National Museum of the American Indian (and other adventures)

The National Museum of the American Indian was AWESOME! There were areas dedicated to various tribes, as well as a section on the role of Indians in modern culture. Every exhibit featured music from the respective tribe; some of it was so beautiful and haunting. I was enthralled by the beadwork (being an amateur beader myself) and the baskets - I could have gone nuts in the gift shops (if I were a rich girl)! I went to lunch at Mitsitam Cafe, which features authentic food from various tribal regions; I had a pulled buffalo sandwich (rather like pulled pork, but somehow "earthier"), shrimp and calamari ceviche (delicious, but quite spicy), and a hibiscus aqua fresca - everything was fantastic!
After lunch, I took the Metro (I"m getting used to it - it's pretty easy to navigate and the nearest stop isn't far from my apartment) to Eastern Market and bought fresh ravioli (smoked mozzarella, artichoke/spinach/pine nuts, portabello mushroom w/caramalized onions, lobster & crawfish, crab, and chocolate creme) and some vodka sauce (which one of my new friends turned me on to the other night). I also bought a beautiful (and I mean that literally - I love eclectic/pretty wine bottles) bottle of South African red wine.
On the way back to the apartment, I stopped by NASA to check out the exchange (small gift shop that you don't have to go through security to get to). I picked up some postcards, a magnet, and a window cling for my car. I snapped a couple of pictures in the entryway; I SO cannot believe I start my fellowship there in (just under) a few weeks! The rest of the day is going to be devoted to housework (I need to vacuum and mop) and finding bubble mailers to send stuff to friends and family; any leftover time will be "me time" - just releaxing and reading! Tomorrrow: National Museum of American History (and possibly the National Gallery, depending on time and exhaustion level - you don't realize how out of shape you are until you're hoofing it everywhere (I actually picked up a little native american pig ornament to hang on my fridge to remind me that I plan on getting in shape during my Fellowship)!
Is this the life or what?
Addendum: I just got a call from Arkansas telling me that someone broke into the Chemistry teacher's classroom - he is generously taking care of my rabbit and guinea pig while I am in DC - last night and killed the guinea pig. Apparently someone literally squeezed him until his intestines came out - he was such a sweet animal; the students are going to be so upset when they return to school. He said it looked like they tried to go after the rabbit as well - there was litter all over the place; the rabbit is a bit rambunctious and probably either scratched or bit them. The administration is going to try to find out who did it; someone who could do that to an animal is sick and needs to get help.
Addendum 2: My sponsor at NASA is taking me to lunch and showing me around tomorrow. Yay!!!