Walking On The Streets Of DC
I can’t think of a better birthday present than spending a couple of days at the nation’s capitol. Not only was the weather beautiful and not deathly humid, but it was the beginning of May so it was entirely uncrowded and we were able to get a steal of a deal on a hotel room and rental car. We had spent some time in DC together before, so for this trip we decided to focus on doing things that neither of us had seen.
We took a red eye to DC and by the time we landed it was early morning and the air was crisp. There is something to be said about the essence of DC, there is just a strong sense of power, pride and excitement that is in the air. It’s addictive and empowering. Such an energizing place. Right away we called our Senator’s office to see if there was any way we could sneak in get a tour of the capitol last minute, luckily there had been a cancelation and we were able to snag a spot, so after lunch we headed to the district. Big mistake number 1: we drove. We were running late so really, we had no choice. Parking is a nightmare in the district and we did know that ahead of time but honestly we were hoping to get lucky. We ended up parking at Union Square, which in case you didn’t know costs a pretty penny. The capitol tour is interesting, and it’s free so I would definitely recommend it if you have never been. Our first day consisted of the capitol tour, a drive and walk through Georgetown, and visiting the LDS temple. We closed our first day by walking along the Potomac, taking pictures and exploring the Franklin Roosevelt monument which is very unique and interesting.
Taking the metro is really just a part of the experience in DC. The second day we took the metro to Dupont Circle and hopped on the bus in search of the National Cathedral. It’s a place we both had never been and had heard great things about. The bus ride to the cathedral is great, you get to drive past Embassy Row. All of the embassies are unique and are really cool to see. I just have to pause to say that DC has one of the most amazing public transportation systems I have ever taken part of. It is just so user friendly and fool proof. Anyways, we got off the bus and walked a block to the National Cathedral and come to find out they are hosting a flower festival/ birthday party for the Cathedral. So first we grabbed some free birthday cake and browsed the booths wishing we had a way to take some of the flowers home for our backyard. After cake we walked in and were just blown away from the interior. One of the most gorgeous buildings in this country. It’s interesting to see all the unique features. You can take a free walking tour or even a gargoyle tour, which supposedly there is a Darth Vador gargoyle.
After the National Cathedral we decided to walk a little and enjoy the weather before we caught the bus. We grabbed some Five Guys (a must for every east coast trip) and then headed back to the district to check out some of the Smithsonians. We went to the Air and Space Museum, Hirshorn and Congressional Library. We would have gone to many more but unfortunately they all were closing at that point. So we walked over and saw many of the monuments and walked over to the white house. After hanging out at the park across the street of the white house we jumped on the metro over at Federal Triangle and went to Old Town Alexandria and strolled the beautiful boutique streets, which was a great way to close our trip.
Washington DC is an amazing place. As we were able to explore more of the city I came to realize there are so many hidden treasures in that area. As corny as that sounds it’s true! Take the metro and get off at any of the stops and guaranteed you are able to explore and find something unique and different. Perhaps next trip out I will take myself up on my own challenge.
Tags: Capitol, Potomac, Washington DC
July 19th, 2008 at 5:04 pm
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December 12th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
I forget how beautiful the DC Temple is!
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January 27th, 2009 at 11:58 am
Some really nice pictures you have there. I especially like the one of the Temple. The new temple in Draper Utah is having an open house right now. It’s worth a look.
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