A Capital Idea

Sarah at the U.S. Capitol

A few weeks ago, wanting to go on a short trip, but not sure of where, I thought of Washington, D.C.; we hadn't really visited in almost two decades. Sure, a museum here or a monument there as we passed through, but nothing in depth, as has become our practice. The new Human Origins exhibit at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History which I had recently read about was probably what put the idea of this trip in my mind.

Earth Day and climate change were not on my mind when I planned our trip and we were surprised to find pavilion tents and exhibits on the Mall on our first day. The four days of activities and the exposition atmosphere on the Mall added to our enjoyment of this trip. We visited tents from the likes of NASA and EPA as well of those from many companies involved with products and programs dealing with the climate and nature. We collected seed packets, key chains, and lots of pens and a bunch of water bottles. My favorite bottle is from the "EPA Office of Criminal Enforcement." Most of the posters and info packets will go to our daughter, the science teacher. Many of the seeds have already been planted by our daughter-in-law, the home gardener.
























I had numerous opportunities to discuss climate change with those manning tables and staffing tents. We did not always see eye to eye. The EPA had sponsored a competition for college-student groups to develop products and programs which would help people around the world deal with environmental problems. Some of the student-developed programs had already been implemented with $70,000 EPA grants such as a clean water project for a village in Kenya. Our discussions with the students confirmed our view that American education is still producing those capable of making great strides for the betterment of humanity.

This trip was different than those of the past and we got a lot more done. For this trip, we took a hotel room about two blocks from the Mall. We dropped off our luggage, put our car in the garage and left it there for the week as we hoofed it around Washington; we did not even take the Metro because we were situated where the action was. By eliminating travel time, we were able to get a lot more done. Although we did spend time walking, many sites of interest are either gathered on the Mall or nearby. Some of the sites which we visited are unchanged from visits of the past, but some memorials and museums were new to us and some, although there for decades, if not more than a century, had been low priority during previous visits.

Something that we had never seen before: Marine 1 delivering the First Family to the White House.

Our first day there was in glorious sunshine. We had decided to walk past the White House on our way to pay our respects at the WWII Memorial and to Thomas Jefferson. As we approached the White House, we were able to see Marine I delivering President Obama from his trip to NYC. I am sure that there is a lot involved with a flight on Air Force I and the helicopter flight from the airport to the White House, but I still think that it took Obama less time to make the trip than it did for me on I-95. We did not see the Obama family; the Secret Service or whoever is in charge of protecting the president closed streets from which one could see the lawn of the White House until the First Family was safely away.


In the past, I did not pass through Washington without a visit to the Jefferson Memorial [Jefferson is one of the two presidents of whom I have commemorative coins on display in my home; Andrew Jackson is the other.] After 9/11/2001, the traffic flow was changed and one could no longer park near the major memorials; this was my first visit to Jefferson since then.



Also, a moving experience was our first visit to the W.W.II Memorial. I am named for my father's brother who believed that war in Europe was inevitable and enlisted in the army in early 1941. He died before the end of the year.




This was our first visit to the FDR Memorial, a 7.5 acre complex of open areas, statues and waterfalls. There are lots of quotes on the walls. The FDR Memorial opened in 1997 and is located between the Lincoln Memorial and Jefferson Memorial.






Not only was the Human Origins exhibit new, but almost all of the Museum of Natural History had been revamped and updated since our last visit. The 100-year-old African elephant is still in the lobby, but the old items are in new displays. Some of the items are old because they have been in the museum for a long time; some were old when the museum got them, millions of years in some cases. We were very impressed with the permanent Human Origins exhibit. It was excellent and well worth seeing. Fossil remains of our ancestors are being unearthed as you are reading this and anthropologists are attempting to integrate this new information into our family tree.

I was fortunate to have the opportunity to discuss some of the recent finds and changes to the arrangement of the tree's branches with a real anthropologist. Although my place has not changed, there is more knowledge about how I got to where I am out on that lonely twig.





The temporary exhibit "Written in Bone" shows how forensic science can show what life was like in 17th century Chesapeake. After seeing this exhibit, one can understand that the pirate slogan was wrong and that dead men DO tell tales. We also found this exhibit of particular interest.

Sarah liked the Hope Diamond, but, truthfully, she has no hope as it's not for sale.



We went to the Capitol, but could not go in; I had too many forbidden items with me. The rules have changed since the last time that I was there (about 1970) and even the small tweezers in my bee sting kit or the small blade in my snakebite kit were not allowed; forget about the scissors in the dissecting kit. I'm surprised that they still allow pens; they're mightier than the sword; at least that is what we learned in the Newseum, a museum dedicated to the news media and the First Amendment. [NOTE: Although the pen is mightier than the sword, the sword speaks louder and stronger at any given moment. I learned that in "The Mouse that Roared."]

The First Amendment to the Constitution is inscribed on the front of the Newseum building.

We spent about eight hours at the Newseum over two days. Although this museum is only a few years old, its name does not come from its newness, but from its mission: To portray and encourage freedom of the press, past and present. Having spent several decades involved with publications - publisher, editor, columnist, adviser - I felt a connection with this new, large museum which occupies the site of the hotel where John Wilkes Booth lodged prior to his assassination of Lincoln. The museum has a section of the Berlin Wall and the remains of the broadcast tower from the World Trade Center. Their 9-11 film is so powerful that a permanent tissue box is part of the railing at the exit of that exhibit. Two special exhibits, ELVIS! and G-Men, showed how both used journalists to promote their agendas.









Remains of the broadcast antenna from the World Trade Center (left) and one of the numerous international front pages of 9/11/01 on display. The permanent tissue box is at the lower right (below).

A section of the Berlin Wall on display at the Newseum.

We learned that the National Portrait Gallery has more than just presidential portraits. The building was originally the Patent Office and housed displays of patent models in what was the largest room in America. Lincoln had his inaugural ball here. Now the building is filled with art, but you can have a ball here, too, as rental space is available.

Preamble Art

The National Museum of the American Indian is another Washington museum that was new to us. It is much larger than the NYC facility in the Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House at the Battery. Individual alcoves display the cosmology of several tribes in the Americas with photos and artifacts. Singing and dancing performances took place in an open theatre area. The museum was reminiscent of the one that is part of the University of Arizona - Tucson.

Indian art

We've been to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum before, but not for several years. It is the largest museum of its kind that we've visited. Although our priority pass (Membership has its privileges.) got us into the exhibit without waiting on line, there was no line as it was the afternoon and the offseason. Their exhibits are extensive and often emotionally draining. They have numerous artifacts which convey their universal message well: Genocide has taken place in the past and is an ongoing problem.






There were many other places that we visited; you'd recognize them if you saw a photo. Here are some:




































If you did not recognize any of the above photos, click on them for details.

I usually do not interact with tourists, but at the National Archives I just could not contain myself. While studying the Magna Carta, I informed a young woman that no, it was not a printed copy; that it was hand-written by a scribe. "But all of the 'f's look alike," she said. "The scribe was a trained professional," I told her.

While viewing the Declaration of Independence, a gentleman told his wife that it looked like Madison's handwriting. Professional scribe, again. (As if the crowd hadn't been informed of that only minutes earlier.) The crowd was not told that the Declaration of Independence was a rush job done over the weekend: It had to be ready by the 4th of July so that everyone could take off for the holiday.