Storming the Capitol

Sacagawea, glowing in the foreground, with The Washington Monument glowing in the background. Our Washington D.C. marina was perfectly located.

We stayed ten days in Washington D.C. Why so many days? We had family to see, museums to peruse at a slow pace, and Mike had some boat maintenance to complete. We had more fun than we even expected. Knowing us as you do, we maximized our time.

First, we were so glad to see family--the youngest family members we met for the first time! We took my nephew Jacob and Mike's nephew Nick and their young families, including our great nephew and great nieces, for a cruise down the Potomac to George Washington's plantation, Mount Vernon, and back. It was a perfect day for a boat tour and a perfect way to catch up with our Millennial generation. I'm so proud of their healthy attitudes towards their professions and how they approach family-hood. 

As you can see, I relished these times with my extended family. Here were our Washington D.C. nephews and their lovely, growing families.

Mt. Vernon from the Potomac. The way visitors have seen it as they approached from the water for 240 years.  

On the return trip from our Mount Vernon cruise, going under a bridge.

We also caught up over lunch with my cousin, once-removed, Martin Small, who has a second home in Washington D.C. It's so great to take the time in retirement to get to know my relatives. 

And talk about Washington D.C. restaurants for lunch, and dinners! The food choices and variety were outstanding. I had my first oyster tasting categorized by fresh, brine, and salt water oysters.(1)

Our time was mostly filled with old-school Smithsonian museums: the National Archives and the National Gallery of Art.(2) We also took a large group tour of the Capitol building. And, we pulled out the folding clown bikes to tour the national monuments. 

Here are my favorite memories from these museums and places.

At the Thomas Jefferson Memorial. A literal and figurative giant. His quotes on the walls were profound and amazingly relevant today. And, inspiring, actually. It’s hard for me to rectify the inconsistencies in the well-rendered opinions of the Founding Fathers with the way they lived their lives. For example, they were able to philosophize about liberty because slaves provided their income. I would like to think that they knew where they wanted their society to move towards, but they didn’t know how to get there long term.

Mike observing art, observing Mike. “Thinker on a Rock” by Barry Flanagan at the Sculpture Garden at the National Gallery of Art. 

Could it be AMOR by Robert Indiana? Or just a good pic of us in the Sculpture Garden at National Gallery of Art? 

“FREEDOM IS NOT FREE” — at the Korean War Memorial. This is a small part of a larger, eerie and moving installation.

On the clown folding bike heading towards Washington Monument. (3)

“Skiffs” by Gustavo Caillebotte, 1877. I connected with this painting, as it reminded me of our kayaking in Florida. I had never seen this painting before, either. They kayaked in 1877! 

Can you read the inscription? It’s Sacagawea! In the Capitol Building, each state has erected two statues that are meaningful to their state. This was North Dakota’s. 

The new-school type of museums were experiential, with heavy use of audio, lots of artifacts clustered together with explanations, and newer video types such as 3-D. The experiential museums that we perused were The National Museum of African American History and Culture, The Spy Museum, and the National Museum of American History. Mike also went to the Holocaust Museum.(4) While old-school museums exhaust your body (sore legs anyone?), I find experiential museums exhaust my attention. In contrast, Mike loves the vibrancy. Give me a Seurat painting in a hand-carved gold frame against a white wall (and please throw in a bench in front of it) and I'm happy. 

We went to a Nationals vs. Dodgers game. It would be nice if we could go to as many baseball parks as possible on the Loop. We always cheer for whoever is playing the Dodgers. Alas, the Dodgers won this game. The next time we go to a baseball game, we should preview the team players so we know them better. 

One Looper task we've been putting off is measuring the height of Sacagawea. We haven't planned which routes we'll be taking through Canada. Our route will depend on if we can squeeze under some low fixed bridges and if we can float through shallow, but not too shallow canals. While at the marina, we borrowed a ladder from my nephew, Jacob. Mike climbed on top of the radar arch which encloses the fly bridge. Then, using an extended boat hook, a level, fishing line and a weight we got that measurement. Now we can start to plan!  

We still had many more destinations to go before entering the NY canals and into Canadian canals. We still had time to dream about what they will be like.

Strolling through Georgetown for our first time. Mike finds The One. How can you pick just one fantasy house from Georgetown?

FOOTNOTES FOR FUN FACT FANS

(1) I wasn't sure I'd like the freshwater oyster, but it was the winner of the dinner. 

(2) The National Archives house the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution/Bill of Rights. It was a profound experience to see these large documents (about 30" x 29" on parchment paper). However, they are extremely faded. They were accompanied by great panels to explain the purpose of these documents and their edits.

I went back four days to the National Gallery. I wanted to break my time up. And, there was too much classic art to fit into one leisurely stroll.

(3) Three fascinating fun facts about the Washington Monument. #1 Original funding was generated by the selling of $1 bonds. However, in 1864, this was only enough to build 152 feet of the original 600 foot design. #2 The lawn around the incomplete monument was used as grazing land for federally owned cattle during the Civil War. #3 The design we see today was finished in 1884 at 340 feet. 

(4) I'm not making a political statement -- I promise. I wasn't sure I'd learn anything new at the Holocaust Museum. And, I find most of the imagery and stories too disturbing. I'm glad there is a Holocaust Museum, but I wonder if it gets through to the people who need to see it most.