Colonial Road Trip Part 4a: Washington, D.C. Museums

(This is a repost from June 2014)

Dear ones welcome to the first part of the last stop on our colonial road trip: Washington, D.C. The picture collage says it all. You can see what we saw in the Smithsonian museums that we visited. We actually only visited one museum the first day in D.C. So you're seeing two days' worth of museums. Our first day in D.C. did not go as planned. We had no clue how long it would take to ride the metro. Then everything shut down shortly after we arrived. We couldn't find a bathroom or anything so we just rode the metro back to the station. We had to wait a long time for the hotel shuttle to pick us up. We were freezing. Did I mention that there had just been a winter storm? Yes, that's why there was snow everywhere!

So...D.C. was a culture shock for this country bumpkin. The houses are so close together. Everything is crowded. The hotel was nice but small. It was like a sardine can compared to the Southern hotels we had stayed in. The shuttle driver drove so close to other cars that I about had a panic attack. Remember, this trip was shortly after my bad wreck. Let's just say that I had some major traffic anxiety on this trip.

When we got to the metro station for the first time, Chris and I just stared at each other and then back at the Metro. We were obviously so clueless and obviously not from around there (Chris was wearing his old army jacket and looking very...Ummm not like a city person), that a Metro lady practically took us by the hand and showed us how to use the metro. We forgot half of what she said when we got back. We didn't realize that we needed to pay an extra dollar to leave. She chided us for forgetting and just let us through. I was afraid we'd never leave the metro!

It was strange because everyone was in their own world. In the south people usually talk..even if it's useless chit-chat. But most people on the metro were wearing headphones or reading papers. My son wanted to stand up with his Dad. Michael was the only one talking for a while. It was strange. I was also worried that the Metro would stop suddenly (like it does) and pitch Michael to the floor. It's like a game. You see who can jump through the metro door before it speeds away and chops you in half. Anywho, we finally grasped the workings of the Metro, on the second day. Then it was time to leave! :P So it goes...

We saw some neat things in the museums. It was neat to see real mummies. If you remember, we studied Egypt at the beginning of the year. Michael was terrified of mummies but I think seeing a real mummy took away his fears. He realized they're dead and can't hurt him. What amazed me about the city, was the vastness of it and the diversity of people. We heard three different languages all in one place. I also realized that the culture and atmosphere of the Metro changed depending on where we stopped. There were businessmen and poor people all riding together. That was unusual. Where we're from, mainly poorer people ride the bus. It was eye-opening to see such a melting pot.

That night...

...we were hungry and cold. Our food supply had dwindled and some of it had gone bad. I was upset with how much we had to throw out. So our plan for a cheap vacation went out the window. We ended up eating out. I actually had a Thanksgiving meal (turkey and mashed potatoes) at an Italian restaurant. It was strange. It was a fancy restaurant except that they sold drinks from a freezer. Yeah, it was a strange blend. The next day we ate out too. After eating peanut butter sandwiches for days, we just had to give in. It would've been too hard to carry all our food with us on the Metro and then as we walked all over D.C. Yeah, you know what they say about the best-laid plans...If there is a next time, I'll be more prepared. And for those of you who have a brain like mine, frozen pizzas can't be microwaved! Yeah, I was not thinking....wasted pizzas...what a bummer.

We also bought a window scraper for our car because of the snow. Actually, we got that in Virginia. We've never needed one before. I think I saw snow twice, growing up. Only once was it thick enough to play in. Anywho, it was a fun trip and we just had to be flexible. We really enjoyed each other and the experience (except the traffic). Join me tomorrow for the last post in this series, as we explore the awesome monuments of D.C. Enjoy the pictures!

God bless & remember the High King lives! ~Amber Dover

PS: Most of this obviously isn't colonial. But we did see things from that time. It turned out to be more of a historical road trip.

DC Part 2: