August 19th, day one: We flew out of LAX at 7:35am. For any of you that have ever flown out of LAX, it is a MADHOUSE at any hour. We were up this morning at about 3:00am to be ready to leave the house by about 4:30am. This may seem really early, but traffic is also something else to expect in LA at any hour. We also had to leave early to get to the parking lot and allow enough time for the shuttle to get us to the airport. Needless to say we made it on the flight. We got to DC about 5:30pm that night and were exhausted. We checked into our room, got some dinner and went to bed. The adventures were starting bright and early the next morning.
We had a pretty sweet room. This was at the Country Inn and Suites in Virginia. I ALWAYS book on Priceline and manage to get pretty nice rooms for a fraction of the price.
Nate cooking dinner the first night. We were on a tight budget, so most of our meals were store bought and cooked in the hotel room, and lunches were sandwiches that we made ourselves. It saves a TON of money.
The "suite" part of the room. A little couch that we never sat on.
August 20th, day two: For those of you that may not know me very well, I am a planner. I had our detailed itinerary worked out before we even left. I like having a schedule, and I think it is the most efficient way to ensure that you get to see everything that you want to see. Day one, my main goal was to get to the Washington Monument to get tickets to go up to the top. I think everything in DC is free (well, on Capitol Mall) as long as you get there first. We were up early. Around 6am. We took the metro everywhere, which was another aspect of my planning. The upside: we got tickets. After this, we made the trek from the Washington Monument to Lincoln Memorial. This was a favorite of Nate's. He said that it was a spiritual experience. (I'm probably getting that wrong...so maybe he'll log in and clarify/update this) We walked through some of the monuments on our way back to the Capitol. The common ones: Vietnam Memorial, Korean War Memorial, World War II Memorial. Next, the Capitol Building for our tour. Come to find out, they are VERY strict with food in the Capitol. Some security guard claimed they have problems with rats. Well, this just didn't work with our brown bag lunch program. We got tip from yet another security guard that we could go to our congressman's office and they would hold our bag while we made the tour. It's an election year...they'll do anything. So we found the office of A congressman that happened to be Republican. It turns out he wasn't our representative, but they held the bag anyway. We toured the Capitol, and saw all the stuff Dan Brown mentions in his book The Lost Symbol. His books may be entirely fiction, but he does his research on the settings. After this tour, we walked back down Capitol Mall to the Washington Monument for our 7:30pm trip to the top. This was a highlight of mine. The views are incredible, and we saw a pretty amazing sunset. Plus, inside the elevator shaft there are a number of plaques that states contributed to the monument as a tribute to our Nation's first President. New York, though, was a little confused. I'll post the picture below.
Washington Monument at sunset. I think Nate was more interested in the sun set than me in the picture.
The classic pose with the top of Washington Monument. I know it looks like it is growing out of Nate's head...but I liked my hair in this picture, so it's included. This was in the morning right after we got our tickets.
The text to the Gettysburg Address. It is on the wall in the Lincoln Memorial.
Nate and Honest Abe. The statute is HUGE!!
A very small portion of the Vietnam Memorial. It's very sobering to see, that's for sure.
One of many duck pictures. These guys hang out all day in the pool between the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial. I think Nate could have watched them all day!
And geese...in the same pond.
Apotheosis of Washington. This is what is painted inside the dome to the Capitol Building.
Each state has donated two statues that are placed somewhere inside the Capitol. This is one of Utah's (obviously) It's Brigham Young for my non-LDS readers.
Another classic, "we're on vacation and take pictures of ourselves" pose. On the tour of the Capitol.
Fun fact: the POW MIA flag is an official flag for the US, meaning government buildings will display it. I thought that was meaningful. Since finding this out and paying attention, I've noticed that the LA City Hall also has a POW MIA flag on display.
Us, outside the Capitol. There was no one around when we asked someone to take our picture, then this retarded couple had to come and sit right in the middle of it. This may make an appearance on our Christmas card.
Full Washington Monument.
Us, waiting for our appointed time to go to the top.
August 21st, day three: Another day spent in the Capitol. We went to the National Zoo, a handful of Smithsonian Museums, Ford Theater, and ate lunch at Hard Rock Cafe. It may not sound like a lot, but to see more than one Smithsonian in a day is impressive. Those museums are GIGANTIC! The only disappointing fact: there was NOTHING in Air and Space about the Tuskegee Airmen. What a tragic oversight! I'm not sure what Nate's highlight was, but mine was definitely Ford Theater. It looks exactly the same as it did the night that Lincoln was shot and the interpretive presentation about the tragedy was quite good. I felt like I understood a lot more about the who, what, where, when and why. The zoo was pretty cool too. It was free, so that's a huge bonus. I'll just let the pictures tell the rest...
The Natural History Museum
Panda! My favorite at the zoo
Meerkat, and despite what the show says, I didn't see any of these guys fall asleep standing up.
Momma and baby gorilla. They were pretty interesting to watch. There was a dad too, but baby always stayed right by mom.
Poor guy...cleaning up tortoise poop. Nate was impressed with this one, the tortoise that is. He had never seen anything in that species quite that big.
Really long escalator to get out of the Metro station at the Zoo stop.
Us at Ford Theater.
Presidential suite set up just the same as the night Lincoln was shot. The yellow door on the right is the door John Wilkes Booth used to get into the box, shot Lincoln, then escaped by jumping from the balcony.
Outside Ford Theater. Obviously.
August 22, day four: Today we drove from Washington D.C. to Gettysburg. I had been here once before, but it was even more amazing with Nate. We bought the audio car tour. You play a CD and it tells you about the battle as you drive from spot to spot. The battle grounds are pretty big, or at least they seemed that way. My favorite spot, hands down, was the marker of the Battle at Little Round Top. This was a turning point in the Civil War. The Union Army successfully held off the attacking Confederates with bayonets (they ran out of ammunition) Had the Confederates triumphed in this situation, the left flank of the Union line would have crumbled and most likely completely changed the outcome of the Civil War. It was a very sobering time to be on such ground. So many Americans sacrificed everything they had for what they believed to be right. It is a quality that is missing from many citizens today. Here are the pictures from the day:
Pennsylvania Monument. One of the largest on the grounds.
I don't remember the name of this monument, but that is a dog laying on the bottom. The story goes that she was like a mascot/protector for a particular unit (of course I don't remember which one) After a horrible day of fighting, many of her comrades were dead or dying and she stuck by their side. Somehow he survived the war, but died shortly after. I wish I remembered the details better than I do...it made me cry when I heard it the first time, that's for sure.
I think this was a monument for South Carolina. I can't be completely sure, but I do know that it was a Confederate state. Maybe this is the Robert E. Lee statue...
Our highlight. It was hallowed ground.
Monument to the 20th Maine. If you're not familiar with the story watch Gettysburg. Jeff Daniels does a phenomenal job portraying Col. Joshua Chamberlain.
Same monument, better shot.
This was on the battle grounds....but not related to the war. I just thought it was amazing that Nate was able to get SO close to a hawk. He's a good picture taker too!
Crazy bug on our windshield (I'm on the inside of the car, for the record)
The black spot is a cannon ball hole from the battle. The house still stands today. Pretty amazing.
August 23rd, day five: Today we were in the historic city of Brotherly Love...yep...Philadelphia. We only planned on one day here, so we definitely didn't see as much as we would have liked. We did get tickets to Independence Hall (free tour), so we were able to see where the signing of the Declaration of Independence took place. I think I forgot to mention this above, but we went to the National Archives Museum days before and saw the actual Declaration, so this made it complete. We saw the Liberty Bell, and the house where the Declaration was drafted. We ate cheese steak, and walked a ton. Here are the picture highlights:
Independence Hall
Nate in the signing room.
Upstairs in Independence Hall. I think this is where they held banquets and such.
Stairway to the tower where the Liberty Bell used to hang.
The famous Bell.
August 24th, day six: Today we headed back to DC to see Arlington National Cemetery and the rest of the Smithsonian's that we missed the first time around. Nate and I both really enjoyed the cemetery. It's another one of those sobering experiences. We saw the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, JFK's eternal flame, and the Robert E. Lee House. Given that we were just at Gettysburg, this was a particularly interesting tour.
I have more pictures, but for some reason the blog is being stupid and won't let me upload them. I really hate technology sometimes.
August 25th, day seven: Today we visited Shenandoah National Park. I don't think that there are words to properly describe how beautiful and green the park is. We met with a ranger and decided on a 8 mile hike called Devil's Staircase. It was interesting for a number of reasons. First, we didn't know it, but there was a cemetery on the trail. It actually kind of freaked me out. The other fact we found out from the ranger is that there are 2-3 black bears for every square mile of park. That's a LOT...but he also reassured us that there haven't been any maulings or such reported since colonial days. Well, that's all fine and good to know...but easy to forget when you see a black bear on the trail...which we did! At this point, I would have rather been back at the cemetery. What we saw was only a cub, and it crossed the trail about 50 feet in front of us. But, where there is a cub, there is a mother. We stood frozen for a while not knowing really what to do. Well, we knew what not to do. Don't ever get between a mother and her cub. We waited and watched and didn't see the mother cross, so we assumed she went before. We took it slow and made sure to make lots of noise so we didn't accidentally startle the bears. Needless to say, I was in a hurry to finish the hike and get the heck out. While it's still a very beautiful place, I don't like bears, especially that close. The other thing to know about the east coast is that it can rain at the drop of a hat, and it did. Towards the end of the hike, it started pouring and we had to put on our rain jackets. Thank goodness I have a husband that is ALWAYS prepared. We have pictures of all of this, of course (well, not the bear) but again...blogger is retarded and won't upload them. Maybe someday I'll be able to edit this and include them.
August 26th, day eight. Travel day back to California, or so we thought. We got stuck in the plane on the tarmac for at least an hour...which made us miss our connection in Charlotte. To top things off, it wasn't a mechanical issue. We were waiting on a new route due to bad weather. The airline does nothing to compensate. They will book you on another flight, but we had to pay out of pocket for a hotel. We were on a budget to begin with, this was definitely a wrench in the works. That said, we did eventually make it home and had a great vacation! Wonderful memories were made and we just had a ton of fun together (as we usually do) Until our next adventure...
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