Earlier this summer, we were in Washington D.C., for a week. I know what you’re thinking, a week, what do you do there for a week? Well, you get to do things at a slower pace and see some of the things that you never seem to have time to do. Will and I have both been to D.C. a couple of times, so we opted to skip most of the usual monuments, etc.
If you haven’t been to D.C. before, I would recommend doing the Hop-On Hop-Off bus. This bus hits all the main tourist spots that you want to see and you’re free to get off and spend time at each one before getting back on the bus. As we weren’t going to be doing a majority of those sights on this trip, we opted to get an unlimited weekly Metro card. This card allowed us to take both the metro and the city buses to get around town.
We started with a tour of the Capitol. I had contacted one of our state’s U.S. Senators for tour reservations. You can also contact them for White House tours as well. The Rotunda area of the Capitol had just reopened and has been refurbished back to its original glory. So that was really impressive to see, as it’s been many years since I had visited. (We won’t mention how many years, let’s just say I was in my early teens.). Our tour guide was pretty great as well. He would ask what state you were from and then tell you the date it became a state and it’s capital city. If you an international visitor he would greet you in your native language. Apparently, he knows about 17 languages and had an Ethiopian visitor faint in surprise at being greeted in his native tongue. There’s also an underground shuttle that allows the staff and the Representatives to go from their offices to the Capitol building without going outside. So, we got to ride on that as well. In 2008, the Capitol visitors center was completed. In the visitors center, there are a number of exhibits describing the governmental process and the history of the Capitol and the city of D.C. There is also a test to rate your knowledge of the government. And let’s just say, Will probably shouldn’t be a citizen as he failed the quiz. He managed to pass it the second time only with my help.
Then it was on to Ford’s Theater, where President Lincoln was shot. They have a nice museum of Lincoln memoriabila and they also still do performances during the season. So, you can view a performance without having to take a tour, if you like.
We also had to make a stop at the police officers’ memorial. Germaine’s name is on the wall there and I always try to make time to stop when I’m in D.C..
The next night we wanted to check out the Kennedy Center. It always looks so impressive from the outside, but we had never been. Before the show we found an excellent Italian restaurant near the Kennedy Center, Notti Bianche. Great tasting food and wonderful service. The location is a little hidden and therefore mainly known by the theater crowd. We saw “Divided We Stand – Second City. Hilarious political satire done by one of Second City’s improve groups. The Kennedy Center is huge and offers a number of performances nightly including one at 6pm that is free. Also, it offers some great views of the Potomac River.
Met up with one of Will’s cousins who lives in the D.C. area. (Yes, that man has family everywhere.) His cousin lives out near the Virginia wine country. Yes, more wine tasting! It was a beautiful day and we had a great time at a couple of the local wineries. She also took us to Manasses, where the First Battle of Bull Run was fought during the Civil War. It was great spending time with Carol and her family.
Did you know you can get to Mount Vernon by public transportation? A combination of the metro and the bus takes you right there. Mount Vernon was the home of George Washignton and his wife Martha. The visitor’s center has some great exhibits and a few movies depicting Washignton’s life. It even has a set of the dentures that he was famous for. Look at those things, no wonder the guy was never shown smiling.
We wanted to spend time at the Smithsonian museums and managed to hit quite a few. They all have free admission, so it really is an inexpensive way to spend the day, especially if you head out to the food trucks and grab lunch from there. We really enjoyed the Natural History Museum, the Air and Space, American Indian, and the various Art museums as well. The newest museum is the African American History museum. We didn’t get to check that one out as you needed a reserve ticket. Maybe next time it won’t be so new and popular. Also, stopped at the National Archives to view the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. These documents went through a new preservation process a few years ago that has them encased in titanium. Quite an interesting process that cost 25 million dollars or so.
We had never been to the National Cathedral and wanted to view that as well. The last time I had been in D.C., tours were not allowed as the structure had sustained severe damage in the 2011 earthquake. Consruction was started in 1907 and finally finished in 1990. There is still a lot of work to do on the outside to repair the earthquake damage, but the inside has been entirely restored. The stained glass windows were amazing.
As the Cubbies were in town, we took in a baseball game as well. And the Cubbies Won! The area around the park is known as the Navy Yard. This area has been revitialized and has numerous new housing options, restaurants, shops, and there is even a huge splash pool for kids to cool off in during the summer.
Last was a visit to Arlington National Cemetery. We had to watch the changing of the guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Always fascinating to watch.
