Today we drove over to Annapolis to tour both the town and the Naval Academy. We had never done either. It was a great day!
(First, a word about the current state of security checks in the DC area and in other places. It is a mixed bag, and sometimes I don't understand the inconsistencies. Several museums we were in yesterday did bag checks, and several did nothing at all. Today at the Naval Academy, the only thing they did upon our entering the Visitor Center was to ask for our IDs - drivers licenses, no bag checks, nothing else. At the Maryland State House, we walked through a metal detector and there was a bag airport-security-type Xray. Every Spring Training game we were at did a bag check. I don't know, it just makes one wonder what actually works and what doesn't.)
The point of the above description is to say that at the Naval Academy, they were very welcoming and as visitors we were given only brief instructions about the buildings we could go in - they were circled on a map we were given, and there were a lot of them available to us. We were politely asked not to go into buildings not circled on the map. It all made for an extremely pleasant visit. We immediately signed up for a walking tour, but were told that we could go and see the Meal Formation in the central plaza area which would take place prior to our tour, or go anywhere else on our own if we wished. We had an hour to see the Formation and grab a bite to eat in the student activity center before our tour.
Apparently they do not do Noon Meal Formation in colder weather, but now it apparently is warm enough to do it (not very warm today, by the way!). There are over 4500 students at the Academy and they are all at the formation all around Bancroft Hall, the largest single residence hall at any university in the country. All students live in this hall. It is an immense and beautiful gray stone building in the Beaux Arts style, which has aged well. Plus, all 4500 students eat at the same time in what is a gigantic mess hall at the rear of the building. We didn't get to see the mess hall inside, but did go to a point in the public area of Bancroft Hall where we could see the roof. It is the size of two football fields!
Here is the Meal Formation from the front of the Hall. Students assemble 360 degrees around the building, all 4500 of them, marching, standing at attention, the lead midshipmen answering the roll call for their units, and then all midshipmen filing into the building to the academy band music. It was very impressive.
By the way, almost 25% of the student body is now women.
The officers' quarters (those who run the Academy) live in a row of beautiful houses.
We joined our tour and were first taken into some of the wonderful academy athletic facilities. We learned from our cheerful and humorous tour guide that, above all, Navy desires and often does beat Army! Then we went back over to Bancroft Hall and into the building - stunning architecture and gorgeous interior decor.
We then walked through what was built as the Armory, but has since been converted to a multi use facility. It is huge. Other than a food area at one end, I didn't hear what else they use this building for. It could hold a very large number of people.
We were taken to the Chapel, a huge basilica-like building. First we went down into the crypt where John Paul Jones, Revolutionary war hero of the Navy, is buried, a symbolic gesture intended to inspire future naval officers. The tomb is quite elaborate - I had never seen anything quite like it.
Then we were taken upstairs to the sanctuary. This building is another breathtaking place of beautiful architecture, magnificent Tiffany stained glass windows, and lovely decor. Apparently there are many weddings that take place here, and I can certainly understand why. Attendance at chapel is entirely voluntary, and all religions are honored on campus.
We went to another building, on our own, where there is an exhibit running until November on the War of 1812, from a naval perspective. Nicely done.
We then toured the town, stopping for coffee at a little book store with the cozy coffee nook way in back. This was just a very little store, a jumble of books old and new, and totally charming, just like the town of Annapolis. While there are many shops in town that are obviously there to appeal to a tourist population, there are many streets that appear almost untouched by time, harkening back to pre-Revolutionary war days when the town was built. I felt like I was in another country - England, maybe. Because it was so chilly and windy today, there weren't many people around, and it was a real treat to see this city like that. Here is an example of one of the residential streets.
Our final stop was the Maryland State House, an 18th and 19th century building built on a hill and surrounded by the town streets like spokes on a wheel. The Maryland Legislature is currently in session. In fact, they just passed aggressive gun control legislation which I think now goes to the governor. We were free to walk around and could have sat in the second floor public viewing area if they had actually been doing anything at the time. There are two areas of the state house that are being restored to their 18th century look. The senate side is currently done.
Here is a view from the street of the Maryland State House.
A legislator, possibly the Speaker of the House (but that is just conjecture) was being interviewed for something, maybe a local TV station.
A wonderful day in Annapolis!
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