Imagine my surprise on a recent trip to Washington, DC (April 2019) to discover there were 2 museums on the Mall that I had never visited.  It has been open since 1923, so it was even here when I lived near Washington DC in the 1960’s, so I can’t explain how I missed it!

But fortunately, I did discover them on this latest visit, and I am so happy that I did.  Both collections are housed in a beautiful building, making the architecture part of the happy experience.  They house Asian art, and there was a wonderful exhibition on Empresses of China, sharing both their beautiful clothing and the ways they wielded influence at a time when women were not seen as able to do that.

I was also very impressed with the information about Buddhism in Sri Lanka, and actually the whole area that was devoted to Buddha.