Dick and Barbs Travels: Maryland, Washington D.C.

Nov. 4

Rain all day today. We left Pennsylvania and are camped at College Park Maryland. The campground is really nice. It is close to Washington D.C. and even sells transit tickets and attraction tickets in DC.

Nov. 5

Today we are going into Washington D.C. We ride the bus right from the campground to the metro station and get on a commuter train into the city. It's a short ride into Washington and we get there by 9:30 in the morning. The first landmark we see from the train is the Washington Monument which can be seen from all over Washington. We get off the train in Union Station and get on the Tourmobile sightseeing bus for our trip around Washington. We can get off and back on these buses all day. We get off at the Washington Monument to get tickets to the top. They are already sold out for the day and we can't even get on for the next day. They said to be here by 8:30 in the morning to get tickets. That won't happen so we will not go to the top of the Washington Monument. Back on the bus we go to Arlington National Cemetery. The tour bus took us past JFK's grave site and to the Tomb of the Unknowns. We got off the see the changing of the guards which happens at the top of each hour. Everyone gathered on the steps and in the area observed silence. Several school groups came into the area and there was silence from them also. Everyone showed respect for the fallen servicemen. It was a very moving sight to see. The Tomb is guarded 24/7, 365 days. The guard serve about 2 years and are on duty for 24 hours with six solders rotating the watch. They walk 21 steps each direction. Our next stop was the Lincoln Memorial and again people were not talking and very respectful. We got off the bus again at the White House visitors center. We even had a security check here. They had a movie on the White House and lots of displays of furniture and objects from the White House. This is as close as you can get to the White House since 9/11. You can apply for a pass through your congress man but we didn't know when we would be in DC. We did get a glimpse of the White House from the bus. We ended the day at the Capital Building. We were close to Union Station so walked there. We were going to eat at the station but it was a little early for dinner so we got on the train back to the campground.

Washington Monument

Changing of the Guard at Tomb of Unknowns

Lincoln Memorial

White House

Capital

Nov. 6

We left the motor home for the bus and remembered it was Saturday. The buses run less frequent on weekends so we drove ourselves to the train station. We have trouble sometimes knowing and remembering what day it is. Everything just runs together. We got into Washington before the museums opened at 10. We started our day at the National Archives where we saw the Declaration of Independence, Constitution and Bill of Rights. Taking pictures in the building was not allowed. The next stop was the Museum of Natural History. Here we say the Hope Diamond. There were displays of taxidermy animals from around the world, Dinosaurs, Sea Life and Rocks and Minerals. Too numerous to see it all. We walked across the grassy National Mall to the buildings on the other side. We went to the Museum of the American Indian. We decided to get some lunch there. The food was a Native inspired menu that represents five regions of the Western Hemisphere. The food was good but very expensive. After lunch we looked at the displays in this building. I liked the bead work on everything from shirts, moccasins and papoose boards. Next we went the the National Air and Space Museum. Here we saw every form of flight from the Wright Brothers to space travel. I liked the moon rocks because I remember that first moon walk. The Smithsonian Museums are wonderful places to visit but you need more than one day to see them. Definitaly Happy Travels, Barb