This past week I had vacation and took the chance to escape my normal routine. I began with a visit to my friends in Gettysburg, where we toured the battlefield. I got to experience cornfields for the first time at the battlefield and met the dinosaur tracks on the bridge. Monday (9/23/19) there was a ranger talk at Little Round Top about the myths and realities of the 20th Maine Regiment. I got to see some Civil War hospitals I'd never seen before. My first vacation mistake in a long time was discovered in the shower Tuesday morning. I grabbed Old Spice body wash instead of Old Spice deodorant.
After leaving there on Tuesday afternoon I arrived at my camping destination, Prince William Forest Park in Virginia, about 30 miles south of Washington, DC. I left early to beat rush hour traffic, only to learn that it's pretty much always rush hour in the DC area.
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| Dinosaur track at Gettysburg |
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| Michigan Cavalry Monument rising from the corn |
After setting up camp in a nearly deserted campground, I got in a quick little hike before dinner and nightfall. My first stop on the hike was down the Oak Ridge Road to a small cemetery. I'm not sure about the story behind it, but there are about two dozen graves, ranging from Civil War era to the early 2000s. After a brief visit, I backtracked toward the campground to hit the Farm to Forest Trail. My goal was Quantico Creek, about two miles round trip, but I turned around because I was hungry and it was getting dark in the woods.
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| Prince William Forest |
I was up early the next morning to catch a train into the city for my 7:30 tour of the White House. I underestimated how ferocious traffic is on I-95, even at 6 AM and missed my train. I arrived at the White House about 30 minutes past my check-in time, but the Secret Service agent was kind enough to let me in anyway. After passing through two more security checks, I realized I left my sunglasses in the car back in Springfield. Can you blame me? It was still night when I got to the train station.
Only the lower two floors of the White House are accessible by the public. The upper floors are residential areas. I was hoping to see the Lincoln Bedroom, but that is in the residential area.
As impressive as the White House is, it's actually not the fanciest house I've ever been in. Highlights include the Gilbert Stuart portrait of Washington and the John Adams inscription on the fireplace mantle of the State Dining Room. Despite not being the fanciest house I've been in, it didn't disappoint. Two centuries of history will never let you down.
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| Washington portrait |
No food is allowed in the White House and I left before I was able to eat, so after a quick breakfast (shout out to McDonald's) it was off to Ford's Theatre. Ford's is six blocks from the White House, with fantastic historic buildings such as Willard's Hotel in between. In fact, Vice President Andrew Johnson was at the Willard the night of Lincoln's assassination. He too was a target of assassins, but his would-be killer chickened out and got drunk in the hotel bar instead.
Ford's Theatre closed following the assassination, then was purchased by the government for use as office space. Today it is once again a functioning theater in addition to its status as a historic site. The basement museum houses exhibits relating to Lincoln's abbreviated second term and death, including the Derringer pistol used to do the deed. The President's Box is available to view, though it can't be entered. Across the street is Peterson House, where Lincoln died the following morning. More exhibits there cover the aftermath of the assassination, including Lincoln's legacy.
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| Booth's pistol |
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| Lincoln's box seats |
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| The room where Lincoln died |
Next, I backtracked toward the White House to the grounds officially known as President's Park. On the north side, we have Lafayette Square. Statues there include Andrew Jackson and our European allies from the American Revolution: Rochambeau, Kosciuszko, and namesake Lafayette. Also notable are several black squirrels running around. Across H Street is Blair-Lee House, the White House's official guest house for visiting heads of state. Harry Truman lived there while the White House was being renovated 1948-1952.
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| Black squirrel |
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| Jackson statue |
South of the White House is the area known as the Ellipse. Much of it was fenced off for landscaping work, but I was able to see the Christmas tree and First Division (The Big Red One) Memorial. Afterwards, I stopped by the White House Visitor Center inside the Commerce Department building. The plaza across the street was full of people, and at first I thought there was a protest going on. Protests are pretty much a daily occurrence in this part of the world. Then I noticed the line of people at the door. Commerce was having a fire drill.
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| White House from the Ellipse |
After visitors were allowed in, we had to pass through security. The Visitor Center has exhibits that highlight the private and official lives of the presidents. Items inside come from the White House. My favorite was the dinner setting from the Bicentennial State Dinner. Next to it was a picture of Jerry Ford dancing with Queen Elizabeth.
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| President Ford and Queen Elizabeth |
After lunch, I took a stroll down Pennsylvania Avenue, "America's Main Street". Intended to connect the White House and the Capitol symbolically and physically, it has hosted inaugural parades and state funeral processions over the decades. Government buildings, such as the National Archives and Federal Trade Commission and interspersed with statues like the US Navy Memorial and George Meade statue.
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| Meade statue |
My destination was on the other side of Capitol Hill. Belmont-Paul Women's Equality National Monument commemorates the decades-long struggle for women's right to vote. Alice Paul was one of the leaders of First Wave Feminism, and wealthy Alva Belmont purchased one of the oldest buildings in Washington to serve as the headquarters for their National Woman's Party.
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| Belmont-Paul House's fan window |
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| Alice Paul bust |
Just a few blocks away is the Folger Shakespeare Library. Henry Folger was a big fan of Shakespeare, and opened a museum to showcase his collection of manuscripts. Researchers come from all over the world to access the collection, while I just went to admire interior design, which evokes the Tudor Era.
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| Folger Shakespeare Library |
Back to the west side of the Capitol, I got a gander at the Peace and Garfield Monuments that flank the Ulysses S Grant statue. There is a small reflecting pool in front, which is currently drained, and there is a little bit of fencing around some work being done to Grant. The statue is a popular backdrop for group photos.
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| Garfield statue |
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| Grant statue |
Catty corner to Garfield is the US Botanic Garden. I didn't tour the outside gardens, but the indoor climate controlled gardens are excellent examples of North America's diverse plant communities. Deserts, jungles, California, Hawaii, and the South are well represented. Other collections include edible plants, medicinals, and rare plants.
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| US Botanic Garden |
I slowly made my way past the Smithsonian Museums on the National Mall, too late to enter as it was near or past closing time. I managed to get in some time at Constitution Gardens, a large park area with a pond. There is a small island that serves as a memorial to the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence. Ducks and a great egret were enjoying the water while I was there and a squirrel nervously passed me on the bridge to the island.
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| Great egret and ducks at Constitution Garden |
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| Constitution Garden's island |
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| John Hancock's John Hancock is set in stone |
By this time I was getting hungry and it was getting late. I made my way back to the train, then stopped for dinner on the way back to camp. I went straight to bed. I had an alarm set for 5:30, with plans for breakfast before catching another early train into the city to get a free ticket to visit the top of the Washington Monument. I'd seen the monument every time I've been to Washington. You can't miss the tallest structure in the city, but I'd never been inside. Thanks to Mother Nature, that is still the case. I woke up at 1 AM to use the bathroom. In the few minutes I was gone, a bear took the opportunity to ransack my campsite. I slept in my car with the doors locked and decided to skip the early train so I could evaluate the damage in the daylight. The holes in the tent made it useless, unless I wanted to host a slumber party for bugs.
Without proper sleeping quarters, I made the call to Mount Vernon to change my tour from the following day to later that morning. Getting there took less time than I expected and it was much less crowded than my previous visit four years earlier. I was able to spend more time at Mount Vernon than my previous visit. The weather was perfect and I didn't have to chaperone any middle school kids. With smaller crowds we were able to take a longer tour, timewise. More people asked more questions, and I got to notice a lot more details in the building, as well as tour the grounds. The line ahead of me to see the Washington tomb was four people instead of four miles.
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| Mount Vernon, being rusticated |
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| Washnigton's study |
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| Martha (left) and George (right) Washington at rest |
My original Friday plan was Mount Vernon, followed by Theodore Roosevelt Island at the other end of George Washington Parkway. but today I decided that was the end of my trip and headed for home. Due to nightmarish traffic, the four hour drive home lasted seven hours. Every turn led to more gridlock. Forty miles to Baltimore took two hours to drive. At one point, I began to wonder if the bear actually killed me and I was in purgatory.
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| Aftermath of a bear raid |
I had a great time on this trip. I saw some things I never saw before, like dinosaur tracks on the bridge at Gettysburg or people driving on the shoulder because they refuse to merge. Despite some hiccups, overall it was a good experience. I learned how to handle traffic and bears for my next visit, and after losing an entire day to bears, there will be a next time.
