Today was a good 20 degrees colder then the last two days, actually it was kind of nice to be in some cooler weather again. Stop one of the day was the holy grail of DC museums, the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History.
The first stop inside was the centerpiece of their collection, the Star Spangled Banner and it did not disappoint. It is a very large flag, with tremendous meaning and a very well orchestrated exhibit.
Next was the recovered great lakes gun boat the USS Philadelphia. I found this small exhibit to be quite well accomplished with the stories of the ship, it's sinking and its discovery/recovery years later. They even had the British shot that sank the ship and the hole that it caused. I have always been fascinated with wooden ships and the small ships and boat warfare that occurred on the great lakes during the War of 1812 so this exhibit was perfect!
Also of note: their exhibit on the history of the American soldier, the story of different families who all occupied the same house (which is on display), the great Julia Child's kitchen and a trove of other American cultural icons.
What I did not like was the sometimes misleading, one-sided or at times leading captions and questions in some of the exhibit literature and captions. This was especially prevalent in their exhibits on slavery, immigration and industrialization.
Then right before we where ready to leave, a very unlikely thing happened. Walking across the third floor lobby I came face to face with Giavana and Lindsey, 2 of the students from my program in Saint Petersburg. The odds of this chance meeting are quite incredible, they were in DC from Seattle and Ohio, we happened to be in the same part of the same attraction at the same time. We were all shocked but the encounter, had a nice talk and went our separate ways.
Following the museum we set out to walk down the national mall and visit all of the memorials down it's length.
First was the chillingly elegant, simple and deeply meaningful Vietnam Memorial.
Next was the memorial to America's forgotten war, Korea. The striking statues of soldiers against the backdrop of faces and pictures of support personnel etched into a stone wall behind is a vivid visual and fitting tribute.
Finally was there was the national WWII memorial. I was quite impressed by the relatively new monument, it is both a fitting tribute and a useful public space.
Finally we took a lap around the front of the white House again and this time noticed the now famous White House Garden and the brand new replacement (but quite tiny) national Christmas tree.
It was another full day of basking in the majesty of Washington DC and reflecting on American's past and present.
The first stop inside was the centerpiece of their collection, the Star Spangled Banner and it did not disappoint. It is a very large flag, with tremendous meaning and a very well orchestrated exhibit.
Next was the recovered great lakes gun boat the USS Philadelphia. I found this small exhibit to be quite well accomplished with the stories of the ship, it's sinking and its discovery/recovery years later. They even had the British shot that sank the ship and the hole that it caused. I have always been fascinated with wooden ships and the small ships and boat warfare that occurred on the great lakes during the War of 1812 so this exhibit was perfect!
Also of note: their exhibit on the history of the American soldier, the story of different families who all occupied the same house (which is on display), the great Julia Child's kitchen and a trove of other American cultural icons.
What I did not like was the sometimes misleading, one-sided or at times leading captions and questions in some of the exhibit literature and captions. This was especially prevalent in their exhibits on slavery, immigration and industrialization.
Then right before we where ready to leave, a very unlikely thing happened. Walking across the third floor lobby I came face to face with Giavana and Lindsey, 2 of the students from my program in Saint Petersburg. The odds of this chance meeting are quite incredible, they were in DC from Seattle and Ohio, we happened to be in the same part of the same attraction at the same time. We were all shocked but the encounter, had a nice talk and went our separate ways.
Following the museum we set out to walk down the national mall and visit all of the memorials down it's length.
First was the chillingly elegant, simple and deeply meaningful Vietnam Memorial.
Next the grand and imposing Lincoln Memorial. The steps in front provided a magnificent view of all of DC, the imposing structure was quite impressive and full meaning.
Next was the memorial to America's forgotten war, Korea. The striking statues of soldiers against the backdrop of faces and pictures of support personnel etched into a stone wall behind is a vivid visual and fitting tribute.
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