Bus, Train, And Monuments At Washington, D.C.

Today is a day to learn how to do Washington, D.C. Yesterday we got here at Cherry Hill Park. It is a top rated campground. At 4:00 p.m. every day, they have a visitor session on how to get around Washington, D.C., how the Metro (trains, buses, Circulator, etc) works, schedules, and suggestions to see and do. We found it very informative. Our campsite is quite a ways from the front of the campground – 0.4 miles. In fact, we are at the very back. The campground is amazing. One of the reasons is that the Metro bus stops inside the campground in front of the office. The bus, #83, is a city bus so makes quite a few stops. The lady in the visitor session yesterday said it takes about 15 minutes to drive and 20 minutes on the bus. We felt this was a good place to make sure our SmarTrip app worked. This is the way to pay for bus, train, trolley, and Circulator. Kevin had researched it and found an app on our phones. We don’t even turn our phones on, just tap (which pays) and go. Very easy. It worked. Another option is to buy a Metro card.

NOTE TO VISITORS: when you come to Washington, D.C. to visit, make sure you look at the train map. You have to see where the train is going to, what the last stop is for the direction you are going. That is the way you know which train and which direction to get on. Anyway, this was fun because at some points the trains go underground. It was weird, I felt a lot of pressure in my ears. Then Kevin said he did, too. He said it is from the tunnel. Interestingly, my ears don’t feel like they need to pop when we go in true elevation anymore, not since becoming deaf. We got off at Archives stop. As we walked up to ground level, we saw a lot of people in Navy uniforms right there at the United States Navy Memorial. Looked like graduation. We walked the few blocks to the Washington Mall. Circulator is a bus that goes around the Mall and a few monuments; you ride for $1.00, good for 2 hours. We rode it to Lincoln Memorial. It is under a lot of renovation but we could still go in and see Abe. No museum there or anything. We guess it must be the part that is under construction? Not sure.

Korean War Veteran Memorial, Washington, D.C. 05/24

Korean War Veterans Memorial. Our favorite. Statues of men on the warfront. You can read a lot by their faces. Outstanding. This meant a lot since Kevin’s dad fought in this war.

“Honor Flight” From Wisconsin, Lincoln Memorial, Washington, D.C. 05/24

Walking toward the Vietnam Veterans Memorial we walked past the Lincoln Monument again. There we saw people with Honor Flight. These people were from Wisconsin. We think it is a very special way to honor veterans.

Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C. 05/24

Vietnam Veterans Memorial is done beautifully. Lots of reflections on the wall with the names on it. In front of the wall people leave cards, flowers, and notes.

Letter At Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C. 05/24

This is one of the several letters left in front of the wall. I imagine this brings a special emotion for those who the letters/cards are addressed.

Took Circulator back around to Thomas Jefferson Memorial. Again, a big statue with a huge building around it, just like Lincoln’s. Renovations there as well; we followed signs to see some information but it was behind a construction wall and only the size of the bathrooms. 

George Mason Memorial, Washington, D.C. 05/24

George Mason Memorial. It is small place and I was glad the words here let people know things that are left out in a lot of teaching. He wrote the Virginia Declaration of Rights weeks before the Declaration of Independence was started. “Jefferson borrowed freely from existing documents like the Virginia Declaration of Rights and incorporated accepted ideals of the Enlightenment.” (archives.gov) I am finding Mason very fascinating – his words, thoughts, and then refusing to sign the Constitution because it gave central government too much power and wasn’t complete with a bill of rights for individual liberty.

Hot & High Humidity; FDR’s Memorial “Spray” Felt Good! Washington, D.C. 05/24

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial is huge and covers a large area. It tells a story through his presidency. It is beautifully done. It was hot and humid that the spray from one of the many waterfalls felt so good to us! They have the water to drown out the sound of Reagan Airport, a sign said. 

Airplane & Marine One Over Lincoln Memorial, Washington, D.C. 05/24

This picture was fun to capture. In it you see one of Marine One helicopter, used by the president, and an airplane above that is landing at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

Back at the campground office we picked up our forwarded mail. Some campgrounds charge you to have mail/packages sent there but this great campground doesn’t charge.  They even emailed Kevin that it was here and ready for pick up. We ate chips and guacamole quickly and then went to the swimming pool. We knew it would close at 6:00 p.m. and as the lifeguard said, we only had 37 minutes. I didn’t get in all the way but Kevin did. The coolness felt so good to us after such a humid and hot day. 

We are in Washington, D.C. for 15 days. This was one day! I might have to make blog posts during the week to cover what we saw and did! 😜