After the big day of travel yesterday and the hard time unwinding and getting to sleep it was a slow start to the day today. Mid-morning we headed downstairs to Starbucks and began the day with coffee and hot chocolates. We then walked down Independence Avenue with a plan to explore many of the main monuments.
We stumbled upon our first stop. The Enid A Haupt Garden - one of the many Smithsonian exhibits. It is a 4.2 acre public garden designed to be a modern representation of American Victorian gardens of the mid to late 19th century. The gardens in front of the Smithsonian Castle were stunning with the most beautiful magnolia trees in full bloom.
Next we made our way to the Washington Monument. Here in the Information Centre the boys were happy to discover that although we could not go up inside the monument as it was still being repaired after a 2011 earthquake they could get their National Parks Passports stamped for all of the parks and monuments in Washington D.C.
We then walked to the World War II Memorial, and the Reflection Pool on the way to the Lincoln Memorial. The boys were keen to read all of the quotes inside the Lincoln Memorial and to see and read all of the exhibits about Lincoln in the chamber below the memorial. Once we finished at the Lincoln Memorial we visited the Korean and Vietnam Memorials, with a short pause to admire the local squirrels. The Vietnam Memorial in particular was very moving. School children had left notes at the base of some of the walls. In one case a man who had served in Vietnam had written a letter for his daughter describing some of the men he had served with who were killed in action and asked her to please leave the letter at the base of the wall with their names. This was very moving as it brought these men to life. They were not just another name on the wall but real people who had their lives taken far too soon. It was wonderful being able to explain the historical events, good and bad, to the boys.
Next we walked along Constitutional Avenue to make our way to the White House. It was a very long walk because the President'sPark/Ellipse was blocked off and heavily policed. It was not possible to get remotely close to the South Side of the White House. A Ranger said normally it is not blocked off but had been today for some reason. This meant a lot of back tracking. We also tried to find the White House Visitor Centre so that the boys could cash in one of their vouchers for a White House Key Ring. We found the building but it was temporarily closed due to renovations. This meant more back tracking to the temporary centre at President's Park. We went inside only to discover that they didn't sell key chains. Connor traded his voucher for a commemorative medallion and then later bought a key chain from a street vendor. After another walk to Pennsylvania Avenue we found the White House Gift store where Ryan was also able to get a key chain.
Our next mission was to find something to eat. On the corner of 13th and F Avenue we found a food court which gave us a range of options. After lunch we tried to go to Ford Theatre but the tickets had all been sold for the day. Our final stop of the day was The International Spy Museum. This is the only public museum in the USA dedicated to espionage and features the largest collection of international espionage artefacts ever put on display. The boys really enjoyed the many interactive exhibits they could also participate in including having to memorise their cover story, being given and needing to memorise a mission and get out of the country without being detected, finding hidden airplanes using satellite photos, code breaking, using observation skills to learn the tricks of the spy trade etc. The items on display were eye opening. Towards the end of the exhibit their was also a whole floor dedicated to James Bond. The boys had a lot of fun deciding on items to buy using their voucher for the museum. Connor came away with an 11 in one spy tool and secret safe, while Ryan chose a spy key chain and a disguised safe. Unfortunately visitors are not allowed to take any photos inside the museum.
When they boys had had their fill of espionage for the day we walked back to the hotel all a little exhausted. After a short break we headed downstairs for dinner before calling it a night.
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