I'm back from DC

I rolled back into LA around 1:00 from DC. The trip was great. I had a great time despite some casual murders in my vicinity. Here's a log of my touristy adventures.

I arrived late Thursday and my sister greeted me at the airport. She expertly lead the way to the Metro and we went to Chinatown. DC's Chinatown is barely Chinese. It covers 3 blocks, and most places of business are far from Chinese. This district is also home to the Verizon Center where the Wizards and Capitols play basketball and Hockey. It's all very walkable. Keith joined us at a restaurant in the area called RFD. We drank, ate, and since it was late didn't do anything else. I went Laura back to her dorm room, met her roommate and went to bed.

The next morning my sister had class so I asked her to show me which way to go to see the Capitol and touristy stuff. She pointed and I went.

Follow up:

The walk from her place to the National Mall was just 10 minutes. I have never been to DC so I was impressed and actually had goosebumps for a moment when I stood at a spot between the Capitol building and Washington Monument. It was inspiring to think about all the American history in the spots I was walking on. I got close to the capitol, took some pictures and then started the jaunt towards the other end with the Lincoln Memorial.

Along the way are a load of museums. The one I really wanted to go in, the National Museum of American History, was closed for renovations until November. I'll have to go back in a few years when Laura graduates. I skipped all the other museums. Eventually I got to the Washington Monument. It's quite amazing up close. It's so smooth and simple and tall. In one direction you can see the Capitol building, another is the Lincoln Memorial, and another is the White House.

I continued towards the Lincoln Memorial and along the way is the WWII Memorial which is just 4 years old. It was very nice. One side is dedicated to the war in the Pacific, the other for the Atlantic. There are great quotes carved into the marble rock and a fountain in the middle.

Eventually I got to Lincoln. His memorial was packed with tourists. It's so simple, but inspiring. In the middle sits Abe. On the left and right are famous speeches he made, the Gettysburg Address and the speech he made on his second inauguration. Both were quite powerful to read in such a setting.

From that point I decided to go to the White House and started following the map on my phone. Accidentally, I wandered into the Vietnam Veterans Memorial which is very quiet, subdued and somber. I didn't stop but while walking through it, there were Vets scratching names onto paper, trading war stories, and reflecting. The place is surrounded by trees and it's the best Memorial I've ever been to. The point of the memorial gets across very easily.

I eventually made it to the White House, which wasn't too impressive. On one side, you can take pictures of the picturesque backside of the house through a fence from about 200 meters away. On the front side of the house on Pennsylvania Ave, is a closer, but not interesting view of the house. Two funny things did happen while I explored it though.

While being a looky-loo, I somehow wandered down a path for private tours. Two guards gently escorted me back down the path and showed me the way around. I was told "You shouldn't be here. You are not with a private tour" while a hand was nicely shoved into the small of my back when I turned around. Whoops!

When I got to the front of the house, a lady walking past asked a guard if they have to paint the house white to keep it white. She was loud and a lot of other tourists laughed at her stupidity. The guard nicely answered, "yes," but not before someone could shout out, "No, God keeps it white."

From that point I walked up town, grabbed a crappy smoothie, and called Keith. We met at DuPont Circle and had some delicious empenadas. Keith works with the press so he has special access to bring guests around the Capitol building. We took the Metro over there, and joined the tour path. The inside feels decadent and powerful. We actually went to the House side and watched a Representative try to pass a bill on Environmental Education reform. Somehow it was more boring live than watching C-Span. The House, where the State of the Union is presented seemed really small compared to how I've seen it on film. I had visions of a grandiose hall, but it was really simple and cozy.

We left the Capitol and I went to the steps of the Supreme Court. Nothing was going on so we didn't go in. We made our way back to my sister's place, and then over to Keith's apt in Columbia Heights....