We have had the past few days off from our normal schedule of class discussions, site visits and daily blogs (which means from now on, the posts will be a little more candid about my experience here in D.C.). We took time to sleep, shop, eat, drink and of course, see some of the amazing sites this city has to offer!
On Friday night we went to the Washington Monument, the World War II Memorial and the Lincoln Memorial. It was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G and truly made me proud to be an American. I was awed by the smooth stone, size, height, strength, history, beauty and everything else that surrounds these landmarks. The Washington Monument was everything I thought it was going to be. And then ten times cooler – the flags surrounding it and the lights lighting the pillar up…it took my breath away.
The World War II Memorial – who knew?? I had no idea about the pool of water at the center where you can cool your toes while taking in the surrounding granite stones. I quickly found the “Massachusetts” stone and took a picture (in case you were wondering, it is impossible to get the entire word in the shot at night because of the shadows – stupid 13 letter word!) And the Lincoln Memorial, the one I wanted to see more than anything, was so beautiful. Even though I had flashbacks to a movie where Lincoln’s monument actually starts giving verbal advice, I couldn’t help but wish I could have met this man who we know cherish (he has officially made it onto my guest list of people {dead or alive} I want to have dinner with.)
Unfortunately, we were not alone. We visited these monuments at 10 p.m. and hundreds of people were already camping out of the National Mall in preparation for the Glenn Beck rally the following morning…ehhh. I don’t have anything against Glenn Beck or anyone who listens to him or reads his books, but they were just so…annoyingly in the way. We also ventured out the next morning into Georgetown and that proved to be a huge mistake – Metro stops were packed and smelly, no one knew where to go - it was just chaos. Gross, annoying and completely unnecessary from what I watched on TV – but to each their own. I guess.
Additionally, today we spent the day (literally, the entire day) at the Newseum and only finished two of the six floors. This news museum “offers visitors an experience that blends five centuries of news history with up-to-the-second technology and hands-on exhibits” according to their website. Although things started off a little tough with a scavenger hunt – exhibits about 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, Elvis, the Berlin Wall and a 4-D (the 4th D involves the chair you are sitting in to move along with the movie) left me wanting more. Everything was amazingly well-done and thought out – please please please visit if you are ever in the D.C. area.
More sight-seeing during the next couple of days – hopefully heading out to Arlington National Cemetery by the end of the week. Oh and we also hope to get a sugary treat from the acclaimed, people-stand-outside-for-hours-to-get-a-cupcake, Georgetown Cupcake shop since we weren’t able to stand the heat on Saturday. Wish us luck and I will let you know what I think!
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