The travels of Tim and Megan: Washington DC, USA

Sunday

We slept a bit later on Easter Sunday and when we left the hotel, we grabbed breakfast at a different bakery just along from the hotel, a place called Au Bon Pain. It was solid. It was a beautiful, hot, sunny day, so we walked down to The Mall and started a self-led tour of Washington's famous monuments at the Constitution Gardens. We wandered through the beautiful and peaceful gardens and around a lovely pond, which showed off a magnificent reflection of the Washington Monument and we shortly arrived at our first stop, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

The two triangular black walls sinking into the earth, one end pointing to the Lincoln Monument and the other to the Washington Monument, are inscribed with the names of the Americans who died in the Vietnam War, in chronological order, from the first casualty in 1959 to the last in 1975. The memorial was designed by a 21 year-old architecture student from Yale University. To appease those who are not fans of the controversial abstract memorial, a statue of three soldiers was added in 1984. Further lobbying led to the Vietnam Women's Memorial, erected close by in 1993.

A short walk from the Vietnam Veterans Memorial is the famous Lincoln Memorial. Many proposals were made for a memorial to President Abraham Lincoln. One of the least promising was for a monument on a swampy piece of land to the west of the Washington Monument, yet this was to become one of the most awe-inspiring sights in Washington. Looming over the Reflecting Pool is the colossal seated figure of Lincoln in his Neoclassical temple. Before the monument was completed in 1914, architect Henry Bacon realised that the original 3-metre tall statue would be dwarfed inside the building, so it was doubled in size. Engraved on the south wall is Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, below a mural depicting the angel of truth freeing a slave. This was the site of Martin Luther King Jr's famous address "I have a dream".

Sadly for us, the Reflecting Pool had been drained for cleaning, so the view from the steps of the temple was not as impressive as it would normally have been. But we loved the Lincoln Monument itself - it is truly awesome.

Next we carried on to the Korean War Veterans Memorial, a controversial tribute to a controversial war. Although 1.5 million Americans served in the conflict, war was never officially declared. It is often known as "The Forgotten War". Nineteen larger-than-life stainless steel statues depict a squad on patrol, moving towards the American flag as their symbolic objective. The soldiers are wearing ponchos because the Korean War was notorious for being fought in miserable weather conditions. We both liked the memorial - it's a bit different and creative and shows the soldiers in a realistic and unglorified light.

The shiny new National World War II Memorial sits in the middle of the Mall between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument. Sixteen million Americans served in WWII and 400,000 of them died. The Freedom Wall is packed with 4,000 gold stars, one star for each 100 victims of the war. After years of debate about the location and scale of the memorial, work finally began in September 2001 and was completed in April 2004. Two 13-metre tall pavilions stand either side of the Rainbow Pool (complete with pretty fountains) and mark the Pacific and Atlantic theatres of war. Fifty-six granite pillars dotted around the perimeter represent the country's states and territories.

Further along the Mall, stands the imposing Washington Monument. This tribute to America's first president was originally funded by donations from individual citizens. Construction began in 1848 but when the money ran out, the building work stopped for over 20 years. Then in 1876, public pressure forced the completion of the project. A slight change in colour of stone marks the point where construction resumed. The enormous monument, which can be seen from all over Washington, is 165m high, contains 36,000 stones, including 192 commemorative stones inside the monument which mark donations from individuals, societies, states and nations. The marble capstone at the top weighs 2,000kg and is topped by an aluminium pyramid. The monument is surrounded by 50 flagpoles with stars and stripes flying proudly...once again, one for each state.

There is a viewing window at the top of the monument (reached by a 72-second elevator ride), providing staggering views all over Washington and beyond. By the time we arrived at the monument at about 11.30am, all of the tickets to the viewing window for the rest of the day had sold out. So, sadly, we could not ride to the top to enjoy the views. Perhaps another time.

After a short refreshment break, the "Monumental Tour" continued with a visit to the Jefferson Memorial. The walk around the Tidal Basin to get to the memorial was lovely. Thomas Jefferson was a political philosopher, architect, musician, book collector, scientist, horticulturist, diplomat, inventor and the third American president from 1801 to 1809. He also played a significant part in drafting the Declaration of Independence in 1776. The idea for the memorial came from President Franklin D Roosevelt, who felt that Jefferson was as important as Lincoln.

The Neoclassical colonnaded domed memorial (shaped like the Pantheon in Rome) was dedicated in 1943 and covers an area of 2.5 acres. At the time, metal was being strictly rationed so the standing statue of Jefferson had to be cast in plaster. After WWII, the statue was recast in bronze. Etched on the inside walls of the memorial are Jefferson's words from the Declaration of Independence as well as other writings. The impressive bronze statue of the man himself is six metres tall and weighs 4,500kg. The views from the steps in front of the memorial look back across the picturesque Tidal Basin towards the Mall and, of course, the Washington Monument.

It was scorching hot by midday and we were starting to get a touch of sunburn, not to mention sore legs from all the walking we had done, so we were grateful to complete the tour of monuments and head towards the air-conditioned indoors of the National Air and Space Museum.

On our way there, we passed through the magnificent red sandstone Smithsonian Castle. The castle was constructed in 1855 and served as the first home of the Smithsonian Institution. Although he never once set foot in the United States, James Smithson, an English scientist and philanthropist, left his entire fortune of half a million dollars to "found at Washington , under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men". US Congress agreed to use the funds to set up a government-run foundation that would administer all national museums. We should all thank James profusely, because Washington now has dozens of amazing museums, most of them completely free to visit!

On arrival at the National Air Space Museum, we grabbed some lunch in the food court and then set about viewing all of the amazing exhibits. The huge building is perfectly designed to house the aeroplanes, rockets, balloons and space capsules of aviation and space flight.

We began by checking out the exhibit on the NASA Space Shuttle programme, which included a model of the Space Shuttle Columbia. We also saw the Apollo 11 command module, which carried Buzz Aldrin, Neil Armstrong and Michael Collins on their historic mission to the moon in July 1969 and a spacesuit worn by one of the Apollo astronauts on that mission (see photos below). Continuing the space theme, we walked through the Skylab orbiting workshop, designed for sets of three-person crews to conduct research experiments in space.

The Milestones of Flight gallery contains some absolute gems, such as the Wright Brothers' 1903 Wright Flyer (the first powered, heavier-than-air machine to achieve controlled, sustained flight); the Spirit of St Louis aeroplane flown by Charles Lindbergh on the first ever trans-Atlantic flight; and Amelia Earhart's Red Vega aeroplane, in which she became the first woman to make a solo trans-Atlantic flight.

Other highlights of the museum included a display of a number of massive rockets, an exhibit of stunning photographs of the planets of our solar system, a hands-on scientific display showing "how things fly" and replica cockpits of commercial aeroplanes, which we were allowed to sit in and walk through. We also treated ourselves to a ride in a futuristic flight simulator, which was a lot of fun. We spent over four hours in the museum and we still did not see everything - we missed an entire section on Aviation in World Wars I and II! This was definitely one of the best museums we have ever visited.

Late in the afternoon we emerged from the National Air and Space Museum and wandered down to Capitol Hill and lay on the grass in the sun. We snapped some great photos of the Capitol building with blue sky background, to replace the dreary, grey shots we had taken the previous day! After investing in some sunscreen (after the horse had bolted) and freshening up back at the hotel, we had dinner at the Capitol City Brewing Company - where we can definitely recommend the chicken wings, pulled pork BBQ sandwich and crab cake sandwich. We also tried a variety of their delicious specialty beers. It was a great way to cap off a brilliant Easter Sunday!

Monday

On Monday morning we checked out of the hotel and grabbed some breakfast at the bakery on our way down to the National Museum of American History. We arrived just on opening time, so it was not too crowded. The Museum of American History is an absolute treasure trove of artifacts from the nation's past.

We were greeted in the main entrance area by C3-PO from the Star Wars movies (see photo below). We were spoiled for choice and could hardly decide where to start, but we first made our way to the third floor to the special exhibition on The Life of Abraham Lincoln, which includes many of Lincoln's possessions, such as the fine top hat he wore the night he was assassinated at Ford's Theatre in Washington DC.

Next up was the American Presidency exhibition. This displays objects that represent the lives and office of all of America's presidents, including the portable desk on which Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence in 1776. There was also a teddy bear dating from 1903, believed to be one of the first teddy bears ever made! The term "teddy bear" was created by a Washington Post newspaper cartoonist reporting on President Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt who, while out hunting one day, refused to shoot a bear cub that had been captured for him. This inspired the production of a range of bears, which were called Teddy Bears.

Moving down to the second floor, we visited the First Ladies gallery, which houses a stunning collection of nearly all of the First Ladies' ball gowns, providing a voyage back in time through women's fashions. This was a particular favourite for Megan! Also on the second floor were the Communities in a Changing Nation exhibit, which explores the ever-changing world of 19th-century America, and the Star Spangled Banner exhibition, showing the enormous (but very worn) stars and stripes flag, created in 1813, the very flag that inspired America's national anthem.

A little pocket of "pop culture" exhibits in a corner of the second floor included some amazing treasures, including Kermit the Frog himself, the Fonz's leather jacket from "Happy Days", Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean" black hat, the original Catwoman suit from the 1960s Batman TV series and...[drum roll]...the ruby slippers from the movie "The Wizard of Oz" (photo below)!!!

Down to the first floor we wandered through the America On The Move gallery, showing how trains, ships and cars have shaped American lives. Highlights included the locomotive that pulled Franklin D Roosevelt's funeral train, Ford's Model T and a hot rod driven by Elvis Presley. Other exhibits we saw were Julia Child's kitchen, the Gunboat Philadelphia and The Price of Freedom, which explores the nation's military history from the French and Indian War in the 1750s right through to the current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

This was definitely right up there with the Air and Space Museum as one of the very best museums we have been to - in fact it was probably better because of the vast range of exhibits on display. A must-see if you're ever in Washington DC! We grabbed some lunch at the food court of the famous Old Post Office building on Pennsylvania Avenue and then carried on to the International Spy Museum.

This was the first museum in the world devoted to international espionage. Its massive collection includes the German Enigma cipher machine used to scramble codes during WWII, a Soviet shoe transmitter, a wristwatch camera and a lipstick pistol, displayed in a variety of themed exhibits. Different exhibits show "the tricks of the trade" - over 200 artifacts used by spies to disguise and protect themselves during operations, the history of spies from biblical times to the 20th century, the making and breaking of codes during WWII, and famous / celebrity spies.

We could have spent longer in that museum too, but we had to leave to grab our bags from the hotel and head down to Union Station and catch our train to New York City! The train ride was great - once again we had nice comfortable seats and we got great views of the countryside as we headed to the Big Apple.