Washington, D.C. - we have descended upon you!We enjoyed a short eyeball to eyeball with Lauri, Michael, Gaby, Zoie, and Lindsay Reamer, and then we were off to the RV park. We checked into Cherry Hill. It's the closest park to D.C. and they make it very easy to get into the capitol. The local bus line stops in the park and delivers guests to the subway for just 60 cents. We got the benefit of being old once again as we were able to purchase subway passes right at the park at a huge discount.
The National Mall is a mind boggler. There's so much to see and do!!! We began with a stroll past Ford's Theatre (think Lincoln) and then we headed to the Mall. Ed wanted to stop in Air and Space. We set a meeting time, and I headed for the National Gallery.
Ed told me this is the first commercial space plane. It's hanging right next to Lindbergh's 1927 Atlantic crossing Ryan plane.
I took the abbreviated tour of the "must sees" and covered most of the 1st floor. This portrait, Ginevra de'Benci, (c.1474) by Leonardo da Vinci, touched me to the core. You can almost read her mind...
We went on to the Museum of the American Indian. The goal here is to let people know who the Native Americans are. Our New Mexico home has given us much more than this exhibition could, but we were struck by the architecture of the building. It's quite beautiful...and unusual.
This red building is known as the Castle. It's the old Smithsonian when it was all housed in one building. Today it's the Visitor's Center and all around interesting building.
We had to go to the Natural History Museum so I could visit...
...the Hope Diamond. It's there in all its 45.52 carats of glory, out of its setting so I could get an even better look at it. The gems and minerals are breathtaking. There are lots of wonderful exhibits in this building.
One day we had official "Monument Day." We began at that obelisk to George. It's much bigger in person than it looks on tv...and more impressive. (That might be because of all the rules about what you can and cannot do around it.) We walked from there down to the Lincoln Memorial stopping at all the monuments along the way. 
Now this monument is actually quite small and not much visited. It's a memorial to the District of Columbia dead in all the major wars. 
Viet Nam. It's sobering to see all those names... I was touched by this man doing a rubbing on one of the special papers provided. It took him quite awhile. I could feel his pain.
The Korean War:
Old Abe. It has even more meaning for us since we visited Daniel Chester French's studio.
We were both surprised to find the WWII monument. It was dedicated in 2004 under the leadership of George W. Bush. It's HUGE...and it's beautiful.
Ed took this photo in the very worthwhile transportation wing of the American History Museum. It wasn't one of our favorite museums though I did enjoy the Julia Childs kitchen. They were playing old videos of her shows. She said that when you make a mistake in the kitchen - never admit it!! I'm going to remember that.
The Holocaust Museum is just off the Mall. We can't say we enjoyed it, but we can say we received the lessons, got the messages, and were very proud of our country for teaching this so eloquently. The building is impressive and representative of the story it tells.
The Hall of Remembrance is a quiet place for comtemplation. We both photographed this message. It resonateed with each of us.
The subway took us to Arlington National Cemetary. We hopped on the tram and made stops at the Kennedy gravesites...
...the Tomb of the Unknown where we observed the changing of the guard...
and the Lee Mansion. (Sorry no photo.)We just keep meeting interesting people on this trip!!! We ran into George and Martha and their grandkids on the grounds at Mt. Vernon.
What a beautiful place. The tour takes you through the entire house and then we were able to explore the grounds and pay our respects at the gravesite. I learned so much about George Washington on this day. He was one remarkable man. 
Ed took a day trip to Antietum on his own. He also made a stop in Harper's Ferry. This is a shot of the battlefield from the Visitor's Center. This battle was the bloodiest one day battle of the entire Civil War. Over 15,000 on both sides were lost.
Harpers Ferry is deeply rooted in U.S. history. John Brown attempted to incite slaves into rebellion. This small fire station is where Brown was captured by Lee and his marines. Brown was tried and convicted of sedition and eventually hanged. This was the prelude to the Civil War.
Harpers Ferry was actually in Virginia. This part of the state became West Virginia in 1863.
What a beautiful place. The tour takes you through the entire house and then we were able to explore the grounds and pay our respects at the gravesite. I learned so much about George Washington on this day. He was one remarkable man. 
Ed took a day trip to Antietum on his own. He also made a stop in Harper's Ferry. This is a shot of the battlefield from the Visitor's Center. This battle was the bloodiest one day battle of the entire Civil War. Over 15,000 on both sides were lost.
Harpers Ferry is deeply rooted in U.S. history. John Brown attempted to incite slaves into rebellion. This small fire station is where Brown was captured by Lee and his marines. Brown was tried and convicted of sedition and eventually hanged. This was the prelude to the Civil War. 
Harpers Ferry was actually in Virginia. This part of the state became West Virginia in 1863.We are off to Williamsburg.
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