At this rate, I may get through our American road trip by Christmas next year! I’ve been away for a few weeks (yes, again), but have plans to commit to blogging more often in the coming weeks.
I have to admit that going to Washington DC was not high on my agenda for our travels. Happily, it was for my husband, who likes to do things properly! I’m glad I didn’t miss out on the nation’s capital with its huge collection of museums and iconic monuments and buildings.
We started the day with a visit to the Library of Congress, the world’s largest library, containing over 164 million items. It is an awe inspiring place to visit, with amazing scope and architecture. The library also contains a Gutenberg Bible from 1455. This was the first major book printed using mass produced moveable metal type in Europe. Forty nine copies of the Gutenberg Bible have survived and it is considered amongst the most valuable books in the world.
After our visit to the library (and a walk past the Capitol) we traipsed off down what is known as the National Mall, or what is often called “America’s Front Yard”. This is America’s public space where citizens come to protest their government or simply to connect with their nation’s ideals and history. There are many free Smithsonian museums lining the Mall and it would take weeks just to scratch the surface of their amazing exhibits. As we only had one day, we chose to briefly visit the National Museum of Natural History and the National Museum of American History. Our kids love museums and could easily spend days in them, but we had to limit ourselves to only a few key exhibits. The highlights from the Natural History Museum were the giant squid exhibit, as well as the insect zoo on the second floor where they do tarantula feedings. The highlights for me in the American History Museum were seeing Julia Child’s kitchen (I have hopes of one day cooking my way through her cookbooks like in the book and movie entitled Julia and Julia), and hunting for Dorothy’s red shoes from The Wizard of Oz.
The next stop on our romp through America’s iconic buildings was the White House. This is only viewable (unless you arrange a tour in advance), from a distance behind a security barrier. President Trump arrived in the presidential helicopter while we were there. Quite a thrill to see the helicopter flying overhead flanked by several decoy helicopters! The White House Visitor Centre was fascinating, containing many anecdotes from, and photos of past presidents.
By the time we reached the Lincoln Memorial at the opposite end of the Mall we were exhausted! Washington DC is very hot and humid in Summer and we had walked at least five miles in the heat. Before visiting the US, I was unaware how much Americans revere Abraham Lincoln. One of our children (who will remain nameless), had been reprimanded for climbing on a small statue of him at Gettysburg (something which wouldn’t perturb us at all in Australia)! In general, it seems Americans are much more respectful of their presidents than us Aussies, and in particular of Abraham Lincoln due to his decisions which lead to the end of slavery and preserved the US as a united democracy.
Martin Luther King Jr delivered his famous “I have a dream” speech on the steps of the memorial and you can see a small engraving marking the spot.
It was getting late in the day, but we were so close, yet so far from the famous Arlington Cemetery across the Potomac River! Despite having blisters and mild heatstroke we crossed the bridge (some requiring a piggyback) and walked our final mile to this iconic landmark. Once here we were able to visit the Kennedy tombs (marked by an eternal flame) and to see the changing of the guard ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The cemetery contains some of the dead from every war the USA has fought since the Revolution and looks very familiar, having been in many US movies.
This was a BIG day out! It was topped off by the excitement of seeing fireflies at dusk as we walked back to our hotel, for a big sleep, ready to move on to more adventures on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Have you ever had a big day out while sightseeing and thought you couldn’t walk one step more?
