Days 7 to 11 were at Washington DC

Independence Day at Washington DC

The rest of the long drive was uneventful. When it was my turn to drive I felt myself getting more comfortable with the car and the unfamiliar driving. No problems with directions and I put the cruise control to good use. We napped for a while at a nice rest area, and was energetic enough to continue.

Texas gave way to Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee and finally Virginia before hitting DC. We had our fair share of thunderstorms but nothing like Saturday. Arrived in good shape despite the long hours on the road.

Our hotel for the next 4 nights would be the Helix, which was pretty centrally located. It was also advertised as a boutique hotel, and it was decorated lavishly. It was part of the Kimpton group and one of their biggest selling points was free wifi in all areas of the hotel — it took me a long time to connect and the connection was slow, but it was free. Yes I was grumpy when it didn’t connect but I got over it. Hee.

When we arrived, we drove through town and saw a lot of people milling about. Plus there was a heavy police presence and I thought they were having a security lockdown. The hotel told us that earlier the Mall was cleared … not because of security but because of thunder and tornado threat (!!!). When we got to our room we checked on the TV and again with the front desk and they confirmed that the July 4th events would go ahead as planned.

So we walked towards the Mall, together with a few hundred people. It was a good mile at least but very pleasant and lots to see. There was a bag check into the grass area around the Washington Monument but it was done with efficiency. We found a spot with a good view of the monument and shortly after the fireworks started. We were too far away to hear the music but the fireworks were spectacular.

Walked back to the hotel and ordered pizza for late dinner. My first impression of DC? Large and there was an air of importance everywhere. I mean New York is full of skyscrapers, London has historical buildings all over the place, Hong Kong has the horrendously fast pace and Tokyo the neon lights … but Washington DC has gravitas. That’s the best I can describe it so far.

Exploring Washington DC: Washington Monument, Natural History, National Gallery, Archives, Memorials

We set out reasonably early. No breakfast at the hotel (well, there was but it was extra) so we decided to see if we could find something outside. Long walk downtown but again, pleasant. Lots of important grand looking buildings — I was pretty much walking with my head looking up and camera at the ready all the time.

The first major attraction we hit was Lafayette Park, with a view of the back of the White House. I hadn’t gotten used to the layout of the attractions yet so I actually didn’t recognise the White House. At the centre of Lafayette Park was a statue of Andrew Jackson, which was one of three identical memorials around the country (the other two are at New Orleans and Nashville).

An interesting sight — there were several protesters outside the park, which didn’t completely surprise me (though they were the only ones I saw the whole time). And there was a group of Korean tourists taking pictures with them. I wasn’t sure if the tourist knew the theme of the protest, but it seemed like the protesters have become a tourist attraction. Only in DC.

I was duly impressed with the Executive Building next to the White House; again the sense of great importance pervailed. A short walk from the Exec Building was the World War 2 Memorial, which unfortunately was closed. Got a good view from behind the barriers, and I could imagine how meaningful it would to walk within it.

From the WW2 memorial we walked round almost to the Tidal Basin and then to the other side of the Washington Monument. The Monument is one of the constant focal points of the city, I found that we returned to it time and time again. Here’s a couple of shots from different angles.

At the Monument we got tickets for the Tourmobile — $35 for 2 days hop-off-hop-on including Arlington tour. Turned out to be a real bargain. We were tired from the walking at that point so we stayed on the tram while it took us to the Jefferson and FDR Memorials, the Lincoln Memorial, over to the Arlington Cemetery and back towards the White House and Mall museums. By that time we were hungry so we got off and traipsed over in the direction of the American History Museum hoping for lunch. But horrors!!! The American History Museum was closed for renovations — and it was one of the highlights of our visit.

Hunger prevailed so we went to the Natural History Museum where I had a pastrami sandwich, half a cookie and half a brownie (we were sharing the dessert). I was hungry so I ate too fast and had a big of indigestion. Seeing the dinosaurs and the Hope Diamond helped. There was also a photo exhibition of Nature’s Best that was simply stunning. We went looking for the book of the exhibition but there was only a magazine article. I would have bought the book without question.

By the time we exited the Natural History Museum it was raining. Undaunted, we donned our hats and waded through the puddles to the National Gallery of Art. What I liked about this museum was the fountain areas at either end; walking through the various galleries and then coming across them was like hitting a calm oasis. The Gallery had the only Leonardo da Vinci in the US, Rodin’s Thinker and many more that I have little knowledge of.

After touring through the inside, we quickly visited the sculpture gardens outside. Very interesting modern sculptures in a nice surrounding.

By then it was almost 5pm and many of the museums were closing. Except the National Archives were still open. It was a long queue to get in, with the security check and crowd control. But we got to see the Magna Carta, the Declaration of Independence, the US Constitution and Bill of Rights. These documents were hundreds of years old and in pretty frail condition. Especially the Declaration, which was almost completely faded. No flash photography was allowed, and I could see why.

We finished at around 7-ish, and took a taxi back to the hotel. We asked them for a recommendation for a restaurant and they directed us to the Lauriol, a very happening Mexican place. I had a couple of beers and the Guadalajara Plate which consisted of one cheese enchilada, ground beef taco and chicken tamale. Good food and hip atmosphere.

Annnnnd the day wasn’t over! Took a taxi down to the Lincoln Memorial and I took lots and lots of pictures with my new tripod. The Lincoln was breathtaking. An interesting tidbit was a security guard told me I couldn’t use my tripod in the area immediately in front of the Lincoln statue but I had to go back towards the pillars — where people entered the area and was a bottleneck. Weird. Plus it was 11pm and the place was hardly crowded. Again, weird. I took a lot of pictures there on different exposures. I like this one best.

The Lincoln Memorial overlooked the Reflecting Pool and the sight of the Washington Monument, with Capitol in the background, was spectacular.

A short walk from the Lincoln Memorial was the Korean and the Vietnam Memorials. Very powerful memorials both, especially the Korean with the larger-than-life soldiers treking through the undergrowth and the images etched into the black marble wall.

Oh, I made a map of our route today. The red line was walking and the blue line was on the TourMobile.

Exploring Washington DC: Holocaust Museum, Smithsonian Castle, Arlington Cemetery, Union Station

Our intention was to leave early, by 8am, to go to the Holocaust Museum to get tickets. Tickets are free but there’s a quota. Of course with the full day yesterday we should have known. By the time I woke up it was 8.45am. We got ready quickly and made our way to the museum by 10am. There was a short line for the tickets, which ended at a cheerful lady asking “how many?” and tearing off tickets. She didn’t ask if we wanted a particular time, but since we got 11.15am it was fine.

With an hour to kill we walked (again! lots of walking) to the Smithsonian Castle for a breather. I had diet coke and a lemon pie. There was just enough time to take a look around the inside of the castle and the gift shop before we needed to head back. The Castle is the face of the Smithsonian — it’s officially known as the Smithsonian Information Center and basically acts as a focal point. It’s the oldest Smithsonian building and the only one in red brick.

Photography wasn’t allowed in the Holocaust Museum. We spent a lot of time inside, mainly because there was so much to see but also people were crowding around the exhibits reading everything. The Holocaust Museum has been described as a “must-see” for any DC visit and I totally agree. The museum managed to strike a perfect delicate balance between factual and emotional. It was enough to let the words, experiences of survivors and pictures tell the story.

From the Holocaust Museum we took the TourMobile to Arlington National Cemetery. Arlington was a powerful place, at once a historical site and an active cemetery. Over 300,000 soldiers, government officials, explorers, persons of importance and their families are honoured there. Usually cemeteries are a little creepy, but this one wasn’t. Yes there were lots of visitors but it was also peaceful. It’s hard to describe exactly.

The tour had 3 stops. First was the Kennedy gravesite where the eternal flame marked the graves of JFK and Mrs Kennedy overlooked by the Custis-Lee Mansion. A short distance was a simple wooden cross marking RFK.

We reached the Tomb of the Unknowns in good time to catch the changing of the guards ceremony. The tomb is guarded by the US Infantry constantly and the changing of the guards ceremony takes place every hour / half hour depending on time of year. The ceremony is formal and immaculate. The guards obviously take immense pride in their task, and it felt like it was our privilege to witness the ceremony.

Next to the Tomb was the Amphitheatre as well as memorials to the crews of the Challenger and Columbia. The Challenger disaster was the “where were you?” moment for my generation and I still remember that moment clearly.

The final stop was the Arlington House, or Custis-Lee Mansion so named because it was originally the house of Mary Custis, wife of General Robert E. Lee. The history of the Arlington Cemetery was closely linked to General Lee, who “defected” to the Confederates during the Civil War so the Unionists started burying their dead in the house’s gardens in order to prevent him from returning. The earliest gravemarkers were there at the mansion. The view from the house was of all the important sights of DC, we could even see a part of the Pentagon.

It was a hot day and we were in the sun for the hottest part of the afternoon. We got back to the main gate around 4-ish and took another TourMobile back into the city. Rode it most of the way, past the memorials, the Mall, museums, Capitol and finally to Union Station. No photologue of DC is complete without shots of the Capitol so here it is.

Dinner was at the Food Court of Union Station, after which we took the Metro to Dupont Circle. Nice little area over there with restaurants and bookstores. We bought a few books, some drinks and walked back to our hotel.

Here’s the route map for day 2.

Exploring Washington DC: National Shrine, Air & Space Museum, American Indian Museum, International Spy Museum

We planned the day well, were off by 7.30am. The main destination in the morning was the National Shrine, full name the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. We took a metro to Brookland CUA station and walked through the Catholic University of America to reach the shrine.

The Basilica is dedicated to the Virgin Mary and there were smaller shrines inside for many incarnations of Mary. We were early and pretty much had the place to ourselves. So many photo opps, the main church was beautiful, and the crypt also.

At the back of the basilica was the peaceful and pretty Mary’s garden.

From the Basilica we took the Metro and stopped off at the Spy Museum to buy tickets for later in the day. Admission was $16 and organised by time. We got the 5pm tour so we had plenty of time to explore.

It was still mid-morning, and it was off to the National Air & Space Museum, the most visited of all the Smithsonian museums. It was not hard to see why, from the moment I entered into the huge bright lobby I was overwhelmed by life-sized planes and rockets. We were conscious of the time so I whizzed through the galleries as efficiently as I could. All the historically important crafts were there, from the Kitty Hawk to the Spirit of St Louis to Amelia Earhart’s Lockheed Vega to Apollo 13 to models of the shuttle to a simulation of the bridge of an aircraft carrier.

Remember the American History Museum was closed? They took a small (150 exhibit) selection and placed them in one of the Air & Space’s galleries. There was a little bit of a queue to get in, but it was worth it to see, among others, Dorothy’s shoes and Abraham Lincoln’s hat.

We finished a little later than our intended schedule, at 1.30pm. Next stop was the American Indian Museum next doors. Now here’s a comment about “next doors” — on the map the museums along the Mall look like they’re close together, but given the size of those buildings walking between them could be 10 minutes.

The American Indian Museum is the newest museum, with a beautifully curved exterior design that strangely reminded me of Easter Island. The interior design was based on a curved central atrium and there was hardly a sharp angle or straight line in place.

Well put together exhibits showed history, culture and costumes.

And so it was almost 5pm. We got to the International Spy Museum with enough time to sit at the spy city café to have a drink and snack. Photography wasn’t allowed in the spy museum, which actually was great, because I could play around with the exhibits. It was an interactive museum, with gadgets to play with, ciphers to decipher and even a mock duct for us to crawl through. Educationally it traced the history of spying from early times to the Cold War and current issues with terrorists. There was even a section dedicated to spies in TV and movies. Lots of videos, interesting exhibits and wonderful theme. Before we came to DC, this was my “gotta see” museum and I wasn’t disappointed. I’m hoping I get to visit again and next time I’d like to participate in the Operation Spy game.

It was still light out when we got back to the hotel. Didn’t really feel like dinner so we snacked on nachos and chocolate while packing. Good trip.
Washington DC to Chicago

Up before 6am and on our way already at 6.30am, so that we could get out of the city as early as possible. We made good progress before stopping for breakfast at around 8.30am, at Cracker Barrel. I think I finally cracked (*groan*) what to order at Cracker Barrel. Usually a meal, be it breakfast or dinner, came with choices of 2 or 3 sides plus biscuits or corn bread. It was always too much for me. And then I looked more carefully at their low carb menu and those items were perfect. I had scrambled eggs and a combination of bacon/ham/sausage, with 2 slices of brown toast. I only ate one toast because I ordered a side of fried apples. It was nice.

Driving was good going; traffic was manageable and I finally started enjoying driving in an unfamiliar surrounding. It was wicked hot and we had the aircon on full blast.

Lucky that we gain one hour with the timezone change, got back to Chicago at around 7-ish. We retold part of our adventure while enjoying homemade pasta.

Pictures — Full sets of pictures on flickr: Texas | Washington DC

Total distance travelled = 3,461miles on the car’s trip meter
Total driving time according to Mapquest = 47 hours 44 minutes (actual is probably 10-20% on top)
No. states visited / passed through = 15

This is the yahoo map, including my drive from New York.