Washington D.C.

Woke in the middle of the night as body still on UK time. Did some more to this blog but struggled to upload pictures from the old laptop (to be sorted). Got shuttle bus to the train station, found the ticket office closed. Sat on my own reading my book in the cold waiting for a train. While it would be sunny later this was colder than blighty.

 

One eventually came and I travelled down to the capitol. I stepped out of Grand union station to a stunning view of the capitol building lit in the darkness. I walked 20 Minutes to my hotel. Too early to check into my room I deposited my bags and set off in search of breakfast. The map on my phone was great and I found a McD on route to the mall.

 

 If you like museums, monuments and sculptures this is the place to come. A two mile strip of grass festooned with things to see. Of course little was open until 1000, durr brain, so I wandered down to the far end o the mall stopping to see the sights as I went. I recognised some of the sculptures, me ha! Rodin's 'The Burghers of Calais' (though when I googled it later it said the real sculpture was elsewhere so I think they have been done), three Henry Moors and the globe within a globe right.

Saw the WW2, Korea and Vietnam memorials. Lots of veterans being bussed in from around the US  greeted by serving officers. Apparently today is Super Saturday with veterans from 8 states visiting.

 

There are a number of monuments to presidents dotted around. The older presidents like Lincoln and Jefferson get columns and plinths. The one I liked was Roosevelt's. More like a walk through exhibit showing you what he had achieved in his time. I was lucky to be shown around by a park ranger who was clearly passionate about it and talked me from the great depression to the war. He also spoke at length about eleanor, an extraordinary woman (book required for xmas for me I think).

 

 

Not having managed much exercise before my trip, and having walked quite a few miles in Washington, I was by now feeling weary. Back aching and sore feet. So I got the metro back to my Marriott in NoMa, found a bottle of Californian Merlot in a nearby grocery store (looked like a supermarket to me) and retired to my room. Looking forward to some museum visits tomorrow.