We are on our way home and judging solely by the frequency that everyone involved keeps falling asleep sitting up or anytime they stop moving, I would say the trip was a total success and everyone involved got some of what they wanted and is happy.
It was unclear at first if we were indeed crazy for choosing the busiest time of year to come to DC but sadly we wanted to bring the kids this weekend for the same reasons that make it the busiest time to come, so there was no getting around it. For the record, totally worth it.
The kids are a funny mix that is that in-between age where little mundane things are still super exciting and super weighty important things just don't even register yet.
Seeing Thomas Jefferson's personal collection of books that was used to re-start the Library of Congress after the War of 1812? Meh.
We get to go through another security scanner to get into the Library of Congress building?? NEATO!!
Yes, it was a city built perfectly for our weird little boys. Full of history, weird facts, escalators, buttons to push, interactive exhibits, security scanners, large rooms with incredible echoes, massive statues of everyone worth knowing about, random chunks of information being thrown at you any time you enter a building, fireworks and cupcakes.
We walked a lot each day, it was hot. We swam in the pool most evenings, it was both stressful and relaxing. We took the train almost everywhere, it was fun for the boys and the reason for a good deal of walking. We saw the Washington Monument, the Capitol Building (inside and out), met a Top Chef contestant (got photo), toured the Bureau of Engraving and Printing to see new $100's being printed, explained why the front stairs of the Holocaust Museum may indeed be fun to play and giggle on but it still isn't allowed, met our Congressman's aides and got the inside scoop on the Capitol building, visited the Air and Space Museum to touch a moon rock and see a lame planetarium show, saw the White House from a couple angles, had an awesome dinner at the most kid-friendly place I've ever seen, compared cupcakes between Georgetown and Dupont Circle, emptied a Starbucks gift card, crawled through ductwork and found listening devices and memorized cover identities at the Spy Museum, found out you can't go inside the reading room at the Library of Congress without a library card (followed by wiping tears from the most passionate 7 year old reader you'll ever meet) and made up for it with an "I Can't Live Without Books" t-shirt from the gift shop, saw the Ruby Slippers, C3PO, Kermit the Frog and Julia Child's kitchen on display in a museum, got all art-snobby at some beat poet photography, sat quietly with Aidan after reading the Gettysburg Address off the wall of the Lincoln Memorial and watched his little mind try to embrace the idea that inspiring people to something larger is more important that people remembering if you were there or not, listened to a terrible reggae band tell the crowd on the Mall that legalizing marijuana is the one thing that truly crosses party lines and one issue we should all REALLY be working on, marveled at the poor choice of putting the political thrash-punk music stage within earshot of the somber crowds making their way through the Vietnam Memorial, watched the sunset at the edge of the reflecting pool before being absolutely dazzled and awestruck by the most amazing and massive fireworks display I have ever seen.
That was just the DC-relevant stuff. That didn't include all the races to/from the elevator, the breakfast Froot Loop buffet, walking miles in the pummeling heat, eating cupcakes, teaching the kids about mass transit maps, constantly being mindful about how long it would be until we were around another public restroom and swimming in the hotel pool.
Incidentally - Embassy Suites shows kids' movies on the 2nd floor in a small, fun auditorium setup while serving cocktails on the 1st floor to the parents. Both for FREE. Both every day. This is genius and they may have just gained four customers for life. Please support them and maybe others will be forced to adopt this policy in order to compete.
We are home now and happy to trade the oppressive heat for the oppressive humidity and the chance to show the kids some of the more important artifacts of American history for the ability to show them the door and tell them to go drive each other nuts for a few minutes without me.
Vacation over, time to rest.
1 comment:
Sounds like a smashing success. Well done!u
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