DC....some thoughts
Went to Washington DC for the first time ever, this weekend. Caitlin and I toured the Smithsonian Castle and then the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum. We walked the mall and took in most of the monuments. We toured several of the little hidden gardens and parks. It was A LOT to pack into one day and night.
So naturally I don't remember all of the myriad facts, features and history that was crammed into my brain. So here's a few of the 'more simplified observations' that my brain will inevitably condense all that knowledge down to- y'know...rather than actually remember the facts.
Most of this is just nitpicking. Overall the experience is great and I'm not trying to belittle that....too much.
Astronauts are tiny people. The Apollo capsules are wicked small and so are the spacesuits from the various famous astronauts. I always thought of them as larger than life and it's funny to see their real size and think I could dropkick them to the moon.
The Mall needs a gardener. I was surprised how sloppy the mall and all the paths looked. I understand that there are millions of feet trampling through there weekly, but I expected our nations capitol to be a little more...groomed. I guess our tax dollars are busy elsewhere.
Lincoln is even cooler than I thought. I've been around and seen a lot of statues, tributes, shrines, graves and monuments to all sorts of people and so far Lincoln's memorial is the most impressive I've seen. It beats out Washington's monument hands down. It's enormous and has a simple grandeur that is more moving than any other memorial. All I could think was- "How amazing of a person do you have to be to earn this kind of memorial?" The answer- More amazing than pretty much any other American in history.
The Reflecting Sludge Pool. Seriously, the reflecting pool looked like something the Toxic Avenger or Swamp Thing would walk out of. Toss in some bleach or at least some blue food dye fer crying out loud. It's also sad to see that some people are such asses they throw their empty pack of Paul Maul cigarettes and soda cans into the pool. Humanity you disgust me.
I didn't know DC stood for Dog Crap. We cut across part of the park for a shortcut and were greeted with more canine landmines than I've seen in my entire lifetime. Seriously, every 18"sq patch had at least one steaming load. It was like a really bad game of hopscotch. This is not an exaggeration, the amount of of crap still boggles my mind. I may have nightmares. Curb your damn dogs!
The coolest stuff is not always the famous stuff. There's a little island covered with willow trees and cherry blossoms on the edge of the mall surrounded by a small pond. A wooden bridge connects it to everything else. The only thing on the island is a small memorial for the signers of the declaration of independence. It's gorgeous and it's not on any map nor do many people find it. The same can be said for the many amazing gardens hidden around DC. There are also a lot of random sculpture and modern art gardens and fountains that are fun.
I couldn't get close enough to the White House to flip off Bush. I think this one is self explanatory.
Thanks to all those who read this long post.
Also, as always, Caitlin was the shiznit during this trip.
So naturally I don't remember all of the myriad facts, features and history that was crammed into my brain. So here's a few of the 'more simplified observations' that my brain will inevitably condense all that knowledge down to- y'know...rather than actually remember the facts.
Most of this is just nitpicking. Overall the experience is great and I'm not trying to belittle that....too much.
Astronauts are tiny people. The Apollo capsules are wicked small and so are the spacesuits from the various famous astronauts. I always thought of them as larger than life and it's funny to see their real size and think I could dropkick them to the moon.
The Mall needs a gardener. I was surprised how sloppy the mall and all the paths looked. I understand that there are millions of feet trampling through there weekly, but I expected our nations capitol to be a little more...groomed. I guess our tax dollars are busy elsewhere.
Lincoln is even cooler than I thought. I've been around and seen a lot of statues, tributes, shrines, graves and monuments to all sorts of people and so far Lincoln's memorial is the most impressive I've seen. It beats out Washington's monument hands down. It's enormous and has a simple grandeur that is more moving than any other memorial. All I could think was- "How amazing of a person do you have to be to earn this kind of memorial?" The answer- More amazing than pretty much any other American in history.
The Reflecting Sludge Pool. Seriously, the reflecting pool looked like something the Toxic Avenger or Swamp Thing would walk out of. Toss in some bleach or at least some blue food dye fer crying out loud. It's also sad to see that some people are such asses they throw their empty pack of Paul Maul cigarettes and soda cans into the pool. Humanity you disgust me.
I didn't know DC stood for Dog Crap. We cut across part of the park for a shortcut and were greeted with more canine landmines than I've seen in my entire lifetime. Seriously, every 18"sq patch had at least one steaming load. It was like a really bad game of hopscotch. This is not an exaggeration, the amount of of crap still boggles my mind. I may have nightmares. Curb your damn dogs!
The coolest stuff is not always the famous stuff. There's a little island covered with willow trees and cherry blossoms on the edge of the mall surrounded by a small pond. A wooden bridge connects it to everything else. The only thing on the island is a small memorial for the signers of the declaration of independence. It's gorgeous and it's not on any map nor do many people find it. The same can be said for the many amazing gardens hidden around DC. There are also a lot of random sculpture and modern art gardens and fountains that are fun.
I couldn't get close enough to the White House to flip off Bush. I think this one is self explanatory.
Thanks to all those who read this long post.
Also, as always, Caitlin was the shiznit during this trip.