Our tour leader Rick at Arlington National Cemetery
As promised, I am now going to tell you all about our trip to Washington, DC. We departed from New Stanton last friday in a Myers Coach with our driver, Brad and our tour leader, Rick. Upon arrival at the wonderful Holiday Inn Express on Bladensburg Road, we were met with “Welcome to Washington, DC Scholastica Travel” on the marquee. Rocky, Todd, and Dan were there to greet us and provide us with a wonderful reception. These guys are the best! They treated us like royalty. Dan even went way above and beyond in helping my son acquire something he forgot to pack. Did I mention these guys are the best because I can’t say it enough!
The next morning, we stopped at the White House Visitor Center followed by a walking tour of the area, then on to Arlington National Cemetery. This was one of the places I really wanted to see and it was worth it. We were fortunate enough to witness a wreath-laying ceremony. I’m not ashamed to admit that I cried while TAPS was being played. It was quite moving. After a ride on the metro to Union Station for lunch, we proceeded to the Capitol for a tour of the building. This was another thing I wanted to do. Our guide was quite informative and showed us a lot. Kathy, one of our tour leaders, also pointed out the kitty paw prints in the floor and told us the story about how it haunts the building. Our tour leaders know the most interesting things! Afterwards, our little group split from the rest. They went to The Newseum, which we saw last year. They have multiple floors of all things news and a cool 4-D theater. Now if you’ve never experienced that, let me just say that feeling things around your feet can be a little, ah what’s the word for it, unsettling? Find out for yourself! We then met up with our group at The National Archives and were able to see the Charters of Freedom. Next came visits to some of the wonderful memorials. My son’s favorite was the Korean War Memorial and I’d probably vote for the Lincoln Memorial, but it’s so hard to choose. We headed down to Pentagon City Mall for dinner and then back for a tour of two more memorials. I was looking forward to seeing the Franklin D Roosevelt Memorial. It was nice, but they didn’t have the water flowing throughout it so I was a little disappointed. My son also quite enjoyed the walk from FDR to the Jefferson Memorial. Watching plane after plane heading to Reagan Airport was interesting as well.
Our last day started with a special breakfast buffet from our wonderful hosts and then off to Ford’s Theatre. You can learn anything and everything you ever wanted to know about Abraham Lincoln there. Next was the very cool Museum of Crime and Punishment. My son really enjoyed this place. There are so many things to do. He tried his hand at safecracking, joining a police line up, and breaking out of jail. Next, we had a wonderful lunch at Harriet’s Family Restaurant in the Harrington Hotel and were again treated like royalty. Thanks Jim and John! Our last stop was Madame Tussauds, which was also very cool. It’s so amazing that wax figures can look so life-like! This year, they had the Hall of Presidents exhibit, which was quite interesting. And dare I mention that my favorite movie star is also there? Lets just say that more than one picture was taken of me with him! Then it was time to head for home via Embassy Row for a view of the National Cathedral.
It was a great trip. My only complaint would have to be that it was too short! I can’t wait to go again next year!
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