D.C. Trip Day 1

This past weekend, we spent some time in D.C. for a brief trip. The experience had a couple goals: to see how well Emerson travels in preparation for flying out to Utah in June (and the hills on the turnpike made Emerson's ears pop [as well as mine] and boy did he not like it!), to get out of Pittsburgh for a change, go some place inexpensive (virtually everything to see in DC is free), and so Amber could experience the capital for the first time. We didn't see as much as I had hoped to see (you never do, right?), but Amber will tell you I'm a bit too aggressive in my trip plans. Plus traveling with an infant just wears you out and slows you down. However, I'm totally digging pushing a stroller around - you can put all of your things in it rather than carry them!

So, here's a brief pictorial of Day 1 in pictures, starting with Emerson digging the Homewood Suites furniture and AC -- he was real sluggish in the heat and just woke right up when we got into the hotel. He did great the first day then had a train wreck on day two. Between the heat, change in routine, and possibly teething (we think) it was just too much.
Next, the Lincoln Memorial, which was probably the most moving site we visited. I'll have to write an entire blog later about that. An interesting aside - Reagan Int'l Airport is not far from downtown D.C. and planes fly directly over the Lincoln Memorial just a few hundred feet in the air, which was really spooky to me since I'm not used to that as it reminded me of Sept. 11. Then, there was the Vietnam Memorial which was packed with Vets and Bikers who were there for the "Rolling Thunder" Memorial Day parade (more on that on Day 2), so we just looked at it from a distance.

From there, we walked down the Mall toward the Washington Monument (America's biggest phallic symbol - I mean seriously, what's the point?) and the recently built WWII memorial. The WWII memorial was significant to me since my grandfather fought at the Battle of the Bulge and was wounded while serving for the 101st Airborne. It also was not in existence when I went to DC as a child. To be honest, its not really a spectacular sight to see, but its admirable to honor those who fought in the war... although my feelings are mixed. On one wall at the WWII memorial, there was a quote by General George C. Marshall which said: "We are determined that before the sun sets on this terrible struggle our flag will be recognized throughout the world as a symbol of freedom on the one hand and of overwhelming force on the other." It is too bad these qualities are believed to be inherently connected. I wonder, when freedom and "overwhelming force" are combined together, which one wins out? Which quality is America most known for today?

Next, we walked by the Smithsonian Castle - a very beautiful building, but there's not much inside (its basically a visitor's center). We actually did not get to spend any time in the Smithsonian museums. That was on the docket for day two, but alas, we were too tired and Emerson too fussy to go through any of the myriad of museums that make up the Smithsonian (which is also free). I remember as a child, my older brother Brandon and I, while going through the Air and Space museum, made sure to touch the wing of every fighter plane we could get near.

Then, there was the National Holocaust Museum. We actually did not get to see much of it, because they sold out of tickets for the main exhibits literally just before we were going to get ours. So we walked around in there for a while, enjoyed the cool air, and rested our feet for awhile. Then, we made our way to leave when a security personnel shouted at us, "You're going to have to move aside, as we have a VIP coming through. Please step aside." I was expecting them to come in through the Exit doors to avoid the lines, but then an entourage of cops and guards and VIPs came through behind me. Amber was "so smitten" (as she said later) that she failed to tell me who was coming. But we were in the perfect place at just the right time for me to get off a couple (albeit lousy) shots of the VIP...

I guess Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg (Valkyrie) decided to visit the Holocaust Museum himself (you would have thought he had done it before the movie came out, right?). Hello, Tom Cruise. Dude, the guy is short.