Today was our last day in Washington. We left the hotel just after 9:30am and headed toward the Eastern Market, a large farmers market east of the Capitol Building. We both like markets, but Sharon in particular was excited to see what the locals have available to them. Eastern Market is just a block or two away from a metro stop, and is situated in a neighborhood seemingly full of little shops. The market consists of the primary food vendors indoors, and additional food vendors and craft tables outdoors. Today there was also a flea market set up outside.

We walked past a number of the tables, before deciding we should get coffee before going any further. We spotted a shop called Port City Java across the street and stopped in to get an iced coffee. I liked the vanilla flavor shot (for some sweetness) while Sharon liked the crushed ice. Coffee in hand, we continued through the outdoor tables, purchasing a couple peaches (which we ate at the airport), half a pound of coffee, a necklace for Sharon, and an Obama/McCain photograph for me. Before heading back to the metro, we took a quick walk through the indoor market with all the food just to see. Two primary observations: they sell non-local produce (such as bananas and pineapples), and the line-up for Market Lunch (where they serve their famous blueberry pancakes) was out the door!

Our next stop was Tabard Inn, where we had a brunch reservation. The closest Metro stop was Dupont Circle, in what is called the Golden Triangle. We were dismayed to discover that both up escalators at the station were not working, which meant we had to walk up probably 200 steps! Everyone struggled to make it to the top, laughing along the way. It was quite the workout!

Tabard Inn was one of the places we had written down as a potential place to stay. but I’m glad we didn’t, because it was further from a Metro stop than GWU, and while quaint and homey inside, didn’t seem as comfortable. We found the restaurant in the back, and were happy to sit indoors away from the sun and heat. One of the neat things they serve are donuts, which we were told are usually eaten as an appetizer. I can best describe the donuts as large mini-donuts! For brunch, Sharon ordered the Blueberry Pancakes, while I went for the Scrambled Eggs with Sausage. Everything was pretty good, but I particularly liked the bread they served.

After brunch we slowly made our way back to our hotel, stopping briefly in Dupont Circle to watch an impromptu drumming performance and at Macy’s to discover their shoe selection was relatively weak (compared with the one we visited in NY anyway). We retrieved our bags, and set off for the Rosslyn Metro station, where we planned to catch the bus to Dulles International Airport.

We arrived at Rosslyn just as the bus was loading, but were turned away because it was full. That meant we had to wait another hour for the next bus! This was both good and bad: good because we didn’t have as much time to kill at the airport, bad because we had to wait in the crazy heat and sun! Fortunately we didn’t spend the entire time outside, seeking refuge in the nearby McDonalds for a while (but we wanted to make sure we were near the front of the line for the next bus so didn’t venture too far).

We caught the bus (air conditioned, thank goodness) and made it to Dulles with time to spare. Our flight into Ottawa was uneventful, as is the one we’re currently on back to Edmonton.

It was a great vacation but it seemed relatively short. I guess the best ones always do! I’ll be posting all our photos this weekend, as well as a final recap post. Sharon will be making her posts over the next week or so also, with more detail than mine I’m sure.

I’m pretty tired tonight so to change it up, I’m gonna do this entry in point form:

• We started off with coffee at the Starbucks near our hotel, then took the Metro toward the White House. It was another great day weather-wise, at around 27 degrees Celsius.
• The White House Visitor Center was mostly unimpressive, especially when compared with the Visitor Center at the Capitol. We did find the short video they were looping informative, however.
• About a minute or so after leaving the Visitor Center, we crossed 15th Street at E Street, and with sirens coming closer noticed that many people had stopped to look. We figured it was an emergency vehicle of some kind.
• We realized fairly quickly that something bigger was happening. Half a dozen police motorcycles had appeared, with a few cars behind them and four or five tour buses behind the cars. Policeman started ensuring all pedestrians were a few feet back from the roads.
• Then, from a different direction, more police motorcycles drove past, turning off 15th Street west onto E Street. More vehicles with lights went by, then we saw Cadillac One and a number of other presidential vehicles drive past. We got to see President Obama’s motorcade!
• After the cars had passed we walked toward the White House, but couldn’t get very close. We took a picture as close as we could get.
• Our next stop was the Museum of Natural History. We tried to go through relatively quickly, but still spent quite a bit of time looking at everything!

• We then took the Metro to Union Station, where we did some shopping and exploring. Sharon bought some really nice clothes, and we stopped for cookies and an iced coffee at Au Bon Pain.
• With about two hours to kill before a walking tour, we decided to stop at the Air & Space Museum (which we later learned is the busiest of the Smithsonian museums). We didn’t have much time there before it closed, so we zipped through it.
• After the museum closed, we sat outside for a bit, then made our way to the meeting point for a free walking tour.
• Though the tour covered all the places we had already seen (Washington Monument, war memorials, etc.) it was worthwhile for all of the stuff we learned. Lots of history, and some great trivia too! For instance, we learned the Secret Service codenames for the First Family: Barack is Renegade, Michelle is Renaissance, Malia is Radiance, and Sasha is Rosebud.
• The tour ended at the Lincoln Memorial, where we remained until sunset. We wanted to see the Korea War Veterans Memorial and the Lincoln Memorial at night, and neither disappointed. We also got some great views of the illuminated Washington Monument and the Capitol.
• We walked back across the bridge toward Georgetown, but didn’t quite get that far. Instead, we picked up some dinner from Safeway at Watergate, and came back to the hotel.
• I think I should have brought or bought better shoes – all the walking has made my feet incredibly sore! Sharon seems to be doing a bit better, but we’re both fairly exhausted this evening!

Tomorrow we’re going to do some shopping in Georgetown, among other things!

We planned to walk less today than we did yesterday, but I’m not sure we accomplished that! We started off early once again, making our way to the The Capitol Building to line-up for tickets. We found a distinct lack of signage outside the iconic building. It wasn’t clear which entrance was for visitors, nor where to line up for tickets. The interior of the Capitol Visitor Center was only marginally better.

Eventually we made it inside and near the front of the line for the 8:50am tour, which started with a 13 minute video describing some of the history of the Capitol. It was a bit over-the-top but I appreciated the refresher. Next we got to see the inside of the Capitol itself, starting with the magnificent center dome. It was really interesting to hear about some of the history. For instance, the artwork around the top contains the Wright Brothers and their plane, even though the Capitol was built during the time of Lincoln! The reason is that the last 30 feet of the painting were not finished until the mid 1900s.

We also got to see the “whispering room” and a bunch of other unique halls and rooms inside the Capitol (one contained a beautiful chandelier that was apparently purchased not too long ago for just $1500). Most surprising to me were the incredible number of statues! Apparently each State can have two inside the building at any given time, and they can be replaced after ten years. After the tour, we stopped in the cafeteria for a coffee, and went to get tickets for the House and Senate galleries!

Considering it’s not trivial for international visitors to get into the Capitol in the first place, we were surprised that all you had to do to get tickets to the galleries was walk up to a counter and ask. We did so, and decided to go sit it on the House of Representatives for a bit. After a couple more security checks, we found ourselves in a mostly empty room. A few representatives were discussing the recent credit card legislation and there were about a dozen other visitors. It was pretty cool to see, but we didn’t stay too long.

Next we stopped across the street at both the Supreme Court and the Library of Congress. The former was underwhelming because we didn’t get to see much, and the latter was better than I expected. The interior of the Library of Congress is pretty impressive. I particularly liked looking at Jefferson’s Library. After a quick walk around, we decided it was time for lunch, and walked a few blocks east to a small diner called Jimmy T’s. It was pretty ghetto looking but hit the spot – I had the eggs benedict (they serve breakfast all day) and Sharon had the cheeseburger and fries. It was nice to be able to walk through some residential neighborhoods along the way.

After lunch, we hopped on the Metro and headed downtown. Our first stop was the Canadian Embassy, an impressive building on the outside that we didn’t get to see much of on the inside. We wondered how they managed to snag such prime real estate – Pennsylvania Avenue and 5th Street, with a clear view of the Capitol. Right next door to the embassy was our main stop of the afternoon – the Newseum.

At $20 per person, Newseum was the first attraction of the trip that wasn’t free. The building itself is incredible, and includes two incredibly large, hydraulic elevators. There are six floors to Newseum, and we visited each one. I particularly enjoyed the News History exhibit, the 9/11 exhibit, the Future of the News exhibit (where they had a Twittering the news section), and the Pulitzer Prize Winning Photographs exhibit. They also display the front pages of newspapers from around the world. There was so much to see, and all of it so interesting. Newseum also includes a large number of interactive displays and consoles – dozens and dozens of touch screens that allow you to explore even further. I really enjoyed it!

With a bit of time to kill before dinner, we found a nearby Starbucks and sat down for a while. Our feet enjoyed the brief break! Eventually we made our back toward Georgetown, and right outside the Foggy Bottom Metro station discovered a small Farmers Market! Sharon was quite excited, so we had to stop and check it out. We ended up purchasing fresh strawberries (enjoying them right now) and a lavender teacake.

Our dinner reservation this evening was at Founding Farmers, a restaurant with a serious focus on local and sustainable food (and is the first LEED certified restaurant in DC). I wasn’t sure I’d enjoy sitting at a communal table, but it worked out just fine. We had the mini cheeseburgers to start, and I tried one of their local beers. For dinner, Sharon ordered the meatloaf and I chose the lobster mac and cheese. It was delicious, but we both left the restaurant feeling stuffed. I’m sure Sharon will have much more to say about it in her review.

We took our time walking back, detouring to see the Kennedy Center and Watergate along the way. We discovered that both are just about three blocks from where we’re staying! Tomorrow we’re going to the White House (well, to the visitor center and as close as we can get) and thankfully, it won’t be quite as early a start!

I’ve got a ton of photos to upload, but it’s taking quite a while to do so. You can find them in this photoset as I get them uploaded.