Day 4

Tonight, we're all a little worn out after our sightseeing adventures today. We're really enjoying our trip though--don't get me wrong. It's been great so far. Wandering around in the heat, though, does tend to be a little tiring.

Yesterday, after a lovely church service and lovely brunch, we wandered around the Air & Space Museum where we saw the Wright Flyer and the Spirit of St. Louis. We also saw the Apollo XI command module and touched a real moon rock! 

Mollie (thank you!) gave us a great tip about an Ethiopian restaurant, Etete, so we went there for dinner. It was delicious!! And a fun adventure.

Today, we played tourist again and went on a tour bus to the National Cathedral. There again, we saw a moon rock in the Space Window as well as the beautiful Rose Window. The cathedral is quite the impressive structure. I especially enjoyed seeing several of my books in the bookstore there. Yea! Jacob: "Are you seriously taking a picture of your books on display?" Of course.

Next, we went to the Holocaust Museum. What I found most moving were the poems and first-hand accounts on walls of the exhibits; one quote was from Elie Wiesel, an Auschwicz survivor. Here's the quote:

Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp, which has turned my life into one long night, seven times cursed and seven times sealed. Never shall I forget that smoke. Never shall I forget the little faces of the children, whose bodies I saw turned into wreaths of smoke beneath a silent blue sky.
Never shall I forget those flames which consumed my faith forever.
Never shall I forget that nocturnal silence which deprived me, for all eternity, of the desire to live. Never shall I forget those moments which murdered my God and my soul and turned my dreams to dust. Never shall I forget these things, even if I am condemned to live as long as God Himself. Never.

The museum's website looks extensive. Check it out. 

On our tour bus today we also saw: Ford's Theater (with some weird happy music playing in the background--for some reason the tour bus company thought that was appropriate at the place where Lincoln was assassinated), the White House (from about a mile away), lots of security surrounding the White House, charming Georgetown, the many Memorials, the Potomac, Chinatown, Union Station, the Capitol--the whole kit and kaboodle. 

In our down time, I'm reading two books (well, okay, three): House of the Seven Gables (for this weekend's adventures in Salem, MA), the EQ Edge (super practical and interesting book on emotional intelligence), and Picture Writing (for children's writers). 

Tomorrow it's onto the Capitol tour and the Spy Museum!