Washington, D.C.

Bill and I took a trip to the Alexandria, VA – Washington, D.C. area to meet his family for his sister’s wedding.  She and Qazi met at the National Harbor a few years ago and decided to get married there.  He’s from Pakistan and his family would not be able to travel but that’s where his friends are, so they would be able to attend.  We planned to spend just less than a week there.  We dropped the kids off at day care on Friday morning and my parents would take care of them for the week at our house while we were gone.

Friday was our travel day.  We drove to Omaha to fly to DC – which saved us a couple hundred dollars versus flying out of Sioux Falls or even Minneapolis.

Micki and Qazi rented a house in Virginia, which is where we all stayed.  So we got settled in Friday night and planned to sightsee first thing Saturday.  The bummer of a deal though, was that I was just starting to come down with some sort of respiratory virus so I got some meds from the doctor and just had to make the most of it!

BTW, you’re going to see A LOT of photos!

SATURDAY:

Yep, that sign says “U.S. Capitol” – can you imagine the extreme joy building inside of me?!

We got tickets for the double-decker buses at Union Station and headed for, where else? The Capitol!  The buses, we found are the BEST way to take in everything you want in a day or two.  It was HOT! and there’s no way we could have walked around everywhere or found parking where we wanted. 

That’s the exterior of Union Station above.  The inside of the rotunda, while gorgeous, was being renovated so photos were difficult and we were on a mission to find our bus.  Below is the first view of the Capitol as we were pulling out of the station.  You’re going to see a lot of photos of it in the coming days.  I’m in love with it and my camera is my accomplice.

        

Our next stop was the Smithsonian National Air And Space Museum.  It was the next stop on the bus and we wanted to check in on a computer that apparently gives Bill lots of headaches at work.  hehe

We found the Landsat Satellite exhibit, which is the series of earth-observing satellites that Bill works with at EROS.   We rounded the corner beneath the replica of Landsat 5 (the giant gold foiled satellite above) and found what we were looking for.  The monitor reads…

This scrolling display reveals images of the Earth collected by the Landsat 5 and 7 satellites.  Passing over North America, the satellites collect and transmit data to a ground station operated by the U.S. Geological Survey. The images displayed on the screen were either acquired in real-time or recently recorded. 

The ground station it’s referring to is EROS!  So, when there are problems with this feed, a department that Bill used to work in there get a phone call from the Smithsonian to fix it.  An occasional headache but PRETTY darn cool to see it in operation.  Could use a larger, more prominent screen though, wouldn’t ya say? I mean, this may be the coolest thing in the entire museum! :o)

Oh, yeah, there were a couple other things that were pretty cool… such as the spacecraft that landed on the Moon and stuff.

Back on the bus for the Washington Memorial!  And once again, it’s closed.  It was closed in 1997 for renovations when I was here with the Washington High School Marching Band.  Now it’s closed for repairs from an earthquake.  GRRR!  I really want to go inside!  Is it sad if it’s something I have to add to my Bucket List?

The World War II Memorial was a pleasant walk from the Washington Memorial.  I was so excited to take it in because it was NOT here during my last visit to the capital.  The thought put into the design is remarkable.  Everything has a purpose and stands for something.  It’s beautiful.

  We also learned that while it’s okay to put your feet in the water, you MUST NOT STAND UP with your feet in the water.  That’s considered wading, which is NOT allowed and will send Park Officials on Segway Scooters darting in your direction threatening to ticket you. 

Next up, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

The Lincoln Memorial brings us to the end of the National Mall.  Again, I am fascinated! 

Though when we exited, that’s when I noticed the reflection pond was empty! GRRR I’m having the worst luck visiting places as they are under construction. I guess they found a way to make the pond more efficient or stop leaking or something. I can’t remember. Either way, there was no reflecting going on.

Love this shot of the soon-to-be newlyweds with the Lincoln Memorial in the background.  Next stop?  See for yourself…

Ding dong!  So, not sure whether that’s the doorbell or an intercom, but we weren’t willing to find out.  There was security everywhere outside the fence along Pennsylvania Avenue.  The road itself was actually closed off.  But have I mentioned yet I’m loving the shots my new camera and lenses are delivering? 

We even found Michelle’s garden.  There’s a bee hive on the other side too.  Wonder if her tomatoes are doing as well as mine?

Then it was off to Union Station again, and by entering a wrong door, we found this: The rest of Union Station. 

And while we were looking for our way out, we heard screaming.  We all looked at each other funny when some lady responded, the American Idol winner is down there.  We went to check it out… WHATEVER lady!  That’s R. Kelly!

  We followed that up with some dinner at a sushi house in Georgetown and started doing some research on Georgetown Cupcakes when the waiter filled us in.  They closed at 9 p.m. and it was 8:45.  Micki, Rose, Cole and I took off on foot.  We rounded the corner to where the waiter said the shop would be and there it was! 

And there was the line!… And police for extra security!

I guess they cut off the line at 9 p.m.  So if you’re in line, you get cupcakes.  They send an employee out to stand at the end of the line to tell anyone who tries to join that they were too late.  Feel bad for whoever draws the short stick for that job because in the past, I guess people haven’t been willing to take the bad news about missing out on cupcakes and have gotten confrontational.  That’s why there’s now security posted at closing time.  Oh My!

We waited our turn, made our picks and took it all in: the smells, the cute guys… I mean cupcake designs, and the streamlined operation they had going on.  It’s a tiny shop but they mean BIG business!

There was no value in trying to eat this glorious cupcake in the car ride home.  So we found enough strength to be patient and opened the cute pink boxes at the rental home.  We started the day with beautiful monuments and ended it with a desert that deserved to be savored. 

Not a bad way to end the first day of vacation!

On the agenda tomorrow: A wedding!