An Adventure to the Nation's Capitol!

So the kids and I decided to take an adventure to Washington, D.C. right after school let out, and an adventure it was. We traveled with a friend of mine and her five year old daughter, and we decided to drive. That, in and of itself, should say enough - 2 adults, a 10 year old, an 8 year old, and a 5 year old in a car - but I'll tell you more :)

We left the house about 9:30 am, and according to the Google map, the trip should only have taken us 9 hours and 1 minute. Yeah, right. At what speed? Mach 1? Clearly, these directions take no traffic, no weather, and no children into account. It poured rain into southern MA, and after missing the turn to get on the George Washington Bridge in NY, and having to turn around in NYC at 3:45 pm on a Friday afternoon, we managed to get through NYC rush hour traffic in about 2 hours. About twice the time it might have otherwise taken us if I had been paying attention. After many pit stops and food breaks, we arrived in Arlington, VA 13 hours later. Sigh.

The nice thing was that the hotel we chose seems to be an old apartment building that was renovated into a hotel, and the rooms are spacious and come with a full kitchen. Some of the workers leave much to be desired, though. One of the shuttle drivers thought he belonged on the Indy circuit (the other was quite nice and safe in his driving skills), and the people at the so-called free Continental breakfast were nothing short of demonic. Did you know that you can successfully eat Cheerios with a fork when you politely ask for a spoon, and you're told, "If we're out, then we're out. You'll have to deal with it." Nice. The front desk workers were quite accommodating, and I'm thankful for their pleasantness.

Day One: It was pouring rain when we left, so we settled into the Smithsonian Castle to see some of the sites there (where we also had to buy insanely expensive umbrellas, but we're happy to support the Smithsonian Institute), and then meandered through the Air & Space Museum. McKenna was thrilled to be able to see the Wright Brothers exhibit, and both kids were excited to be able to see the rockets and space ships. But, indeed, the Capitol Building was calling. We had a nut-job for a tour guide whose sarcasm left much to be desired, and having had several previous tours with school groups I've taken, I was disappointed in the information, or lack thereof, that was imparted to us on the tour. The kids didn't know any different, and they were excited to see some of the inner depths of this magnificent structure. They loved playing near the fountain out front, and being able to sit in the front steps and look out onto The National Mall was quite extraordinary. Before we made it to the outside steps, we took a tunnel from the Capitol to the Library of Congress and wandered through the Grand Hall. The kids were blown away with the concept that we could travel from one building to the next in tunnels, and that this is indeed how the President often travels from building to building throughout the city! They loved eating the treasures of the street vendors for dinner... and, man, these people must make a killing based on what they charge just for a dog and a soda!

Day Two: After a brief shower in the morning, we set out to do all the National Monuments: the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial, the WWII memorial, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the Korean War Veterans Memorial, Constitution Gardens, the George Mason Memorial, the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, and the Thomas Jefferson Memorial. When you look at the map, it looks like you can easily do these in a short stint. Well, that's like looking at a map of Ireland and saying you can drive the country in a day. It's like I was told when I went to Ireland and told a local what my plans were, "Stupid Americans," he laughed. I was slightly offended until I realized he was absolutely right. Just like trying to drive the country of Ireland in a day, it's as much a chore to try to take in all the monuments in a day, especially with 3 children in tow.

We made it to the Jefferson Memorial tired and cranky, but it was perhaps one of the more serene things I know. The sun was setting, and Jefferson stood magnificently over the Tidal Basin. It was a place I could have sat for quite some time.

Trying to explain the significance of many of these memorials was difficult because the kids are so far removed from the conflicts that occurred to create the memorials. Explaining the people was much easier. Paring the details of the conflicts down to something the kids could understand helped them grasp a little of the significance of the memorials, but they began asking questions that Jasmine and I struggled to answer in any detail that would make sense to them. How do you tell an 8 year old about why the Vietnam War started? I believe we need to do some detailed research as they begin to process this trip.