Adventures in DC - Day 6

Again, for those of you just joining us, the "Adventures in DC" portion of this travel blog was originally published as an email to friends upon my return from Washington, D. C., just a couple of weeks before 9/11. We continue with...

Day 6

Friday, miracle or miracles, Harry only had to work in the morning! After a business lunch (more crab cakes for me, broiled this time…yum), we took advantage of his “time off” to go to the home of our first President, Mt. Vernon. No wonder George Washington was so reluctant to be president, with such a lovely, peaceful place to repair to. The colors he chose were absolutely atrocious, though, especially that Kelly Green dining room. What was the man thinking? Well, perhaps those were the “in” colors back then, to give him the benefit of the doubt. After all, he deserves some respect.  (And here I'm feeling especially charitable, inasmuch as I clearly remember when the "in" colors were avocado green and burnt orange. Together.)

Lest we forget, there were slaves at Mt. Vernon. While the slave quarters there were probably better than a lot of slave quarters, they were slave quarters, nonetheless. Our modern sensibilities make us wonder why otherwise decent people would have thought it was okay to own other people as property and control every aspect of their lives, buying and selling them, tearing them away from their families, submitting them to indignities and untold subjugation. One just can't wrap one's head around it, and then one realizes that there are people right here in this country today who "own" other people. Human trafficking is, unfortunately, alive and well all over the world. 

It seemed odd to see the crypt where the Washingtons are entombed, sort of out of the way and gathering dust. Dust to dust. It was just so...ordinary. Except, of course, that few of us today have the luxury of being buried on our own land (unless you count a plot at the cemetery as your own land).

There’s no back door at Mt. Vernon, by the way. You have the West Front, overlooking the lawn and the main entrance, and then you have the East Front, where one sits on the veranda and watches the boats go by on the river. Completely wonderful and relaxing. I hated to leave there, but it was closing time. We drove through Alexandria on the way back. Once again, totally charming and certainly worthy of much more than the quick look-see we were able to give it. 

We had a business dinner that night at yet another wonderful seafood place. Raw tuna appetizer, melt-in-your-mouth scallops. Why, my mouth is watering at the very thought. Seriously.

My dinner partner was a very lovely lady, Sharon, from Baltimore. But she had never heard of Wallis Warfield Simpson, the Duchess of Windsor, who was from Baltimore. Isn’t that odd? I was kind of taken aback by that. I would have thought that the duchess's fame would have died harder. 

Sharon made an observation that I thought was interesting. She said that, to her ear, people from Baltimore have a very uneducated-sounding accent. I didn’t think so at all. I thought it was very charming, and I told her so. 

Sharon’s daughter was off on a missions trip to Costa Rica with Teen Mania, an organization out of Texas. Coincidentally, one of the young people from our church was also on a Teen Mania missions trip, to South Africa. We had lots and lots to talk about, and I was disappointed when the evening came to an end.

Next up:  The place that inspired "The Star-Spangled Banner."

Adventures in DC - Day 5

Originally published as an email to friends just a couple of weeks before 9/11, we continue with Day 5 of my adventure in Washington, D. C.

Thursday, the skies were threatening; but, rain had been promised on Wednesday with no result, so I decided to leave my umbrella behind on my trips to the Washington National Cathedral and the National Zoo. Who wants to haul that old thing around unless it’s absolutely necessary? You can see this coming, can't you?

After a trip combining the Metro and the bus, I arrived at the Cathedral (so big, so beautiful, just like in Europe…possibly nicer, because it’s ours) just in time for noon service, which I enjoyed very much, having missed church on Sunday due to travel. 

So, it started raining. The temperature dropped 20 degrees (I was wearing my coolest summer dress and sandals, because I had been so hot the day before. I’m not a very smart traveler, I guess). The downturn in the weather didn't deter me from exploring the gardens and grounds, but I decided to bag the zoo. I figured the animals would be hiding anyway, what with the lightning and thunder and all. Normally, I enjoy a good thunderstorm. Somehow, though, it's just not the same when you're actually out in it, getting drenched to the bone, shivering from the cold, and hoping to not be struck by lightning.

There's a little church next to the National Cathedral, St. Alban's. It's a great place to enjoy a quiet moment out of the rain. As grand...majestic...soaring...as the National Cathedral is, St. Alban's is cozy and intimate and welcoming. I recommend a stop there, as well.

The bus ride to the Mall area was rather longer than I expected. It gave me a chance to get somewhat dryer and warmer, which I appreciated.

It seemed like just the perfect afternoon for the Air & Space Museum, which I had hoped to save for Harry. It’s the kind of thing he would have enjoyed, but he just had to work and work with no time off, the poor man. The Wright Brothers plane, the Kitty Hawk, rockets, spacecraft, early commercial passenger planes, lots and lots of cool stuff. 

As I still had a little time before closing, I dashed (okay, dashed was perhaps a slight exaggeration at this late stage of hoofing it for days on end) over to the Natural History Museum for another look at those gemstones… They aren't mesmerizing like the Crown Jewels in the Tower of London, but only because of the difference in the display. There is a theme here, I think. We need to improve the way we display our treasures. Jewelry should not be displayed in rows like artifacts. Come to think of it, neither should artifacts.

Dinner that night was crab cakes (grilled) for me, thank you very much. Mmmm! Those are so good!

Next up:  Harry gets to join me for some fun!

Adventures in DC - Day 4

Originally published as an email to friends upon my return from Washington, D. C., just a few weeks before 9/11, we continue with...

Day 4 - Wednesday

It was oppressively hot and humid. My face was purple as I walked hither and yon, to and from, back and forth…I started at Ford’s Theater, which was so interesting. It was also cool in there, which added greatly to its charm. Then, I went to the Library of Congress. Wow. The Bible of Mains. A Guttenberg Bible. The rough draft of the Declaration of Independence! The ACTUAL ROUGH DRAFT!!! The smell of leather and old books and marble. I was definitely, positively, absolutely in heaven! In fact, I was grateful that I hadn’t gone there first, as it was the piece de resistance for me. Okay, I love books, so what? 

Downstairs, there was the Gershwins’ piano! And a Bob Hope exhibit that included all 68,000 pages of his jokes, all categorized, computerized, and accessible at the touch of a button. There were video screens in every corner where bits of his movies from various stages of his career could be viewed. His Oscar was there. It was completely captivating. Americana at its best, all right there in one building. 

And what a building! The most gorgeous floors, walls, ceilings, art. One of the most beautiful public buildings I’ve ever seen. With original books and documents too priceless to imagine. If you go to our nation’s capital, please don’t leave without going to the Library of Congress. It’s amazing. And guess what? 

I heard some people talking about a crazy woman at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier who had almost been arrested when it was thought she planned mayhem. Can you imagine such a thing? What an airhead! I introduced myself and filled in all the details.

From there, I rushed over to our representative’s (George Miller) office to see if they maybe, by some miracle, happened to have White House tour tickets available. They laughed at me, which I found rather uncharitable; however, it seems they are only allowed 10 tickets per week, and you have to get them months and months ahead of time if you plan to be in Washington during the summer season. Well, I would have, if this trip had been “planned” months and months ahead of time! Anyway, they suggested that I come back during the winter, when getting tickets won’t be such a problem. Nice young people, but obviously they don’t understand that, for some of us, a trip to Washington (even unplanned) only happens once every 51 years.

I took the Metro to Georgetown to check it out. Another completely charming place. Very old world construction, lots of boutiques and small restaurants, and a Ben & Jerry’s ice cream parlor. What could I do? What could be more enjoyable than a nice, cold, ice cream on a hot, humid day? Ahhhhh. Hot fudge. Totally decadent. So what? I was on vacation!

That night, Harry actually got off work in time for us to eat at a real restaurant, Sam & Harry’s. The food was so good, the wine was so wonderful, the company of my husband was so charming, the service was so attentive. It was perfect. And made even more so because it was free! We had a gift certificate…yay!

Next:  The weather's the weather.

Adventures in DC - Day 3

As previously mentioned, the following excerpt was originally published as an email to friends shortly before 9/11. We now continue the Adventure in Washington, D. C., with...

Day 3

Tuesday, Julio dutifully deposited me at the Metro station again, and off I went to the Smithsonian art galleries (the ones surrounding the Smithsonian building). Then, it was the Natural History Museum (wow…all those gemstones…the Hope Diamond…Marie Antoinette's huge diamond earrings…blue diamonds…yellow diamonds…red diamonds…sigh). Oh, yes, and dinosaurs and stuff like that. Continuing my walking blitz of the museums, I then went to the Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art. You know, I was a bit disappointed there; not in the paintings or sculptures mind you (Who could be disappointed in such great art?), but in the way they were displayed absolutely plainly on the walls without any obvious regard for placement or relative importance of individual pieces. The vastness of the collection was mind boggling. I’ve just never seen an entire roomful of Rembrandts before, you know? Or Van Dykes either, for that matter. Actually, I do wish I could have spent more time there enjoying the individual pieces. But it was getting late, and I hadn’t been to the Capitol yet…

So, I walked to the Capitol and arrived just in time for the last self-guided tour group (whew!). What a beautiful place, and on such a grand scale. And a simply stellar view up the Mall to the Washington Memorial and beyond. But would it be terribly chauvinistic of me to admit that I prefer our California State Capitol, though? Maybe the thing that sent me over the top here is that I was able to sit in on a session of the House. Granted, it wasn’t a particularly interesting or important piece of legislation (An additional $20,000,000 was needed to help fight TB worldwide). There were lots of people in the gallery observing, but there were maybe 20 people on the floor, including all the pages, the speaker, some legislators reading the newspaper, a group of others loudly discussing something or other. None of that would have been disturbing, except that there was a very earnest woman delivering a speech to absolutely no one except the person who was sponsoring it! That’s right, there was ONE PERSON (besides those in the gallery) paying the slightest bit of attention to what she was saying. Frankly, folks, it was late, I was tired and hot (the temperature and humidity both having risen considerably since Sunday), and this display disappointed me. I was expecting more from our elected officials. Am I wrong?

Possibly, it wasn’t the best time for me to go to Arlington, but I decided to try to see if I could make it for the last changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at 7 p.m. So, I hopped on the Metro (I was getting pretty good at that by this time!) and went over there, arriving at about 6:40. That’s when I found out it was a 20-minute walk over to where I wanted to be, and I also wanted to see JFK’s tomb. So, I needed to get truckin’, which I did, and I actually made it just in the nick of time, unfortunately. I apparently didn’t hear something I should have heard or something…you’ll see what I mean in a bit. 

Let me preface the following by saying:  Please believe me when I tell you that I have the highest regard for this site and for the sacrifice and heartache it represents. I would never in my worst nightmare knowingly do anything to dishonor it, minimize it, or otherwise bring offense.

Anyway, I watched the ceremony, which was very formal and stiff and all that, appropriately so. As I said earlier, it was hot. It was muggy. And I had been at a dead run for about 9 hours. The cemetery was closing, so I wanted to get a quick picture of the Tomb and, hopefully, the guard (a terribly serious young guy…just how serious, I didn’t yet know!), so I walked down to the bottom step to get a good shot and took my picture of the Tomb. There was a brass railing there, but it was open to the steps and there was nothing indicating a zero-tolerance-for-tourists-zone (no sign, no chain, etc.). The “exit” (I thought) was to my left. All of those steps were behind me. In my state of  exhaustion, I couldn’t fathom climbing back up there only to go back down on the other side when I could simply take one more step down, head left, and get out. Know what I mean? So, I took one step down and headed left. 

That’s when I heard CLICK, “HALT!” Oh, my! I halted! I turned around and meekly asked if he meant me. I stared in terror down the barrel of the rifle he was pointing at me. And then he barked at me. That nice young man BARKED at me, “REMAIN BEHIND THE RAIL AT ALL TIMES!” But the rail was right there, directly behind me. That wasn't close enough? He couldn’t have been nicer? He couldn’t have seen that I was a dumb tourist, a civilian, an old woman with a camera who had been walking ALL DAY AND WAS HOT AND EXHAUSTED AND NOT THINKING CLEARLY? Was it really necessary for him to point a rifle at me and yell at me? If I hadn’t been so scared and humiliated, I might have been angry. But I did as I was told, almost bursting into tears. I mean, he was just doing his job, but did he have to do it so well? What would he have done if I didn’t realize he was talking to me? Or if I had been deaf? Or even more stupid than I clearly was? I guess I would have been on the evening news, and Harry would have worried and wondered why I never came back that day. He doesn't watch the news  [In retrospect, given what happened just a few weeks later, I would like to thank the young man for being serious about his assignment. Who knew?]

After that, I did what any red-blooded American woman would do. I took the Metro to the Pentagon, went to the mall, found a nice restaurant, and had a drink before dinner! 

Juan, who drives the hotel shuttle at night, was relieved that I returned in time for him to pick me up at the Metro station just 10 minutes before the shuttle goes to sleep for the night. It was 10:50 p.m. What a day!

I should probably mention that I met lots of nice people (mostly other tourists) on the Metro. That particular night, it was a woman lawyer on her way home from work. She evidently puts in lots of late hours, and she told me about some restaurants and out-of-the-way sort of stuff that locals do. She even gave me her phone number in case I had any questions or wanted to get together for a drink in Georgetown or whatever. Wasn’t that friendly? I was pleasantly surprised at how helpful and friendly people were in the Washington area. I guess I just expected everyone to be in a huge hurry all the time and totally stressed out and rude. But, no!

Next up, news of my misadventure reaches my ears the very next day through a most unexpected source.

Adventures in DC - Day 2

Originally published as an email to friends just a couple of weeks before 9/11, we continue with...

Monday - Day 2 of my Adventure in Washington D. C.

The next morning, Monday, my poor darling had to go to work. But I didn’t! So, Julio (a very sweet man from El Salvador) chauffeured me to the Metro station (You'll remember from the last post that this is one of the three places available to be chauffeured to), where I was very pleased to discover that an all-day-anywhere-you-want-to-go ticket is only $5!

Wow! What a bargain, thanks to all of us taxpayers. Thank you, all of you taxpayers. The Metro is just like San Francisco Bay Area’s BART, only you can get anywhere from everywhere, and the trains seem to run on time. [Note:  The all-day, one-day ticket is now $9. Still a bargain.]

Today, I decided to go to the American History Museum to see Old Glory and the First Ladies exhibit. Those women are/were TINY, and such lovely clothing and china and silver. It really was fun to see that and to imagine being elegantly entertained at the White House or floating gracefully about at an Inaugural Ball in a designer gown. Sigh. [Note:  And even more fun now, with several more First Ladies' things to exhibit!] 

So, I’m walking through the early machinery exhibit, and a gentleman dressed like an Amish person rushes past me. Then another. I thought to myself, “Cool! They’re going to have some kind of living history demonstration or something!” And I almost stopped the second man to ask where the demonstration was going to take place. I am a sucker for living history demonstrations. How exciting! Just then, a younger “Amish” man almost knocked me over in his hurry to get through there. And then, a group of “Amish” ladies of various ages went breezing by, too. And I heard them speaking. And, boy, am I ever glad I didn’t open my big mouth…they were real! How embarrassing would that have been? Not nearly as embarrassing as what happened to me at the Tomb of the Unknowns in Arlington, but more on that later. [Note:  You won't want to miss the gorey details of this misadventure in the next blog posting. I have a talent for this sort of thing.]

I also went to the Holocaust museum on Monday. Devastating. And so very well done. Unfortunately, the museums close very early (5 p.m.), so I was not able to see it all. But it’s really worth going to. [Note:  Ten years later, I am still impacted by my visit to this museum. There's a pile of shoes there, and those shoes belonged to people whose stories were ended abruptly, violently. It's strange the things that stay with you.]

Harry had to work until midnight, so we ate a gourmet meal at Denny’s. Yum.

Adventures in DC - Day 1 (from August, 2001...just before 9/11)

Originally published as an email to my friends on August 23, 2001 (just a few weeks before September 11...):

Hi, everyone! As promised, here’s The D. C. Diaries…Adventures in our Nation’s Capital.

I believe I mentioned that Harry had a business trip scheduled to Washington, and he was going to be gone for a whole week…in the middle of the summer…and I had vacation time coming. 'Well,' I thought to myself, 'What kind of a fool would I be if I didn’t take advantage of this situation?' After all, Washington is well known for its lovely summer weather, and I’d never been there before except when I was 12 and we were driving through during rush hour on our way to make our home and try our fortune in Florida. But don't get me started on that!

So, we took the red-eye out of Sacramento on Saturday night, arriving in Baltimore at 8:30 a.m. As usual, I slept soundly on the plane, awaking refreshed, invigorated, and anxious for adventure (Where’s the nearest bed?!).

We drove to Gaithersburg, where Harry’s account work was to be done. Yes, this was an actual business trip, not a boondoggle…for Harry, anyway! Hee hee. We stayed at the Courtyard, if anyone cares about that kind of thing, this info included just in case anyone is out that way and curious. We were very well treated there, complete with a complimentary shuttle to take me wherever my little heart desired, provided that was a nearby restaurant, the Metro station, or the mall. As it turned out, my little heart desired the Metro station. More on that later.

Since we didn’t want to waste Harry’s day off sleeping, we drove to Manassas to see the site of the Battle of Bull Run. What a lovely, peaceful place. Yet, in my imagination, I could hear the sounds of battle: the shots, the moans, the silence. Since it was the 140th anniversary of the battle, there were re-enactments going on, but we only caught the last of it because we arrived mid-afternoon after checking in, unpacking, and so on. But it was very, very interesting. The weather, by the way, was not at all unpleasantly warm or humid, much to our relief, delight, and comfort. 

Next, we visited the over-run-by-Scouts-at-the-National-Jamboree monuments on the Mall, beginning with Vietnam. (Aside…just read a wonderful book called Unwanted by Nguyen…devastating personal account of what it was like for Vietnamese children of American servicemen who were unable to escape the country after the North Vietnamese took over. Back to the monuments…) I’m sure you’re all familiar with all of those famous places, as was I, but there is really nothing like actually being there.

The Vietnam memorial is heartbreaking in its simplicity, each name in a sea of names appearing in silent testament to valor in the face of the enemy, to duty, to sacrifice…and then those names…the ones that evoke painful memories. Paul, Benny, Stan…Girls, there is just no way to describe the emotions you feel when you are there, just no way. Poor Harry. He was in Cub Scouts with those boys, and it was so hard on him to be there.

We stopped by “my” White House for a photo or two (It’s difficult taking movies and pictures at the same time…I need to get Harry to do one or the other so I can concentrate on one or the other!). The surprise there was just how accessible it is. I imagined more visible security and greater distances. But it’s a cute little place, and I surely wouldn’t mind stopping by there for tea…

When we finally got back to the Courtyard after Washington and Lincoln and Korea and Jefferson and who knows what all else (including a bagpiper by the reflecting pool), I, for one, was really, really tired. But not too tired to relax in a bubble bath (We won’t discuss just how badly it was needed…) before falling into bed.

 Next up, Day 2 of my Adventures in our Nation's Capital!