Been to D.C.?
By Wink
Do you love your country? (I bet you said yes.)
Is your country America? Yes?
Then find a way to get to Washington D.C.. It turns out that this is the capital of the good old U. S. of A. (all 52 states). What a well-kept secret!
After a couple of visits I can tell you……
The Smithsonian Institute, a collection of buildings that house vast quantities of Americana, is really cool. The art (which includes much non-American stuff, like Van Gogh), technology (Spirit of St Louis and space modules), the Hall of Documents (Magna Carta, Declaration of Independence, the Constitution) and other historical stuff (like Lincoln’s hat) are all first class, and these exhibits are free!
The Spy Museum in downtown D.C. is not part of the Smithsonian, so there is a cost, but it is worth it, especially if you are geeky and interested in the underside of history. (One of my favorite parts: During the cold war the U.S. built a tunnel from West Berlin under East Berlin so we could listen in on, and record, classified East German conversions. Because East Germany also had spies, they KNEW we were building the tunnel, but didn’t let on. In fact, they didn’t tell their own agencies they were being recorded because they didn’t want to risk tipping off who their own spy was……cool). The Spy Museum has a fun gift shop too.
Gads, D.C. has so many memorials….Korea, Vietnam, WWII, the Lincoln Memorial, the Washington Monument. There are two more obvious choices, The Holocaust Museum and the White House. On and on… this town is loaded with things to see…
Do you ever reference the Founding Fathers “intentions” to justify some political argument? Then please meditate on the words inscribed in the Thomas Jefferson Memorial. Above the 19-foot statue and just below the dome are his words: “I have sworn upon the altar of God eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man.” The sentence is taken from a September 23, 1800, letter by Jefferson where he defends the constitutional REFUSAL to recognize a state religion. Meditate….meditate….
And you are totally obligated, at least one time in your life, to visit Arlington Cemetery. No excuses. Deceased American veterans are buried all over this country and, indeed, all over the world, but nothing quite puts it all into perspective like a visit to Arlington. And while there, DO NOT MISS the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier….. very moving.
Last tip: We did not stay in D.C. We stayed in Maryland and took the train in every day. From the train station you can walk (or take a trolley) everywhere you need to go.
Note, We took the above photo in D.C., from the WWII Memorial back toward the Washington Monument.
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