DC Here We Come!

When last we left you, we were headed from Monticello in Charlottesville, VA toward Silver Spring, MD. Of course that meant we had to traverse through or around DC, hoping to miss the height of traffic. Unfortunately, our timing and our GPS, Charlotte weren't working in our favor. We end up spinning round and round what seems like several morasses and don't arrive at the hotel until 8:30 p.m. Dinner ends up being ready-made salads from the local grocery store across the way. Never mind.

It's the next morning and now we are on the train. I'm so excited I feel like a little kid on the way to the big fair! At last I'm going to personally visit, see and explore our nation's capitol, Washington DC. We only have two days but I'm confident we can hit the highlights. My hopes of touring the White House were dashed before we even left Colorado - reservations must be made several weeks ahead but I was able to reserve a spot for the Capitol building tour.

First day we hit several of the major memorials including Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, and war memorials (WWII, Korean and Vietnam). I'm as impressed as can be. John had been through DC in the 70's but the war memorials are new for him. We only get to see the White House from the outside.

To see more pics of our first day click here!

In the afternoon it's getting pretty hot so we head inside to the Holocaust Museum. Wow! Both of us are in awe over how well the exhibitions are put together and the stories told. They  provide a real sense of that horrible history but in a way that conveys the misery and evil in a thought provoking manner.

Lastly we go to the American History Museum, part of the humongous Smithsonian collection of museums. Our primary intention here is to see the big flag that flew over Ft. McHenry and served as the inspiration to our national anthem. Yep, it's a BIG flag (originally 30 x 42 feet)! We also see a permanent exhibition of First Ladies evening gowns (which I enjoy), and a tribute to the various president's and DC's development. John then spies a section about transportation through the ages and is spontaneously drawn there to explore the maritime portion due to his upcoming employment in that industry!

It's been a fun but full schedule and we are ready to call it a day...