We left New York on Friday morning and caught the Amtrak to Washington DC. I love travelling on trains. So much nicer than planes. DC was such a change from New York. Wide open streets, no skyscrapers, lots of enormous low rise buildings built in classical styles. It felt like a breath of fresh air after the intensity of New York.
After taking a short walk around our neighbourhood, we were picked up by my cousin, Patrick. We went to watch a high school basketball game coached by my other cousin, Julie. Ronan and I loved the glimpse into a slice of American life. We were able to get beyond the tourist facade and see what life here really looks like. Truth is, it looked pretty much like life in an Australian basketball stadium.
Patrick and Julie took us to dinner and we spent about three hours talking non-stop catching up on the forty years since I last met them (actually I have never met Julie before. She hadn't been born when I last visited the US). It was absolutely brilliant to meet my extended family and we got along really well. Patrick's kids are almost exactly the same age as mine which gives us even more family here. By the time we stopped talking it was after 11 and Ronan and I were exhausted.
We started Saturday morning at the National Mall where the Capitol Building, the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial all line up in a magnificent sweeping view. As we only had one full day in the city, we had to make some tough choices about what to visit. We started with the Archives of the United States where we saw the Declaration of Independence, the US constitution and the Bill of Rights. There are beautifully displayed in an rotunda shaped room.
From a huge list of Smithsonian museums, we decided to see the Museum of American History. I must say, the Americans really do good museums. The displays are unusual and engaging and really, really comprehensive.
After that, we decided to head for the White House. As luck would have it, today was the day of the annual Women's March. We joined in the march which I really enjoyed. It felt great to be able to be part of an anti-Trump protest.
Last stop for the day was the Lincoln Memorial. Like so much in DC, it is built on a huge scale which is so impressive. The size of everything in this city gives me the impression that they were pretty determined to make a statement to the rest of the world when they built it.
We had our first snow of the trip today. Not a lot, but it was nice to experience it anyway. This was our last day on the east coast. Tomorrow, we fly to San Francisco for our last stop on the trip.
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