Expedition 12: A Silver Stroll

Progressing on a beautiful day in MD!

One dozen journeys complete! Metro Journey 12 was a great time, and this time took us all throughout the urban area of Silver Spring observing the plethora of fantastic art in the city. This blog is your newest tour of the exhibits of art in our nation's capital. Let's begin with exhibit A...


Exhibit A: A Helping Hand and a Continental Coastline
At it again on my tenth journey! Up early again to get on the metro at Largo, Trent, Cortland and I rode to Silver Spring station to get started. Once the squad was all together, we headed out to our first assigned POI: The Hand of NOAA. Created by artist Ray Kaskey, the large stone monument was built to broadcast the purpose of the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration's goal. It was a pretty neat start to a busy Maryland expedition.

Symbolic of Noah's hand releasing the doves

 Next up was a trip to the coastline. Well, the "Coastline." It's an artificial wave pool representing the crashing of waves onto the Atlantic coast. 

Exhibit B: A Collection of Columns and a Beckoning Beacon 
After the coastline, we moved on to several destinations off the East-West Highway. First up was the East West Beacon.

The East-West Beacon

The dazzling 35-foot sculpture was designed by one Ray King to (not surprisingly) be a beacon to travelers on the East-West Highway. The steel on the beacon reflects and illuminates light and is always changing colors. This was probably my favorite POI of the day honestly. 

Not far from the Beacon was the other attraction of Exhibit B: the Lotus Columns. The unique three-sided, asymmetrical sculptures were created by Mary Ann Mears with an Egyptian origin. It was neat how the columns created a sort of illusion with their shape. 

The Lotus Columns' intricate design

Up next was a huge acorn. Well, an acorn park. A tiny 0.12 acre spot off of East-West Highway, the park consists merely of a few benches, an acorn shaped gazebo, and a mural on a wall with some impressive art, but it was still cool to see all these places I never knew existed in Silver Spring.  

The acorn gazebo and mural of the park

Exhibit C: Coming up on Kaldi's
Moving on, we made our way through Silver Spring to Kaldi's Coffee bar. It was a nice and spacious cafe, and the group stayed and chilled on the sofas for a bit, then we were off for a few more stops on our final journey...

Bonus: The Wrap Up
We had quite a few more stops to go to, and I can't remember them all, but they were all fascinating. We came up on the Sisyphus, a collection of large steel orbs based on Greek mythology, the Botero Ballerinas, ever-rotating steel sculptures, and even the artful Global Refugee Mural. Afterwards, we headed to eat lunch and get home.

Overall, this Metro Journey class has been such a blessing. I've always loved exploring D.C., and this class was a perfect opportunity to get to explore plenty of it. I learned the vibes of different neighborhoods, discovered countless art displays, and made new friends along the way. I was able to minister on the metro once, eat some delicious lunches, and visit monuments I've loved to drive past with my family. I doubt I'll be able to do this class again next year, but it won't forget the Metro Journey experience!

The Global Refugee Mural

The Botero Ballerinas