DC Trip - Day 13

2014 DC Trip Day 13 Monday April 28

We are continuing to explore the D.C. Area
Today, the Forecast was for Rain

Places Visited Photos, and Notes

Today seemed like a good day to catch up on things in the District
There are some things we have not yet seen and done.

The Freer Gallery of Art has Asian and Middle-Eastern art
It is named for a man named Freer who collected much of what is on display

Had not yet stopped in the Smithsonian Institution Building, the Castle, so we explored

Smithson is interred in the castle.

Xrossed the mall, could not resist another photo of the Washington Monument or the Capital

It was a damp, sprinkly morning, but nice nonetheless

Next went to the US National Archives & Records Administration
l
They do not allow photography inside. Was very lucky in that the crowds were very thin.
Heard tales of long lines out the door.
Saw the Magna Carta, the Declaration of Independence, The Constitution, the Bill of Rights

Next strolled up Pennsylvania Avenue. This is a diagonal street between the Capital and the White House
If you remember, the presidential innaugeration takes place in the Capital. After, the ceremony continues in the White House
One of the past presidents, William Henry Harrison, walked from the Capital to the White House on a rainy day,
caught pneumonia and subsequently died.
More recently, Jimmy Carter walked the same way. Later that evening, he was presented with a photo of his procession from space.
It is unclassified now, but in the days of Corona, having to drop and secure film canisters,
to retrieve and process an overhead photo in that amount of time was a very big deal.

There are a large number of interesting buildings along Pennsylvania Avenue

The J. Edgar Hoover FBI building.
I understand there used to be a lady's dress shop next door

The IRS. Yes, sir, that's where my money goes. . .

I saw this building and I thought it has a big top.
Usually, a big top means a circus. I guess in the District, that is entirely appropriate

The Old Post Office with a statue of Ben Franklin, the first Post Master General

The Ronald Reagan Building

Thirteen and one-half street.
The last time the two parties reached a compromise?

As we passed by an out building on the White House grounds, we watched bomb-sniffing dogs
inspecting visiting automobiles at a check point

This is the nearest we could approach, about half a mile away.

The executive office buildings. Pretty fancy.

Somehow I had come across information on Loeb`s NY Deli.
It is about three blocks from the White House so the idea of a late lunch there
It is a good, highly rated New York, Jewish style deli

We got our sandwiches and matzoh-ball soup and were enjoying ourselves
when we looked up and saw a couple of familiar faces.
We knew that Caroline and Rob were in town but did not know how to contact them
no phone number or email address. But, here they were!

What fun. We had a very nice visit

Then back to the crumby Holiday Inn Rosslyn @ Key Bridge

The Locations Today