Monumental Ocassion

We are on our third day in this journey and the first two days have been rather successful!  Today we plan to head down to Arlington Cemetery and then walk around Georgetown to do some window shopping and buy the now Food Network famous Georgetown Cupcakes.  Too bad that yesterday their special was pumpkin spice, I would have greatly enjoyed.  Today is a little rainy, but it's all good, we will venture out in the elements!  I hope you enjoy the pictures!


Wednesday:
 We arrived in DC around the lunch hour and took the metro to our hotel in DuPont Circle.  After getting settled, we ventured downtown to the Mall and Holocaust Museum.  It's too bad that we couldn't take more time in the museum, we were just getting to the really interesting content before we had to leave.  We spent some time taking in the National Mall sites and then headed back to DuPont Circle, where we located a small store to purchase a bottle of wine and some brewskis.  We headed back to the room, had a drink while watching a movie on TBS and crashed around 7PM... haha, so classic.  We finally woke up 11 hours later... traveling really takes a lot out of a person.

First trek down to the National Mall

In front of the Smithsonian Castle

Nation's Capital Building in the background...

Washington Monument

Thursday:
We took our time getting ready in the morning for our journey down to the monuments and memorials.  We were able to see a ton of stuff in one day.  We started with the White House and Dwight D. Eisenhower's office building.  On our way from the White House we stumbled upon an American Art Museum and went in.  This was my first time in an art exhibit, and it was massive and beautiful.  Then we headed down to see the WWII memorial, Korean War, Lincoln Memorial, and Vietnam wall.  It was all very sombering and pretty intense stuff.  At least we thought so, there was some chick taking modeling pictures next to the Vietnam Wall, which was quite peculiar to say the least. The monuments and memorials weren't in their most intense form with the reflecting pools full and all the effects, but they were still extremely powerful.  It was my first time seeing the Lincoln Memorial, and I think that was my favorite by far.  It's just so massive, and you can see for miles on top of the stairs.  The reflection pool is undergoing renovation, so we didn't get the full effect, but you can just imagine how powerful Martin Luther King Jr's speech was in that atmosphere.

So tired and delirious at the end of the day...

Backside of the White House - Kitchen Garden

Tip from Franchesca, put your camera behind the fence!

Eisenhower Executive Building!

Obama's party location!

Chilling in Obama's front yard!

White House - Front view

WWII Memorial

Korean War Memorial - "Freedom Isn't Free"

Lincoln Memorial, all about Civil Rights

Lincoln Memorial, on the way to Vietnam Wall

Our shadows in the Vietnam Wall...

Taking a look at the silencing wall...

Star Spangled Banner, inspired the national anthem.

After a long morning of walking and site seeing, we stopped to get a bite at Starbucks near the White House.  I was dying for a "Starbuck" as Paul says, and when Lyssa spotted one, I was saved...haha.  After lunch we ventured back down Constitution Ave to the Smithsonian Museums to check out the American History Museum and the Natural History Museum.  Both were extremely overwhelming, but pretty cool.  I really enjoy the Natural History displays, especially the massive diamonds they have on display on the second floor.  The fossils and replicas are also pretty sweet.  That museum is a little easier on the brain because you don't have to read everything and think so hard. When we were completely drained we walked up to Metro Center and took the Red Line to DuPont Circle.  Our dogs were barking loudly at this time, and calling for mexican food and cheap margaritas.  We ordered two appetizers and a few margaritas to top off a solid day of sight seeing.

Back at the hotel, we were lacking free shampoo and conditioner, so I went down to the front desk to see if we could get some, haha.  I am not one to be skimped on the free conditioner, that stuff is valuable.  Well, while down at the front desk, they told me that there was free wine tasting!  I  grabbed lyssa, we strapped on our shoes and headed downstairs for the last fifteen minutes of free wine and food.  They had fruit, spicy shrimp, buffalo wings, and mussels.  It was delish.  Lyssa was pretty impressed that I ate a chicken wing... but when food is free, I'll usually take one for the team.  The guy serving the wine actually went to school at Marquette, which was pretty wild. After our few minutes, we gulped the last of the free wine and headed upstairs for some TV before crashing.  I booked my flights to Europe (which is now all set to go!) and went to bed... the sleep was much needed after a day full of walking.