I was quite interested in the homes along Monument Avenue, very Southern in feeling and of a style not found in Washington. The streets lining the mall were built up following the installation of the statues in the 1890s, although now many of the grand old buildings appear to have been converted to apartment houses.

*****

On Sunday we went to Richmond, the capital of Virginia and former seat of the Confederacy during the Civil War. We have owned a house here for 30 years but had never made the two-hour drive down there, so took the opportunity to when I had an unexpected day off from work.

Tim wanted to see the confederate statues on Monument Avenue before they're taken down or destroyed or whatever is going to happen to them, and I wanted to see the regional museum's famous collection of Fabergé eggs, both of which we did. There's also a well-regarded botanic garden there, but we just didn't have time to visit. Something for another trip, I guess.

Government building, Baku, posted earlier: