Washington, D.C. Pt. 2

Today we headed out with Jerry and Lee to see what we could in Washington, D.C. from the top of a double-decker bus.

Fortunately for us, it was not yet crowded. Given all the seat choices, Marlon opted to sit by the yellow seat so he would always remember which row he was in.

Officially opened in 1989, the Canadian Embassy was built on a vacant lot formerly occupied by a Ford dealership and a public library. The Canadian Embassy is the closest Embassy to the U.S. Capitol.

We dropped by the IRS Headquarters on Constitution Avenue to check on the status of our Economic Stimulus Act payments.

They were in the mail.

The original Old Post Office opened in 1899 as Washington, D.C.'s first skyscraper, in addition to being the first government building with its own electric power plant. By 1914, the building was already dubbed the "old" post office. Targeted for demolition in the early 1930s, it was saved from the wrecking ball due to lack of funding as a result of The Great Depression.

It continued to be used as overflow space for several government agencies until finding itself a demolition target once again in the 1960s. Thanks to a group of local citizens, the building was saved from demolition in 1973 when it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. It is now known as The Old Post Office Pavilion and is home to many restaurants and stores, as well as a Romanesque grand atrium large enough to hold 1,900 guests which has served as the setting for both New Year's Eve galas and presidential inaugural balls.

Next we came across Ford's Theatre...the site of the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln in 1865. The building was used by the government in a variety of ways until 1968, when it again became an active venue for the theatrical arts. It is currently being renovated and scheduled for a Grand Reopening in the Winter of 2009.

Across the street sits the Petersen House where Lincoln was taken after the shooting. He subsequently died the next morning.

This is another very famous house.

Doug poses for a picture and misses the Washington Monument...he saw it back in 1976 anyway.

American Civil War Major General George Brinton McClellan was, in U.S. Grant's words, "one of the mysteries of the war."

The Washington National Cathedral is the second largest Gothic cathedral in the United States and held the state funerals for Presidents Eisenhower, Reagan and Ford.

This not-quite-so famous house is where the Vice-President of the United States resides.

Embassy Row is home to embassies and diplomatic installations of over 50 different nations...this one being the Embassy of Bolivia.

Also located on Embassy Row, this is the Islamic Center of Washington---a mosque and Islamic cultural center.

The memorial to the U.S. Naval Construction Battalion, whose members were known as Seabees, is located near the entrance to Arlington National Cemetery.

The Thomas Jefferson Memorial sits on the shore of the Potomac River Tidal Basin.

The administrative offices and information center of the Smithsonian Institute are located in The Castle, originally completed in 1855.

The Securities and Exchange Commission, located adjacent to Union Station, has the primary responsibility for enforcing the federal securities laws and regulating the securities industry, the nation's stock and options exchanges, and other electronic securities markets.

Here's the rear of Union Station!

For more pictures of today's double-decker tour, go to http://public.fotki.com/Marlonfleenor/1/2008/june/washingtondcday2/ .

The pictures on this entry were taken as we rode the entire double-decker loop. Next we get off and see the sights up close and personal.

To be continued...

Washington, D.C. Pt. 1

Today we headed into Washington, D.C. For the experience, we rode the bus from the campground to The Metro Station in College Park. Then we rode the subway (The Metro) into the city.  

We disembarked right by our first stop of the day, The International Spy Museum. 

 

Next, we visited the National Postal Museum, one of the museums of the Smithsonian Institution.

Here we learned about many modes of mail delivery used throughout the years such as horse-drawn stagecoach...

 

railroad mail car...

 

dog-team sled...

 

and even the pneumatic tube system utilized in large cities to deliver to office buildings.

 

Marlon took a look at thousands of rare stamps inside the stamp vault.  

The US Postal Service honored Walt Disney Company by featuring Disney characters on stamps issued in June 2004. The four stamps featured: Mickey Mouse, Goofy & Donald Duck; Bambi & Thumper;  Mufasa & Simba; Pinnochio & Jiminy Cricket.

 

Make yourself free postcards for family and friends courtesy of The National Postal Museum. Postage is extra, of course.

 

We learned about the Victory Mail (V-Mail) system used during World War II. Troops wrote letters which were reduced to thumb-nails on microfilm. The film reels were shipped to the States, developed and printed out on lightweight photo paper. Then they were delivered to the addressee. 

 

The Museum had interesting displays about identifying suspicious packages as well the role of the Postal Inspector. 

 

There was a large display of Rural Mailboxes as Folk Art. 

 

Marlon was not looking forward to the unusual 100 degree heat awaiting us outside the museum and attempted to hire this stagecoach. 

 

Next we visited Union Station. Opened in 1907, Union Station hit its peak during World War II when as many as 200,000 people passed through it in a single day. Throughout the years, the Station declined both financially and physically. Federal and City officials were often attempting to find other functions for the Station.

 

During the bicentennial celebration of 1976, the Station became the National Visitor Center. Due to lack of publicity though, the National Visitor Center never became popular and closed in October 1978. The Station itself was closed for refurbishment as a result of the Redevelopment Act of 1981. Thanks in part to $70 million in federal funding, Union Station was restored and reopened in its current incarnation featuring 29 train tracks and a wide variety of shopping and dining experiences. Once again, it is visited by approximately 20 million people each year.

We left Union Station and walked to The U.S. Capitol.

The U.S. Capitol can be toured on a first-come, first-served basis from 9-4 Monday through Saturday. Construction of a brand-new visitor center is currently underway. 

 

On our way back to The Metro Station we walked through Washington, D.C.'s Chinatown.  

Watch how a postcard gets delivered and get a view of The Metro Station in this video.

We made it back to Cherry Hill Park to find our friends from Colorado had arrived. Jerry and Lee, coincidentally, had planned their trip here independently of us for the same time frame.

Next up...we all explore the city together.

For more pictures, go to http://public.fotki.com/Marlonfleenor/1/2008/june/washingtondcday1/ .

To be continued...