Mr. Bill goes to Washington

Yesterday I decided to stay a little closer than on Saturday, so I made the ~1.5 hour drive down to the Washington metro area. I decided to park out in the Maryland suburbs somewhere and take the Metro in. Turns out, that was pretty easy- they have an Interstate freeway that basically feeds you right into the parking lots at the terminal station, Shady Grove. Metro is very similar to BART in how it works. I hopped on the Red Line train and got off at Metro Center.

From there, I headed west a few blocks toward the White House. I know it is code orange and everything, but jeez! You couldn't get anywhere near the place, the cordon wrapped clear around the Treasury and Old Executive Office Buildings. I wasn't really suprised then, but looking back now, after seeing the security everywhere else in town, it seems like overkill. So I walked around from Lafayette Square to the Ellipse. Walking along toward the mall, I happened across the Boy Scout Memorial.

I crossed Constitution Avenue and walked onto the Mall near the Washington Monument. It was early afternoon by this point, and there were all sorts of people out enjoying the gorgeous day. The cherry blossoms were in bloom, and it seemed that everyone was out to have a nice day outside before the weather turned again. I headed east on the mall, toward the Capitol.

I am fond of the Beaux Arts/"City Beautiful" school of urban design, and Washington, with the Mall and L'Enfant's avenues, is probably the best example of Beaux Arts design that remains in the country.

Along the way, I stopped and strolled through the Hirschhorn Sculpture Garden. I enjoyed the collection, and the sunken garden setting was tranquil. After walking a ways more (the Mall is 2 miles long) I came upon the Capitol. Compared to the White House, the security precautions around the Capitol seemed alonst alarmingly non-existent. There were some barricades, but these seemed mostly for construction they were doing on the East Front than for security. Neither house was in session so that may have had something to do with it.

I walked around the House (south) side of the Capitol grounds. Because of the aforementioned barricades, I had to cross First Street, SE to walk north. This took me directly past the Library of Congress and Supreme Court Buildings. By this time I was getting hungry, so I decided to get some lunch. I continued north on First Street, arriving within a few blocks at Union Station.

Union Station is a fabulous historic railroad terminal that was recently restored and renovated. It is still a railroad terminal, serving Amtrak, MARC, VRE, and Metro trains, but they also managed to fit a mall in there, complete with resataurants. I think they did a very good job of fitting the modern elements into the historic station. The main hall was mostly left alone, which is good, because it is simply spectacular.

Up to this time, I was kind of being stingy with my picture-taking because my battery indicator had come on. One thing I don't like about my camera is the lack of battery charge information until it is almost too late. Anyway, I managed to scope out a table near a power outlet (the outlets are behind some trash cans on the lower level food court, JSYK) and sat down for some lunch while resting my feet and charging my battery.

After that pleasant refresher, I ambled over to the the Union Station Metro station to get back to the other end of the Mall. I decided to play around a little bit and took a less direct route, transferring at Gallery Place- Chinatown and at L'Enfant Plaza to get to Foggy Bottom- GWU. I was surprised how easy and fast the transfers were. The Metro really is a good way to get around downtown.

At Foggy Bottom, I walked around Washington Circle once and strolled through the campus of George Washington University. I walked south along 23rd Street and arrived at the Lincoln Memorial in short order. I clibed the steps and enjoyed the memorial. By this time, there were just gobs of people all over the place. And I felt sorry for any sadist who was trying to drive anywhere in that part of town.

Next I headed right over to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. The simplicity of the form does not take away from the memorial's power, indeed, I believe it strengthens it. The mirror-shiny black granite reflects memorial-goers in the names of the fallen.

I next crossed back across the mall past the reflecting pool to the Korean War Veterans Memorial. It was new since my last trip to Washington. The sculptures of the soldiers are haunting, as are the ghost images on the wall.

Wanting to see the cherry blossoms in their full glory, I headed south along the Potomac toward the Tidal Basin. I happened to run across the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, which was also new since my last visit. This sprawling memorial goes on along the Tidal Basin walk as a series of spaces with waterfalls and quotations carved into the stones. It isn't perhaps as awe-inspiring as some of the other grand memorials, but it is a lovely tribute and a very pleasant walk.

I continued on my way around the Tidal Basin, making my way around the hordes of people who were also enjoying the gorgeous Washington spring day. Soon I came upon the Jefferson Memorial. I remembered it as being remote and less populated that the other memorials the last time, however the cherry blossoms attracted thousands of visitors on this day. Jefferson is one of my favorite presidents. His statue commands a pictururesque view of the White House across the Tidal Basin and Mall. I wonder what he would make of its current occupant?

By this time, it was getting late. It wasn't dusk yet, thanks to daylight savings having just begun, but I knew that I would have to get going soon. I followed a crowd of people to the Smithsonian station and hopped on a crowded train to Metro Center, where I soon transferred to a red line train back to Shady Grove. I intentionally made a wrong turn out of the station and drovr through the darkening Maryland countyside for a while before getting back on the interstate. I had a quick dinner at a Waffle House in Frederick before returning to Emmitsburg.

And today, I'm back in class, a different one this time. It is still about flooding and stuff. I'm also dealing with a bit of sunburn from yesterday's trip. It was quite sunny out, and I spent a good chunk of the day outside walking a few miles. And now it is snowing out.

April 07, 2003 04:28 PM

Comments (2)

04/09: stacy said:

I love Washington DC!

04/09: kristin said:

now i wanna go to washington!