Although it was hot (over 100 deg F on some days) and humid, and I got tired out from all the walking; I am grateful that I had a chance to see our Nation's Capital. It was great to be able to stay at a hotel close to the White House and the National Mall. And, the Metro Transportation is convenient, easy to use, and well-organized. It was just unfortunate that prices went up right before we went there (e.g. $3.10 to $6.00 for the Metrobus 05a from Dulles to downtown DC; and ~$6.50 to $9.00 for a one-day metro rail farecard). As for food, while many of the places were more expensive than average, we did find a good BBQ place (Capital Q Texan BBQ), had noodles in Chinatown, frequented the food court at Union Station, and ate at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival.
We did a tour of the Capitol, and the building is probably one of the most impressive. The architecture of many of the other government buildings, like the White House, Supreme Court, and Library of Congress, were also really neat. One of the surprises we stumbled upon, was the Tower tour in the old Postal Pavilion, where we were able to get a view of the city from on high; and the building also had a food court. We also did get a chance to do a tour of the Kennedy Center, although we didn't get to catch a performance there (Mary Poppins was playing, and there were daily free performances on the Millennium Stage). While on the tour, though, we did get to hear a jazz ensemble warming up for their evening concert.
The Smithsonian museums were great, and it was especially nice that admission was free. We were able to go through most of them, though, the Air and Space museum the only one in the detail we would have liked. We visited the Castle, saw the Sackler Gallery, was impressed with the Peacock room at the Freer Gallery, was baffled by the contemporary art at the Hirshhorn Museum, liked the exhibits at the Natural History Museum, thought that the American History Museum could've been more impressive, liked the Presidential gallery at the American Art Museum Portrait Gallery, really liked the variety and design of the American Indian Museum, and enjoyed the Postal Museum. The National Gallery of Art also has an impressive collection from many different time periods, of which the Renaissance is probably my favorite. While we also really liked the Smithsonian gardens, the most beautiful one was the U.S. Botanic Gardens. We weren't able to find our way to the footpath from the Metro station, but, Theodore Roosevelt Island sounds like it would've been a nice place to hike through also. When we visited the National Zoo, it was record high temperatures, and so we unfortunately didn't get to see a lot of the animals out and about.
We, of course, went to many of the memorials and monuments: Washington Monument, WWII Memorial, DC War Memorial, Korean War Veterans Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, FDR Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Marine Corps War Memorial, and the 9-11 Memorial at the Pentagon. The Marine Corps Iwo Jima Memorial was really well-made, and it was interesting to have a real flag hanging atop the bronze statue and flagpole. The FDR Memorial covered a lot of area and told a story of his administration during the depression; and it was really beautiful with it's many fountains. At Arlington, we were able to see the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknowns, JFK gravesite, Robert E Lee Memorial/Arlington House, Tomb of L'enfant (who designed the city layout), and a few of the other memorials.
A couple of times, we also did happen to hear some live Christian music from different groups that looked like they were doing outreach, one at the National Mall and the other at a park between the Capitol and Union Station. There were many places where we saw references to God and also to the religious history of our country (e.g. quotes on the wall at the Jefferson Memorial, room at the Kennedy Center with Bible verse and depictions of the history of Israel, crosses at Arlington, many church buildings, artwork depicting the Biblical stories, etc). Overall, it was a full trip; and a good experience.
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