Yvonne Caruthers is a cellist in the NSO.

After 9/11 we all got used to having our bags inspected every time we enter a large building in Washington. Today I went to the Capitol 
building here in Little Rock, walked right in and took a few photos....no searches, nothing.

The chandelier in the dome is really gorgeous.

In a display case I saw this snakehead violin---so called because of the snake's head at the top of the instrument. This trip we won't get to see Mountain Home, AR, where the museum of the Ozarks is located, so I was glad to see this small exhibit.

I also walked over to Central High School, site of the 1957 school desegregation protests. The school is still in use, a very beautiful campus.

Across the street is an old Mobil gas station (now used by the park service), with original pumps---gas at 22 cents!