Washington DC-Part 3

Sunday, 11/15/15 - The four of us are off to the Natural History Museum, one of the largest museums in D.C.  We started in a special display of top-rated photography. The photos were all of animals and/or landscapes and every one of them was great  Here are some of the winners (and my favorites):

Eagle with a fish

Leopard after an Alligator

Hummingbird

Dancing Pelican
(my favorite)

The section on the mammals was OK, but expected.  It was good to be able to see some of the animals up close (especially the African larger animals), but they were lifeless and had no story, so didn't grab my attention.  They had a beautiful Bull Elephant in the Rotunda and a Blue Whale hanging from the ceiling in the Ocean section.

The section that did grab my attention was the Minerals and Gems.  There they had beautiful rocks, crystals, and most especially beautiful jewelry.  The big attraction here was the Hope Diamond, which had its own section, and the story of how the gem was mined and passed from one owner to another - all the while getting cut down twice - until it was donated to the Smithsonian by Harry Winston when he died.  Here are a couple of my favorites:

The Hope Diamond
(the photo does not show the deep blue color very well)

Marie Antoinette's Earrings

Aquamarine

It took the whole day and we were all tired, so we headed back to the RV.


Monday, 11/16/15 - Today is a walking day.  We took the Metro to the center of D.C. and walked past the original Smithsonian Building (they call it the Castle) - now it is the Smithsonian Visitor Center, since the Smithsonian outgrew its original space.

Smithsonian Castle

We then walked on to the Holocaust Museum (about 7 blocks - and these are very big blocks - one DC block is equal in length to 3 of ours).  The Holocaust Museum was just amazing.  In fact, there were so many pictures, recordings, and videos, that you almost hit overload before you are finished.  More than half of the pictures were taken by the SS (Nazis).  The evidence of the horror is unquestionable.  I cannot fathom why there are some people who still say that the Holocaust never happened.  Two of the pictures I took were especially historical.  The first is of all the highest level officers of Hitlers' men (the bad guys); and second is of three of our generals, Eisenhower, Bradley, and Patton inspecting one of the death camps after the war was over.

Hitler and his top men

Eisenhower, Bradley, and Patton
inspecting a death camp after the war

Lastly, here is the memorial at the end of the tour.

The Holocaust Remembrance

After we left the Holocaust Museum, we walked to the Washington Memorial which sits up on the top of a hill.  All the flags were at half mast due to the attack in France.

Washington Memorial with
flags at half mast

We walked all the way around it, and then walked toward the World War II Memorial.   As we left the monument, I caught this picture of the Washington Monument with the sunlight on only one side - quite a site.

The WWII Memorial - Of all the war memorials, this one was my favorite.  It is huge, and was still loaded with flowers from the Veterans Day ceremonies of 11/11/15.  Two large entrances,adorn the east and west.  They were labeled 'Pacific' and 'Atlantic', with doves holding a wreath of peace in their beaks.  Every state and province was represented with pillars adorned with wreaths.  All of the wreaths, doves, and ropes were bronze pieces made in Oregon.  It was stunning.

West side entrance
of the WWII Memorial

Harry Truman signed this

One side of the WWII Memorial
(Atlantic entrance in the back)

On one side, there was a wall of stars depicting the casualties of the war.  It touched my heart.

Wall of stars
"Here We Mark The Price of Freedom"

Explanation of the Stars

After the WWII Memorial, we walked to the Lincoln Memorial along the reflecting pool (a long walk).  Cherry trees hung over the walkway on both sides all the way there, and I could only imagine how this walkway must look in the spring when the cherry blossoms are in full bloom.

Next we walked to the Korean War Memorial.  Again, it was so well done.  All of the figures in their rain gear were done in aluminum.  They made it look like they were walking through the jungle, be planting junipers on the ground.  The wall next to the figures was etched in the faces of the men and women who fought in that war.

The Korean War Memorial

From there, we walked all the way down Constitution Blvd. to the Archives area (about 7-8 blocks) to meet up with Jeanette and David for dinner.  Tom and I walked past the White House at one point and I caught this picture, even though the White House was actually two blocks away.

The White House from Constitution Blvd.

We walked past the Constitution Gardens and I got this beautiful picture.

Constitution Gardens

We walked all the way to the area of the Archives (about 7-8 blocks), and met Jeanette and David at "Plan B", our favorite restaurant for the best hamburger I have ever had (even better than In and Out).  I might add that all of this walking was not possible for me.  Tom pushed me in a wheelchair the entire way and I think we covered about 3 miles with rough pavement and uneven sidewalks.  He was exhausted but never complained.  What a Guy!