Mummies and breads (and George Clooney)…

Home from a three-day weekend in Richmond.  We had an amazing meal at Lemaire on Friday night with friends.  The first course was a rabbit and salsify chowder that was such a creative and flavorful dish.  I must try to replicate it at home.

Saturday and Sunday had us at Sur La Table, where we took a bread making class.  I’ve now perfected the French baguette!  We also made English Muffins, an apricot rye, a seeded boule and double chocolate bread. 

While at Sur La Table, we were chatting with someone about or Nespresso machines, as they too were fans of the brand.  It got us onto the topic of the wonderful Nespresso commercials that run in Europe, but not in the US yet.

Sunday morning was free, so we went to the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts for the Mummy: Secrets of the Tomb exhibit from the British Museum.  The exhibit begins with a 3-D movie of the CT scan of a mummy that has been in their collection since the 1890’s.  Marvelous use of forensic technology. 

The narrator spoke of ancient Egyptian funerary rights and their beliefs about the afterlife.  Leaving the theater, one woman was commenting about how "silly" those beliefs were.  My comment to her was, "Any less plausable than a magic baby and a talking snake?"

Later that afternoon the museum was hosting a birthday party for Elvis, with Barbara Gray as a special guest.  Had the celebration included a fat guy overdosing, I might have found it interesting.