Gas prices are on their way up

 


 You may have heard on the news that gas prices are shooting up all across the country.  Bethesda is not known for cheap gas, so it should come as no surprise that prices are up here as well.  $4.69 a gallon for regular unleaded at the MacArthur Blvd Exxon just over the DC line.  I took this picture on Tuesday, so by now it is likely higher.

Sunday, March 6, 2022

The Trucker's protest convoy makes it to Bethesda

 

The trucker's convoy protesting Covid restrictions made it's way down Interstate 270 through Bethesda just after noon today.  It wasn't just tractor trailers in this convoy, there were dump trucks, pickup trucks, RV's and cars too.


They were generally going around the speed limit and not interfering with other traffic.  Once they did slow to a stop for a short time but that was most likely because of the general traffic in the area.


In addition to plenty of United States flags there were trucks with Trump flags, flags that said "Let's Go Brandon", and some "2022 Freedom convoy" flags, as well as many other flags.  As they came up to the bridge many of them would honk their horns.



I was at the Democracy Road overpass and there was another guy and two police officers.  Before I left, another officer and another man had arrived.  The two police in the photo above were holding up a flag, taking selfies with it, and occasionally waving to the trucks going by