The Capital of Capitals

Our time in Washington was one of Museums and Monuments, and we didn't waste a second of our three days there.

On the first day, we walked the National Mall, covering off the important monuments.  We were a bit disappointed at how filthy Washington is - it could be so beautiful if it were just a bit cleaner.  One of the Reflecting Ponds (the one outside the Capitol) had been completely drained and the one outside the Lincoln Memorial was unbelievably dirty.

We've become big Lincoln fans while here, so we were pleased that the Lincoln Memorial was beautiful and really reflected the man himself - unlike the Washington Memorial which, while impressive, didn't really seem to relate in any way to Washington. By about 11am our legs and feet were about ready to drop off. The Mall covers a huge area and the heat was stifling. We were particularly thankful for the moments spent inside cafes/museums/shops where the aircon seemed to be set to "Wellington-Winter."

The first museum we got to was one we've both been excited about for a while - the National Science museum. We put our sensible adult personalities away for the day and wandered about the dinosaur exhibit in awe. The highlight for me was a Triceratops skull, but actually seeing Tyrannosaurus Rex's tiny withered little arms was pretty cool. They were all there -  a massive brachiosaurus, diplodocus, stegosaurus, pterodactyl.

It was hard to tell who was more excited: us, or the roomful of six year olds. The exhibits are amazing - the earliest 'human' skeleton (I think) called Lucy, woolly mammoths, gigantic sloths - we've got tonnes of stuffed animal photos. The Hope diamond was also pretty cool. We swung past the sculpture garden and sat with our tired feet in the fountain on our way to the National Gallery - we'd just got to the Da Vinci (allegedly the only one in the US) and the Botticellis when the Gallery closed and we had to get out.

The majority of the next day was spent at the Air and Space Museum where again we wandered round like small children, me especially so. The Apollo 11 command module, the Wright Brothers "flyer", and literally dozens of amazing planes, rockets, etc. Charlotte experienced a moment of feminist pride when she spotted the plane Jean Batten flew across the Atlantic and across the US (it's a very stylish red).

We wandered out to the White House (no audience with Obama... he may have been at Burger King), which was very pretty in the distance, and then down Pennsylvania Avenue and back to the Mall to visit the National History Museum. It was unbelievably packed (although the kids seemed a little less riveted here than at the Science and Space Museums). It was pretty good, despite the lack of dinosaurs or space rockets. The original star-spangled banner was a highlight, as was Lincoln's top-hat and the first ladies' inaugural ball-dresses (the queue to see Kermit the Frog and Judy Garland's red shoes was too long, we just glimpsed them in the distance). Back home relatively early to start the daunting task of cleaning and emptying Proud Winston.

We were at the front of the queue the next morning for the National Archives - slightly too early...  we were there at 8:30 for a 10am opening. The prospect of a ninety minute wait sent Mark off into the wilderness to find coffee for us. Charlotte was disgusted at American queueing etiquette (or lack thereof). A relatively long but haphazard line had formed, with us at the front. Two teenage girls wandered past everyone and stood in front of us. Charlotte said "This is the front of the queue", the girl replied "Oh. Do you want us to go back there?" Anyway, the queuing and outrage was worth it to see the original Declaration of Independence, Constitution and Bill of Rights - great to see them first hand. The gallery also included an original Magna Carta, off to one side, in a much less auspicious cabinet, with fewer people looking at it. There was also an excellent 'other exhibits' section, including photos (and some videos) of the Presidents as kids. It has to be said that George W. Bush was a very, very cute child. Then a visit to the Hirschhorn Art Museum - the highlight was definitely the Yves Klein exhibition. Followed by the Native American Indian Museum and a visit to the Museum of American Art, which included some awesome Presidential portraits and some 'twentieth-century legend' portraits (including a Marilyn Monroe by Andy Warhol). We also dropped by the Ford Theatre - site of Lincoln's assassination, and waited out a massive rainstorm in the shops.

After a dinner at the Capital Grill, we headed home to get Winston sorted for his dispatch. Our time with him came to a - slightly emotional - end the next morning in a dirty parking lot outside D.C. He was an excellent Sputnik and got us safely (nearly 6000 miles) across the States. We wish him well in future endeavours. Fortunately, we were not charged for the (now three) missing wheel hubs.

We're now in Philadelphia (and loving it). More updates to come.

PS. There are a bunch more WDC photos in the gallery if you're so inclined.