Long weekend in DC- Days 21-23

 Evening of Day 21 (Friday)

After getting to my hotel around 4pm I took a much needed nap before dinner.  Driving in the DC metro is active driving.  There is no setting the cruise control and jamming out here--at least not for me.  So the drive while shorter than many this trip really wore me out. 

I walked to a local place: Barley Mac for dinner. I had the most wonderful fig and prosciutto pizza with goat cheese, arugula and balsamic. I got bread pudding to go, and after some of the amazing bread puddings I've had in the south, this was nothing to write home about. 

I talked with the hubby a bit over google- thank god for video calls, and called it a night. 

Day 22 (Saturday):

Lesson learned- I will always check to see if the alarm clock is set in my hotel rooms in the future.  This one was, for 6am.  I was not ready to be awake at 6am, but I also had no idea how to turn it off, so I unplugged it.  I managed to sleep another 90 minutes before actually waking up for the day.  I slathered myself in sunscreen from Head to toe and started off into my journey for the day. 

Given that the first half of my day was entirely on foot, it's less about stops and more about the paths I took. 

I started the day walking to Roosevelt Island.  While I've made nearly a dozen trips to DC over the years, I've never done this.  You'll find that's a theme this trip--doing things I've never done. 

As I entered the Island (which is about a mile from my hotel), I noticed that there was a race starting on the trail loop.  They were doing a staggered start time, which meant I would have to deal with runners for awhile. - Which I didn't want to do, so I saw the monument and walked back off the island and headed towards Georgetown.  My initial thought was to have brunch in Georgetown, but I decided against it, and just kept walking.  I realized I was only 2 miles away from the National Mall on foot, so I set off to do that.  The walk from Georgetown to the national Mall is beautiful.  There was a detour, but it was still lovely.  You pass by the Watergate Complex and the Kennedy Center before continuing down the path and arriving at the back side of the Lincoln memorial.  

I decided to walk toward the Holocaust museum as I was going to try to get Day of Tickets  (they hold a few tickets for each time slot in reserve for release at 11am each day). I was lucky enough to get an entry ticket with the first group at 11am.  I spent over 2 hours in the museum the last hour of which I spent in tears.  I started to cry during the audio theatre presentation of survivors sharing their memories and completely lost it when I saw the shoes and read the corresponding quote 

"We are the shoes, we are the last witnesses. We are shoes from grandchildren and grandfathers 

from Prague, Paris, and Amsterdam.

And because we are only made of fabric and leather-

and not of blood and flesh- 

each one of us avoided the Hellfire"

-Moses Schulstein - Yiddish

It's so important that we take the time to learn about the past so we can work tirelessly to stop it from repeating itself.  There was a description early on in the museum about how the conservative party members underestimated Hitler and the liberals were naive to how volatile he would become.   I instantly thought of the last 6 years, the rise of Donald Trump to power, the efforts to dismantle democracy the lack of accountability even amongst his own party.  We owe it to future generations to always keep asking "Why?" and to never stop holding those in power accountable. 

As an educator I would suggest this museum to families with kids in 6th grade and up.  There were a lot of small and elementary aged children when I went through who were really struggling with the pacing of the museum, the quietness, the lack of interactives and the subject matter/imagery.I also watched as several parents lied to their children about what they were looking at, which IMO isn't helpful- So if you think you need to lie about images of bodies or crematoriums, your kid probably isn't ready for this museum. 

After the museum I was very hungry, having only had a granola bar for breakfast.  I stopped at a street vendor and got a Lamb Gyro- it was very tasty.

After my lunch on the lawn of the National Mall, I made the responsible decision to take the metro back to my hotel. -My feet were thankful as it would have been a 3+ mile walk to add to an already long day. Before getting back to my hotel I did stop at a grocer to pick up more water, gatorade and some fresh fruit, so I can make healthy snacking choices. 

Once I got back to my hotel I took a much needed cool shower and curled up to relax for the afternoon. 

"Morning walk"- 8 miles (16,165 steps) and 6 flights of stairs. 

Dinner- Crafthouse-Arlington- Skip it.  While the tap list is good and has a fair amount of variety, the food wasn't very good and the service was worse.  When managers treat their staff like crap (yes I watched it happen) then staff don't feel a desire to work hard or provide good service to costumers, leading to costumers not wanting to spend their money there.  Normally I would have stayed for a second beer, but I had no interest in spending any more time or money there. 

Glad I had some fruit and mochi ice cream back at my hotel so I could still have something sweet tonight. 

With dinner I took the train, but still added about a mile and half to my day. (19,091 steps total) 

Day 23 (Sunday) 

Started the day off with the Spy Museum,  while this is a fee-ticketed museum, it's certainly a lot of fun.  Lots of interesting things to look at and many interactive stations to help you move your way through the museum. I saw a lot of smaller children in there who were struggling,  but I'd say it's a really good fit for finishing 3rd grade and up.  

After the museum I grabbed a Fried Chicken Sandwich- Not nearly as tasty as my Lamb Gyro yesterday, but filled me up, and I walked to the white house.  Through the many layers of gates I could see bee keepers and was pleasantly surprised to learn that the white house keeps bees. I learned that the Obama's brought the bees to the property in  early 2016. 

Rosslyn Station Escalator

By now the breeze had died down and the joy of being outside in DC had wained so I took the train back to the hotel.  One last endeavor on the Rosslyn Station Escalator which I've grown to hate.  Going up it feels like the stairs to nowhere - 207 Feet- After a day in the city I have ZERO interest in climbing them so I stand on the right and wait the 3-minutes to the top. I also very much dislike going down them as I lose my sense of self in space and feel like I will fall forward to my death. So while staying in Rosslyn is perhaps the most practical and much more affordable way to do DC, be prepared. 

I relaxed in my hotel room, ate some fruit and veggies and took a nap. 

In the afternoon/evening I connected with an old friend for a Wine tasting and Dinner. 

Winery: Paradise Springs 

They had 2 tasting options- An all Red flight and a mixed red & whit flight.  I chose the latter.  Of the 6 wines in the flight, I enjoyed all but 1 red, which was just too earthy for me.  But I do like that I am finding I can enjoy a red wine in small quantities.  I'm certainly not going to finish off. a bottle of red with a friend like I can a bottle of white in the summer, but I appreciate that I am finding that not all reds are bad. 

Dinner: Silver Diner

Elevated diner favorites. The menu is extensive. I stayed a bit more traditional and had a burger- it was nicely elevated beyond what I would normally expect at a diner as it was bison with pesto. But I'm a fan of any place with good costumer service that does food well and this checked that box.  

I got back to my hotel late in the evening and crashed after a long day (Total steps 9,859)

This was overall a very different trip to DC than I've done before, which is exactly what I wanted.  I wasn't trying to fit everything in. I've seen all the monuments and memorials. I've been to nearly every Smithsonian. I am thankful that this time I saw DC from a different perspective. 

Hotel Review: Hyatt Centric

Pros: Parking included, Free wifi, Tv, Mini Fridge, Keurig (with coffee and Tea options), Safe in room, Comfy (firm) bed with lots of fluffy blankets and pillows,  Hanging Closet space, close to Rosslyn Station Metro Stop- Orange, Blue and Silver lines, Affordable compared to DC hotels of similar caliber. 

Cons: I'm right next to the elevator- (the noise at night wasn't a problem but it's really loud during the day), large hold charge on Credit card - (significantly greater than others on this trip), No Microwave, no drawer space,  no restaurant, breakfast or room service due to covid. 

Neutral- Accessible room-- This is never something I ask for as I am "able bodied" I put it in quotes because sometime motor planning and movement can be hard, but I have legs that carry me on long walks and would never want to take an accessible room away from someone who really does need it.  That said, there are certainly things about this space that I do like.  The way the outlets and light switches are set up are easier for me to access and use. There is more space. The bathroom has a handheld shower wand, and a bench in the shower both of which make showering so much easier. --(For those who don't know me well, taking a shower can be incredibly draining for me, so having a seat is a blessing). 

Signing off for now

-C