Washington, DC -- Finishing Up...
The two time-consuming "must sees" left were:
The National Archives, displaying the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, Bill of Rights, 1297 Magna Carta; and
The Supreme Court. The Court is only in session for approximately two weeks each month. Visitors can only view the Courtroom when it is not in session and listen to a brief lecture. You can also see historical exhibits and watch a movie describing the court. The Supreme Court is charged with ensuring American people the words written above the main entrance, "Equal Justice Under Law."
After these lengthy visits, there were important sites that could be seen while strolling around the Capitol and Mall.
- Vietnam Veterans Memorial, enscribed with the names of 58,184 persons who died or remain missing in the Vietnam War.
- The 555' tall, marble Washington Monument.
- John F. Kennedy Center for The Performing Arts with its five theaters.
- Lincoln Memorial, most spine-tingling in the evening.
- Thomas Jefferson Memorial.
- The White House. Opted not to stand in line for the tour (heard it was quite boring).
- Old Post Office Pavilion. The 1899 former post office had shops, food courts and restaurants. Go up to the Pavilion's tower for great views of Washington.
- Union Station. The great train station, now a huge center with shops, restaurants, and movie theaters.
What did we miss? A lot!
- Pentagon
- Alexandria and Mount Vernon, George Washington's home, accessible by public transportation...just ran out of time, folks.
- Cruises on the Potomac.
- Narrated shuttle bus tours with free reboarding at 18 major sights. (We walked everywhere and took an occasional taxi.)
A major perk in Washington, DC is that almost every major attraction is free...only a few exceptions! Easy on the budget.
An unexpected plus was the return of the Statue of Freedom to the dome of the U.S. Capitol building. We had no idea that our visit coincided with the Bicentennial of the United States Capitol, 1793-1993 or there was a 19'6" bronze female figure (weighing 15,000 pounds) sitting on top! Freedom was placed in 1863 (at the height of the Civil War), removed by helicopter for restoration in May, 1993...after 130 years in place...and returned to the Dome by helicopter on October 23, 1993. The Bicentennial ceremonies started at 9:45 am with very tight security. The actual return of the statue by helicopter was a nerve-wracking sight in itself -- watching the helicopter hovering over the Capitol, the 15,000 pound statue hanging from it -- and riggers below ready to release the straps when it was finally aligned. Can you imagine if a strap broke and it either crashed through the Capitol or on 50,000+ spectators? It took over 13 minutes to get Freedom in place. After that, invocation, music and addresses by various Senators, Representatives and President Clinton.
Of course, we came for Washington's history but it was a pleasant surprise to find so many good restaurants and hotels along with just too many sights to cram in. When friends ask, "Where do you recommend we go for a long weekend?", Washington, DC is our answer...though five days would be better. Leave the kids at home (you won't have to hear "are we done yet"), visit and I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.
