A Journey to a Better Me....: Adventures in D.C. Part 3

First off, let me just say that these blogs have been quite an undertaking and I can't wait until I'm done (this is the last!). I'm glad to see that they're getting some page views. Otherwise, this would all feel pointless. I promise, when these are over it's back to my short and sweet blogs.

So now it's Saturday. My mom had her conference. My sister wanted to sleep all day again. So I went out by myself. Now some people would not be up to this. I, on the other hand, prefer this. I always feel like other people don't move as quick as I'd like to or sometimes they don't want to see the same things I do. I get more done when I'm alone. Someday, I hope I can find a travel buddy who travels like I do. But until then, I am completely comfortable on my own (I mean, I did go to Thailand by myself when I was 20).

I decided to head to Tidal Basin, where the Jefferson Memorial, FDR Memorial, and MLK Memorials are. We didn't make it there on the day that would've been normal to get there because, as I mentioned, other people move too slow.

Tidal Basin

Jefferson Memorial

George Mason Memorial

FDR Memorial

MLK Memorial

I was pretty hungry after that, so I stopped at this place called the Wicked Waffle. They make sandwiches with waffles as the bread. I thought it looked interesting. I got a prosciutto, mozzarella, and arugula sandwich. It was....interesting. Not bad, but I don't know if it was good either. It was just, interesting.

On recommendation by a friend, I went to the Renwick Gallery.

This is called Game Fish. The artist makes things out of different objects. For this, he used toys and game pieces. I thought it was pretty cool.

I didn't look at what this was called, but I thought it was really beautiful. It's completely hollow.

I didn't have a ton of time left before I had to be back at the hotel to see the DC United soccer game. I would've liked to go to the International Spy Museum, Ford's Theatre, or the National Archives. All of those are on my list for next time. I did see the outside of Ford's Theatre though. The second picture is right across the street. It's the house Lincoln died in.

These guys were so cool. I'm pretty sure they were all Vets, and they were blaring country music. I loved it.

This the US Navy Memorial. While I was here, some guy ran up and snatched a couple's backpack! They were even wearing US Navy shirts! Luckily, some sirens went off in the distance. It must've spooked the thief because he dropped the bag right before he ran across the street. People are nuts!

Then it was soccer game time and then off to bed!

The next day, my mom still had her conference, and Genna STILL wanted to sleep all day. I'm thinking, why even go? Oh well. Like I said, I like to explore on my own. =)

As another recommendation from another friend, I went to the Phillips Collection near Dupont Circle. It has more modern art, and it was really cool. I didn't take any pictures inside, but I did take some of the outside.

I heard from someone that Embassy Row had some pretty cool architecture, and I love architecture....especially in this area. On my way there, I ran into this guy.

And then it was embassy time! They were seriously beautiful.

Back in Dupont Circle, I was reminded of kind of a California/Venice Beach vibe. There were sayings and Bible verses and quotations written in chalk. There were people just hanging out and reading or playing music. There were homeless people. There were young people and old people. And you know in movies when they have those chess boards that are built in and all those old guys playing each other? They actually exist! I saw them here! I'm really disappointed that I didn't get a picture. But it was exciting.

Back in National Harbor, I got off the bus and started walking to my hotel. And this was the view. Gorgeous.

The next day was Memorial Day. My mom didn't have any more convention stuff, and my sister knew she had to get up. But they were not ready to go by the time I wanted to leave. We were going to Arlington Cemetery and I really REALLY wanted to see the wreath laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Solder. So I ran to the bus stop, and then rode on three different Metro lines. The Cemetery was packed! You had to take a shuttle to get up to the tomb. And thank goodness I was by myself. Otherwise I would have had to wait much longer to get on. Unfortunately though, I just missed the cut off before the fire marshal said no more people allowed in the amphitheater. I was pretty sad. We could hear the 21 Gun Salute, and we could hear the singing and music, but during the speeches, some people pulled out the live stream on their phones so we could listen. Even though I was outside, it was still an amazing experience. There were so many people at the cemetery, and as you walk in, there were Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts handing out roses so you could lay them on graves. I laid mine on an infant's (a child of a soldier). It was a very humbling experience. The cemetery is so huge and there are so many headstones. We should probably stop all war because I don't think it'll fit a whole lot more...

There were so many headstones that looked just like this one. I wish I had enough roses to lay on all of them.

Then we went to the 9/11 Memorial at the Pentagon. This was a pretty significant moment in my trip. This was in my lifetime. I remember when we heard about it. I was in my Geography class with Mr. Deskins. My best friend, Jade, was in my class. We didn't do any classwork the whole time. We just watched videos of the planes crashing. It was such a sad day. For the whole week, the soap opera we watched (Passions) was cancelled and replaced with constant news updates. I think the Pentagon crash often gets overlooked, but 184 (or 186?) people lost their lives. This memorial honored each and every one of them. It was really special.

Next was the part I had been waiting for the most, Theodore Roosevelt Island. I freaking LOVE TR. He is, hands down, my favorite president because he's just so cool! I mean, this guy overcame so much adversity. He was so arrogant, so boisterous, and so smart. And just so you know, he hated to be called Teddy.