DC…day 1

Just a fair warning…I took over 450 photos on our trip last week! No worries though. I’ll break them up over the next few days, so as not to put you into DC overload! Nonetheless…this post is ridiculously pic heavy. Now you’ve been warned.

Leaving Augusta in the rain, March 19:

 

This was the girls’ bus.

We stopped for breakfast in Columbus, OH and found that our bus was leaking fluid. It turned out to be the transmission. The bus was towed and a replacement came for us. But we were left to wait for several hours, which delayed our arrival in DC by about 5 hours.

When we finally made it to our hotel, we ate dinner and pretty much went straight to bed. After showering, of course! Then we were up bright and early Wednesday morning to start our day.

We drove past the memorial statue of Iwo Jima.

These were Bri’s roomies for the week.

US Treasury

White House

The cherry blossoms were in bloom and they were gorgeous. This year is the 100th anniversary of the cherry blossom, a gift from Japan in 1912.

 

We toured the Bureau of Engraving and Printing and saw how they print dollar money, or notes.

We ate lunch at Union Station:

Then we headed to the Capitol building.

We met Congressman Mike Pompeo, our district’s congressman. Here he is standing with Mrs. Zerr, our principal and Mr. Hollis, our band director.

He talked to the kids about how he casts a vote, which he did just moments after our meeting with him.

Following our visit, we had the opportunity to see the House in session (half of our group saw the Senate). This part of the day was quite traumatic for several of the girls, including my daughter. As we passed through security, they made us throw out any liquid sprays or drinks. Bri and a few others had perfumes and body sprays so we tossed them in the trash and then went dumpster diving after our tour. Possibly the most memorable part of the Capitol.

Diane and I both teach at Lincoln Elementary. We thought it was appropriate to have our picture taken with Mr. Lincoln’s bust.

After the capitol, we went to the Museum of Natural History.

Diane was my roomie for the week.

The Pentagon; just a drive-by.

After dinner, we went on a nighttime tour of the monuments.

What a busy day! No wonder my feet hurt!