Every year in Washington DC, in August, one of the most important events for every real pen lover takes place - the biggest pen show in the world.

I've visited the US for the first time last year and I will never forget how good It felt.

This year the show started on the 7th. August and ended on the 10th. This is the reason why I came from far away Croatia.

The first two days are reserved for dealers and exhibitors, and the last two days, Saturday and Sunday, for the public. The biggest crowd is then.

Pen shows are like the United Nations organization. There you can meet people from all over the world. This year at the Washington DC Super pen show, collectors and dealers came from USA, Canada, Australia, Israel, Japan, Germany, France and Croatia.

Some of them came to buy something for their own collection or trade, but some came to have great fun and enjoy time with friends you can meet only at places like pen shows. This is really nice!

Here you can categorize people into two different groups; those who are interested in new pens, and those only in vintage - like me.

The new pens are wonderful also. At Len Provisor’s table, I saw a beautiful Nakaya fountain pen - one of the most beautiful pens I have ever seen. Len also had the lastest model of the Geo S. Parker Spitfire plane. Mr. Geoffrey Parker was also there.

Mr. Jonathan Steinberg promoted his new book about fountain pens; FOUNTAIN PENS, Their history and art. Nice book! Also Mr. Axel Huebener from Bremen, Germany was there to show some new Montblanc limited edition pens. I can't count all the people I meet and like because there are to many of them. I like them all the same.

In places like this everybody can find some nice and rare pens or pencils.

I found two extra rare pencils. One is a Penkala KO-MIO twist mechanism in Mustard color from c1925, and the second is PELIKAN 60 pencil from 1953 whose mechanism is really unusual. The lead of this pencil is advanced by squeezing the middle of the pencil. This is really unique.

Also, at the show I saw the smallest and rarest pen in the world. This is Waterman World’s Smallest Pen eye dropper in mint condition, the owner is Mr. Roger Cromwell from Penopoly pens. I really enjoyed to having this small pen in my hand.

I spend a lot of time at my table, and it was very hard because I didn't have time to see what other people were offering. On the end of every day, I felt like an empty battery, but hanging out with my pen friends in the hotel bar recharged me.

Everything comes to an end. Nice things don't last long. Walking out our friends from the hotel one by one with wishes to see each other soon as possible, we remained to the end.

On Monday evening, Mr. Guido Staltari and me discussed fountain pens, pencils and the most important things in our life.....

I can't wait for the next pen show, to meet my pen friends.

Miroslav Tischler, Zagreb, Croatia 16.08.2003.