Washington DC

In November my family and I were returning from Miami, and we had decided to fly back to Dublin via Washington as this was the best value route we could find at the time. The flight to Washington came at the end of a two-week holiday and it would be the third day in a row that we had packed up and checked out of somewhere so I knew that the 6 hours we would have to wait for our connecting flight would be hard on everyone. I decided that instead of travelling on I would book us into a hotel in Washington for the night and we would get our Dublin flight the next evening.

I have to admit that when we landed in Dulles airport, I started to think I had made a mistake doing this as everyone was tired and seemed to be in no mood for the transfer to the centre of Washington. Despite this we jumped in a few taxis and headed into town. The closer we got to the centre of the city the more my tiredness was replaced with anticipation, Washington seemed to be a more vibrant and beautiful city than I had imagined, and the occasional glimpse of the flood lit monuments in the distance had me actually excited. Everyone seemed to have the same reaction, so by the time we all regrouped at ‘The Beacon Hotel’ there was a renewed energy and an impatience to get out and explore.

It was straight around the corner for something to eat, you have to love the American diner. Then when everyone had eaten, we decided we should take a sightseeing walk. I’d been told that it is worth taking a nighttime walk to see all flood lit monuments, as it really is a different experience from a daytime tour. That turned out to be great advice. We were only a few minutes’ walk from Lafayette Square where the White House is located so we had to head there first to take lots of photos. We then walked around to the back of the White House and had to pass the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, this huge French style building was amazing, and I was so surprised I had never heard of it before. That tended to be the theme in Washington, thinking we knew what to expect but finding it had so much more to offer.

The Mall, located behind the White House, has the flood lit Washington Monument right in its centre. We walked right to the base so we could really appreciate its height. During the day it’s possible to take a lift right to the top. The Capitol building is located at one end of the Mall and the Lincoln Memorial is at the opposite end. We decided to head to the Lincoln Memorial and on the way had to pass the impressive World War 2 Memorial and the Reflecting Pool. The pool was much longer than it appears in TV, I was left wondering how Forest managed to hear Jenny calling him across that distance.

The Lincoln Memorial is also a lot bigger than I expected, I had to conclude that cameras do not really do justice to this city. The Gettysburg address is carved on the wall beside the monument, and it was strangely moving to read it in this location. From there we headed back to the Hotel for a night’s rest as it was clear we had a big day of sightseeing ahead of us.

The next day we caught a bus to Union Station, we just picked this as a starting point, but once we got there it was obvious the station building warranted a tour. From there it was a short walk to the Russell Senate Office Building. We were allowed inside to stroll its hall, passing by Senator’s offices on our way to the Kennedy Caucus Room. A ceremony for the Marines was being held there so we just got to peek into this beautiful room. After this we entered the Capitol building where I was surprised to find out that we could view the actual Senate and Congress in session. It’s a good idea to always carry ID when you are travelling around the States, it is needed for a lot more than bars, getting into the Senate viewing gallery for example.

We walked along the Mall, heading into different buildings as we passed and unfortunately having to skip a lot more because of time pressure. The Botanic Gardens were one place we had to pass, and we only had about 15 minutes to jog through the European Masters section of the National Art Gallery. Just long enough to realise there was a lot more to see. Most of our time was spent in the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. There are so many diverse exhibits here you would need more than a full day, but we did get to a few fun ones. We walked through the butterfly pavilion, got to admire the ‘Hope Diamond’ and marvel at the prehistoric skeletons.

A staff member gave us a great tip, if you exit from the back of the museum, you are near the Trump International Hotel, this was the old Post Office Pavilion, and the clock tower is still open to the public. You only have to take the lift to the top for some of the best views in the city. At this stage we left the Mall area which reminded me of a European capital and headed into the surrounding streets that were unmistakably modern American. The shops here were fabulous and we picked up plenty of last-minute gifts.

We headed back to the Airport in the evening discussing what a marvellous surprise Washington had proven to be. We had seen so much but there was still a lot we would have liked to see. Along with all the museums we were forced to skip, I would have loved to get to Arlington Cemetery to see JFK’s resting place or to wander the historic streets of Georgetown. The solution we came up with was that we would all visit Washington again and stay for a lot longer.