05/03/24 After the Air and Space, we went to the Native American Museum for lunch and spent some time in the Memorial garden. The poles around the area had neckwear from people who died defending our nation. Neckwear included bandanas, amulets, awards, etc. The nearby pond had 10 ducklings.
05/03/24 After that we walked the mall. There was evidence of an upcoming exhibit of farming and farm equipment. We saw the White House and Marine 1. Then we headed to the train and found the Ford Theater, which is run by the National Park Service. Little Shop of Horrors is currently playing.
05/04/24 Today it rained quite a bit, but we were determined to get out and see the sights. Karen had arranged for us to get a sightseeing boat cruise from Georgetown to Alexandria, VA. We used trains and buses to get to the takeoff point for the boat. Then we took off down the Potomac.
05/04/24 In Alexandria, we found an artist coop at an old torpedo factory. It had a Shakespeare exhibit with his sonnets projected onto cloth and his words read by actors that you could hear only if you stood on a floor balloon. The tiles in the bathroom and the banister on the stairs were all art.
05/04/24 The old town part of Alexandria was full of restaurants and shops and fun places. I’d love to know what these Eucalyptus looking trees are called? As we were waiting for the boat back, I saw a father put a scarf around his daughter’s neck and zip up her coat to stop her shivering.
05/04/24 Back in Georgetown we enjoyed the art, and found the C&O Canal starting point. We will be following this route for a few days when we start pedaling. Then we found a bite to eat. We didn’t know we had chosen a hookah bar until it was too late.
05/05/24 Happy Cinco de Maya! We took a stroll on The Mall today. I’m going to let these memorials speak for themselves. First stop, the Lincoln Memorial.
05/05/24 The Korean War Memorial.
05/05/24 The Martin Luther King Memorial. It is hard for me to choose his best words, because there were so many. They spoke to me with much wisdom for today.
05/05/24 The WW II Memorial
05/05/24 The Vietnam Memorial.
05/05/24 The Women’s Vietnam Memorial representing Faith, Hope and Love.
05/05/24 After The Mall, we took two buses to the National Cathedral, wheree we had the beautiful experience of listening to a concert by the National Cathedral Choir. A little known fact about the National Cathedral is that one of the gargoyles on the exterior is a bust of Darth Vader. True fact!!!
05/05/24 We met Kimmi at the cathedral and went with her to dinner. She explained there had been a flower show there and that all the floral arrangements were left in the church. They represented different countries. Can you find the one from Switzerland?
05/05/24 Kimmi took us by bus to her neighborhood after dinner. While the boys went shopping at Whole Foods, Rhe and Karen went home to meet Kim’s cat, Cinnamon. Then she drove us back to the VRBO. By train it would have been an hour, but by car it was 15 minutes. Thank you, Kim!!!
05/06/24 Today we finally got on the bikes! We found a marvelous trail nearby, named the Rock Creek Trail. It went through a huge park - Rock Creek Park - and ended up on The Mall! What’s a fantastic day! The Rock Creek Trail took us past the National Zoo.
05/06/24 We went past all the places we saw on our boat ride, but closer. And we found a spur to the C&OTrail, which will be our starting off place for the Ride Across America 🇺🇸 on Friday. We passed a beach volleyball court with the Washington Memorial in the background.
05/06/24 We saw wildlife along the way, including Canadian geese and herons. These herons seem whe much larger than those in Washington state. I think they are still Great Blue Herons, but they must get more to eat because they are HUGE!
05/06/24 We pedaled to the Jefferson Memorial until we were stopped by an armed Secret Service Agent. He told Jon and Paul that there was a foreign diplomat in the helicopter and that they just “did these kinds of things now and again.” Not buying it -he was looking for terrorists with bazookas.
05/06/24 We stopped by the Jefferson Memorial, which is also under construction. It is a Monday, and all the school kids are arriving by bus for their end-of-the-school-year-trip to WA DC. So much excitement! Then back into the quiet woods.
05/06/24
05/06/24 After the ride, we drove to REI to get new bike shorts for Rhe, then to Trader Joe’s for dinner supplies. We parked near a dog park with an adjacent structure — was it for dogs or for children? Inquiring minds… Children!!!
05/07/24 Today we have tickets to see the Capitol. First we walked to downtown Takoma to mail a letter and get some stamps. The neighborhood is full of bicycle art and craftsman houses. Love this neighborhood.
05/07/24 Now to the Capitol. We had a reservation for a 2:30 tour. On the way, we saw a statue dedicated to Christopher Columbus. I found the Supreme Court, and justt had to take a selfie. We saw an honor guard leaving, and watched a well-trained dog sniffing guests for something.!
05/07/24 Inside, Paul found a boundary stone laid by surveyors laying out the District of Columbia. we saw a video about the history and the building of the Capitol and its purpose. Then we were assigned to a tour guide who gave us quite complicated hearing devices.
05/07/24 Mostly we looked at art, architecture, and statues. Each State has sent two statues of people from the State deemed to be important. The statues can be either bronze or marble. You should recognize a few of these people.
05/07/24 There were a few federally commissioned statues. I found it sad that most of these were of people of color and women who have not been recognized by the States. MLK, Rosa Parks, and 3 women who were placed in the President’s Hall, surely after someone became embarrassed about the all-male presences in the room.
05/07/24 There was a domed ceiling, lots of paintings, and other things of importance to see, including a tunnel directly to the Library of Congress. And then it was time to go.
