Day two....the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak...
We got a late start... first stop -- Holocaust Museum...amazing...so much info...loved the ID card received upon entering...i can’t exactly say why, but of all the tragic pictures and artifacts collected and displayed throughout the museum it was shoes that made me cry. That display of piles of shoes taken from the feet of people of all ages before they were led to their extermination was heart-wrenching ... I walked through the entire museum with a ache in my heart, but seeing those shoes somehow broke that pain loose and started the flow of tears.
...sorry for not having pics, but none are allowed to be taken in this museum...i suppose it might diminish the spirit of reverence that exists inside that place...and reverence is the best word i have to describe what i saw there...i was amazed at how long we were in the museum before anyone ever spoke to anyone else...and there were lots of teens present whom i really thought wouldn’t stay quiet that long...
the whole exhibit is phenomenal...so informative, so unbelievable, so sad...there is a breathtakingly beautiful circular room at the end with a beautiful central flame at one side of a circle and a hallway of sorts that has candles all the way around the circle...it’s simple and simply awe-inspiring...i lit a candle and cried a tear...this museum is awesome and inspiring...
there’s an area that details the current struggle in darfur and it stirred in me a huge desire to learn more about that situation and possibly make a difference in some small way there...so many people turned their backs on what was going on in Nazi Germany and to the great extermination of a race of people...i hope i am never in any way guilty of turning a blind eye to such horrific injustice...
i began day 2 fairly tired... after this museum i was simply exhauated...so, exhausted that I am prompted to include travel tip #4-- the Holocaust Museum should be the last thing in a day because the physical exhaustion really hits after the emotional exhaustion of spending more than a couple of hours walking through a very harsh, and real, and gut-wrenching environment...
I was truly exhausted and oddly somewhat disgusted at myself... I was feeling stupid for being so tired and wanting to just sit down and do nothing because what I had gone through walking all over DC for days was less than nothing compared with what all the Jewish people had to endure...and the fact that there were and are survivors both amazes and inspires me...
I spent a long long time in the museum so my traveling companions had gone and grabbed a meal...
We met back up and headed to the Smithsonian castle...incredibly pretty from outside with a very beautiful garden...I have no real comment about the inside because other than the pile of treasures that was actually a prop from the Night at the Museum: The Battle of the Smithsonian, I looked at little there -- btw, I really really want to see the second Night at the Museum movie now that I've actually been to the Smithsonian...I could watch it as a movie on demand in my room, but think I'll just rent it when I get home and marvel at the fact that I've seen the stuff shown in the film...
Upon leaving the castle the Grimmetts spotted a carousel...Having not eaten and being a little big to ride the carousel myself -- although I'm still a kid at heart and would have enjoyed the ride I'm sure...I headed to the Natural History Museum to grab some lunch while they stayed to ride.
That's when I found a spot that allowed a beautiful view of 4 points of interest in the city...to my right - The Capitol...to my left - The Washington Monument... directly behind me - The Smithsonian Castle...directly in front of me -- the Museum of Natural History...a great 360 degree photo op...there's actually several places in DC where one revolution yields 4 incredibly views, this was one of my fave of those places...
The Natural History Museum has a pretty good - and pretty pricey - cafe in the basement... The museum itself is pretty cool and super for kids...I was so exhausted at this point that I had trouble distinguishing the paleolithic period from the jurassic period (not that I've ever been a big fan of such stuff or really had a clue which came first the homo erectus or the neandrathal -- ((homo erectus ...there's about a million jokes just waiting there, none of which i'll go in to...)) My fave thing was the Hope Diamond...and not just because Diamonds are a girl's best friend...The exhibit is lovely and the area actually contains numerous beautiful jewels including other rare diamonds as well as rubies (the personal fave of this July baby), emeralds, sapphires, etc.
The diamonds weren't nearly as interesting to my travel companions as they were to me AND we also had an assigned time to go to the Printing & Engraving Museum (we picked up tickets earlier in the day, but as I mentioned before ticketed free venues can end up dictating your schedule based on times available to see the museums) -- which by the way was clear across DC - back over by the Holocaust Museum - and which while somewhat interesting I'm sure, simply didn't hold enough allure to convince my aching, bleeding feet that a trek there was worth the trip...
I parted company with my companions...I was for the first time alone in DC...Scary at first...sorta...but a couple of deep breaths later I was back in the gemstone exhibit area and happy to have further explored my ability to tour alone and the beautiful jewels. After I finished that exhibit I checked out the museum gift shops and sat down for a Diet Coke and some gummy bears -- I needed fuel for the long trek back to the hotel...
As it turned out, I didn't need the fuel at all...What I needed was a cab...It had started to rain. The idea of a walk many many blocks to the hotel on less than sound legs was not appealing taking that walk in the rain -- in a white t-shirt no less -- seemed downright indecent...
A few moments in the back of a smelly cab and a few near tip revoking comments by a cabby who didn't realize that YES indeed I might melt if I walked in the rain led to my home away from home -- the Grand Hyatt -- and the sweet relief when shoes came off...
After a little rest, I changed for dinner and enjoyed a lovely dinner at Capital City Brewing Company...The food was good, the waitstaff/host was super nice -- in fact, it has been my experience in DC that most everyone from the concierge to the park police to the waitstaff at CCBC who gave free ice cream to the little ones (ah, to be a kid again) are all quite nice -- the drinks and dinner were yummy and the company of friends was even better than all of the other good stuff...
The exhaustion was still present...My less than perfectly composed legs were less than strong and the hip, neck and back were tight and tired...BUT...the day had gone well and exposed me to another 12 hours or so of being inspired, entertained, informed and well, just plain old happy...
I settled in to bed shortly after midnight thinking of my plans for the next day... I was tired from the journey and knew sleep and sweet dreams would come easily...Another wonderful day in DC had ended with bleeding heals but also - and more importantly -- a happy heart...
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