Washington D.C. Part I

We are having a fabulous visit to Washington D.C.  The brand new marina where we are docked, Market Pier, is located at the District Wharf which is home to restaurants, marinas, water taxis,  condo buildings, and other assorted activities.  The marina is located a short walk from the National Mall.

We are overjoyed having 3 of our kids, Cassandra, Scott and Allegra, and Allegra’s boyfriend, join us at different times during the week.  Cassandra spent the entire week with us as visiting Washington D.C. was her dream trip.  We are squeezing in as many museums, memorials and sights as possible.  We walked no less than 7 mi. each day for the first 3 days.

Today Scott equalized the batteries and caught up on office work which took up most of the day.  It is important to equalize the batteries for maximum performance.  Then he realized that one of the bilge pumps that pumps water from the lowest points of the boat was destroyed from leaking battery acid.  This required him to hand pump out the bilge.  Although we have 4 other bilge pumps we do want all pumps working in case of an emergency.  My job was to locate a new bilge pump within an uber ride which was a challenge.

The back of the Capitol

The Electric Super Highway

Here are some highlights of our week:  we walked the full length of the National Mall from the Supreme Court to the Lincoln Memorial which was 2.6 mi.  We toured the American Art Museum where the Electric Super Highway, the Thomas Hart Benton and the Piano were my favorites.  We saw the Obamas’ portraits in the National Portrait Gallery.  In the Smithsonian Castle, the original Smithsonian museum, Scott entertained us by interacting with Pepper, the robot.  I had heard great reviews about the Spy Museum and they were all correct…it was intriguing seeing the actual tools used by real spies.  The National Archives was surprisingly fascinating, especially the section on our constitutional rights.  We were walking right next to Mitch McConnell, the senate majority leader, at the National WWII Memorial.  Lastly, we toured the Hirschhorn Contemporary Art Museum where we had in-depth discussions about the works we viewed.  Cassandra and I studied some art history in school and love the museums.  Scott enjoyed our descriptions of our favorite pieces afterward much more than he would have enjoyed actually seeing them!

Piano from the American Art Museum

The Wish Tree by Yoko Ono at the Hirschhorn Museum

Lincoln Memorial

Vietnam Veterans Wall

My favorite part of the trip so far was when Allegra played her ukulele and we sang along until her fingers hurt.   This was per Scott’s request because he absolutely loves it when we all sing together!  No amount of sightseeing can rival the time we spend with 3 of our kids!