Washington DC
17th August 2009
The US capital is just a two hour train ride from Philadelphia.
An early start on the Sunday morning found two of us boarding an Amtrak train just after 8 am in order to make the most of our available time. After a comfortable journey, we headed out of Washington DC rail station towards the Capitol.
To say the next few hours were damp would be an understatement! While sheltering under some awnings together with other visitors during a particularly heavy period of rain, we watched the joggers carry on regardless – well they couldn’t get any wetter! However, it didn’t last too long, and we made our way slowly down the National Mall generally noting the museums and galleries.
We’d made our way past the Washington Memorial and the World War II Memorial. By the time we got to the Lincoln memorial, a full 3 km from the Capitol, the rain had just started again. No-one was seemingly that bothered. Certainly as regards photographing the area the soft overcast light was preferable to harsh sunlight at this time of year.
Wandering back on the other side of the Mall, past the Vietnam Veterans Memorial the drizzle adding to the sobering mood, we arrived outside the White House. There were no worries about taking photographs there, which is more than can be said for locations in for example London where everyone is viewed as a terrorist suspect.
By now the sun was out and the huge amount of water that had fallen earlier only had one place to go, and the humidity shot up. Normal for this location at this time. Walking around to the less often seen back of the White House past there were various peaceful protest groups including one highlighting the plight of Tamils in Sri Lanka and a lone protester against the Iraq war.
Next up was a visit to a building that we’d been given a tip off about. Given our present location that sounds ominous I suppose and that is a hint! It’s been said that there are more spies in Washington DC than any other city in the world. The international spy museum is well worth a visit. We decided to take some refreshments in the adjacent cafe as the museum queue was way out of the door. A good decision in fact as we didn’t take that long to get in afterwards.
You’re taken up in an elevator and ushered into a room where you have your briefing. After choosing your identity you are let into the museum itself. The exhibits take you from the early days of espionage right up to recent times. There’s spying gadgets from throughout the 20th century, descriptions of how spies operate, hands-on exhibits to test yourself as a spy (including answering questions on your ‘identity’), stories of famous spies, and a lot of Cold War information. I should say information about the Cold War – we can’t let a simple slip of the tongue give the game away can we! With a large amount of Cold War antics taking place in Europe, much of this was familiar to me, though still very interesting to see it all again. the museum finishes with a mention of current terrorist threats.
We spent quite a while there before making our way back along the Mall and on the way popped into the National Air and Space Museum. This museum would normally be closing at this time, so we were surprised (and pleased) that on this occasion it would still be open for a while. Unfortunately, there was only time for a quick tour, but enough time to admire the many exhibits on display. From a V2 rocket, unmanned military drones, WW2 aircraft, and the Apollo 11 command module encased in a protective Perspex cover, it’s one place to put on the list for next time.
Passing the Capitol en route to the railway station, the evening sunlight picked out the building very well indeed against a very brooding sky. There are always dark clouds on the horizon for any government and so this scene illustrated that concept well. All I’ll say is that it rounded of a very interesting and slightly exhausting day.
An early start on the Sunday morning found two of us boarding an Amtrak train just after 8 am in order to make the most of our available time. After a comfortable journey, we headed out of Washington DC rail station towards the Capitol.
To say the next few hours were damp would be an understatement! While sheltering under some awnings together with other visitors during a particularly heavy period of rain, we watched the joggers carry on regardless – well they couldn’t get any wetter! However, it didn’t last too long, and we made our way slowly down the National Mall generally noting the museums and galleries.
We’d made our way past the Washington Memorial and the World War II Memorial. By the time we got to the Lincoln memorial, a full 3 km from the Capitol, the rain had just started again. No-one was seemingly that bothered. Certainly as regards photographing the area the soft overcast light was preferable to harsh sunlight at this time of year.
Wandering back on the other side of the Mall, past the Vietnam Veterans Memorial the drizzle adding to the sobering mood, we arrived outside the White House. There were no worries about taking photographs there, which is more than can be said for locations in for example London where everyone is viewed as a terrorist suspect.
By now the sun was out and the huge amount of water that had fallen earlier only had one place to go, and the humidity shot up. Normal for this location at this time. Walking around to the less often seen back of the White House past there were various peaceful protest groups including one highlighting the plight of Tamils in Sri Lanka and a lone protester against the Iraq war.
Next up was a visit to a building that we’d been given a tip off about. Given our present location that sounds ominous I suppose and that is a hint! It’s been said that there are more spies in Washington DC than any other city in the world. The international spy museum is well worth a visit. We decided to take some refreshments in the adjacent cafe as the museum queue was way out of the door. A good decision in fact as we didn’t take that long to get in afterwards.
You’re taken up in an elevator and ushered into a room where you have your briefing. After choosing your identity you are let into the museum itself. The exhibits take you from the early days of espionage right up to recent times. There’s spying gadgets from throughout the 20th century, descriptions of how spies operate, hands-on exhibits to test yourself as a spy (including answering questions on your ‘identity’), stories of famous spies, and a lot of Cold War information. I should say information about the Cold War – we can’t let a simple slip of the tongue give the game away can we! With a large amount of Cold War antics taking place in Europe, much of this was familiar to me, though still very interesting to see it all again. the museum finishes with a mention of current terrorist threats.
We spent quite a while there before making our way back along the Mall and on the way popped into the National Air and Space Museum. This museum would normally be closing at this time, so we were surprised (and pleased) that on this occasion it would still be open for a while. Unfortunately, there was only time for a quick tour, but enough time to admire the many exhibits on display. From a V2 rocket, unmanned military drones, WW2 aircraft, and the Apollo 11 command module encased in a protective Perspex cover, it’s one place to put on the list for next time.
Passing the Capitol en route to the railway station, the evening sunlight picked out the building very well indeed against a very brooding sky. There are always dark clouds on the horizon for any government and so this scene illustrated that concept well. All I’ll say is that it rounded of a very interesting and slightly exhausting day.
