Odometer 30911 miles
Trip meter 0
We missed the 9:40 bus by less than 30 seconds this morning. Ok, we slept in just a little bit, but I was sure we could make it up if we drove from space #53, the quarter mile up to the front gate and left our car in the lot there. I had just locked the door and we were both sprinting for the bus- when it left the curb. Plan B went into effect. We waited the 20 minutes for the next bus and launched for another assault on the DC.
We even mastered the ATM-like machine used to put more $ on our Metro SmarTrip cards! Speaking of those- we had to purchase our two cards for $10 each at the park office, and, get this, they are loaded with $5 on them- not $10. Aparently the other $5 of the cost is the sellers incentive (it's the same cost everywhere). Joan and I figure on our last night here we should sell ours to an incoming visitor for $5 with whatever remains on the card that we haven't spent. Win-win...
We got off the Metro at Gallery Place this morning, and walked down G street to the White House. We got a late start, and then missed our first bus, so as we passed Jack's Salad Bar and Grill we decided to have an early lunch. What a good decision! Jack's has a fabulous salad bar- and a steam table full of hot entrees. I had fried rice with spicy chicken, and fresh steamed vegetables, and Joan had teriyaki chicken on brown rice with cucumber/tomato salad. We both had some stuffed grape leaves. Yeah! It was all good.
All fueled up, we walked around the White House taking pictures.
Here is a telephoto shot of the White House taken from the south lawn.
And here is how far away it really was from the nearest approach!
From the White House we proceeded over to the Air and Space museum. We counted 18 buses parked or letting off passengers as we approached the entrance- Rats!
My favorite parts of the museum were the additions offered by Burt Rutan's Scaled Composites- the Voyager shown here which is the first craft to fly non-stop around the world without refuling, and...
Spaceship One, the first private spacecraft to reach outer space. What a great inventor. Burt retired to Idaho in 2011, but I hope he is still dreaming and scheming.
I was also impressed with the sight of the Gossomer Albatross- the first human powered aircraft to cross the English Channel. Wow!
From the Air and Space Museum we crossed over to the National Gallery of Art. We left the crowds behind and the noise level dropped to normal as we entered- what a relief. The NGA is so incredible it defies my ability to describe it with words. We had expected to see beautiful paintings and we were not disappointed, but we both were captivated by the exquisite sculptures.
This bust by Rodin I believe- I honestly can't remember. The detail is incredible, the cloth looked real.
As we were moving around town we noticed this interesting parking job.
As we were walking back to the Metro to come home, we wittnessed a motorcade with a police escort- lights and sirens- did the President return to DC early? Sadly no, it was not POTUS.
On our way back to the RV park we stopped off at a Starbucks and relaxed in the sun with a couple of coffees, before resuming our bus ride back to Cherry Hill and our rolling home.
Your Traveling Friends
Jeff and Joan
Trip meter 0
We missed the 9:40 bus by less than 30 seconds this morning. Ok, we slept in just a little bit, but I was sure we could make it up if we drove from space #53, the quarter mile up to the front gate and left our car in the lot there. I had just locked the door and we were both sprinting for the bus- when it left the curb. Plan B went into effect. We waited the 20 minutes for the next bus and launched for another assault on the DC.
We even mastered the ATM-like machine used to put more $ on our Metro SmarTrip cards! Speaking of those- we had to purchase our two cards for $10 each at the park office, and, get this, they are loaded with $5 on them- not $10. Aparently the other $5 of the cost is the sellers incentive (it's the same cost everywhere). Joan and I figure on our last night here we should sell ours to an incoming visitor for $5 with whatever remains on the card that we haven't spent. Win-win...
We got off the Metro at Gallery Place this morning, and walked down G street to the White House. We got a late start, and then missed our first bus, so as we passed Jack's Salad Bar and Grill we decided to have an early lunch. What a good decision! Jack's has a fabulous salad bar- and a steam table full of hot entrees. I had fried rice with spicy chicken, and fresh steamed vegetables, and Joan had teriyaki chicken on brown rice with cucumber/tomato salad. We both had some stuffed grape leaves. Yeah! It was all good.
All fueled up, we walked around the White House taking pictures.
From the White House we proceeded over to the Air and Space museum. We counted 18 buses parked or letting off passengers as we approached the entrance- Rats!
I was also impressed with the sight of the Gossomer Albatross- the first human powered aircraft to cross the English Channel. Wow!
From the Air and Space Museum we crossed over to the National Gallery of Art. We left the crowds behind and the noise level dropped to normal as we entered- what a relief. The NGA is so incredible it defies my ability to describe it with words. We had expected to see beautiful paintings and we were not disappointed, but we both were captivated by the exquisite sculptures.
As we were moving around town we noticed this interesting parking job.
Now that's Smart!
On our way back to the RV park we stopped off at a Starbucks and relaxed in the sun with a couple of coffees, before resuming our bus ride back to Cherry Hill and our rolling home.
Your Traveling Friends
Jeff and Joan
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