So you think I put a lot into my two days in Washington, huh?  Well, I think I did the most walking on Day Three and my legs were barely recovering from the miles I had walked the day before.

The Washington Monument

On this day, I decided to let the Metro drop me off right where I needed to be.

My plan was to go back and photograph everything I missed the day before.  I needed to be quick because I would have to get on the train back to Greenville by 6 pm.  So I started out earlier, around 7:30 am.

My first stop was in the middle of The National Mall.  From there I walked back north back to the White House area, up Pennsylvania Avenue.  I saw the Newseum and thought I'd like to come back to that.  I still wanted to go to the Spy Museum too, but unlike the National Park exhibits, these private museums were quite expensive for a guy on a shoestring budget.

I took a lot of the same pictures I had taken the day before, but they turned out so much better this time.  I hightailed it down to the Washington Monument and to the Jefferson Memorial.  It was not difficult to get stunningly good pictures on that day.

The Jefferson Memorial

After walking around the Jefferson Memorial, I took the Metro down a few stations to The Capitol.  On Day Three I took the best pictures of it by far.  I'm proud of them...although on close inspection, you can see that I was sweating on this hot day and there is a glow to some of the pictures because the lens got wet.

On my way back down The Mall, I stopped to take pictures of anything that caught my attention.  One of my favorite buildings is the Smithsonian Building.  I had to wait quite a while before enough people would clear out for me to take a non-blocked view picture of the building.

Once I had all of the pictures I wanted downtown, I headed back to the subway.  I was really in a rush on this day...I didn't stop to talk to many people.  Once on the subway, I rode out (on the Red line I believe) to the Catholic University of America.  Here I was to see the Immaculate Conception Church.  As you can see, it was quite impressive.  I thought about going in, but something kept me back.  The grounds were beautiful and the campus was very nice.  But I knew, if I wanted to see the National Cathedral, I had to get a move on.

The Church of the Immaculate Conception

So back to the subway...and let me tell you, Catholic University is on the edge of what looks like a pretty bad part of town.  I was kinda ready to get out of there.

So I stayed on the Red line, because it curves back around toward the National Cathedral.  But I had heard that the church was on the highest elevation in Washington and it was at least a mile from the nearest Metro station.  I was determined to see it, so off I went.  After a brief stopoff to get a cappuccino, I headed for my next destination.

When I stepped off the subway, I found a very nice and busy part of town.  I decided to stop at a Greek restaurant that was right there.  I ordered a steak.  It was good, but not exactly what I expected.  I enjoyed it anyway and then made my way through unknown neighborhoods to get to the church.

If you haven't seen the National Cathedral, WOW!  It is massive and quite beautiful.  I wish I had had more time to take a tour, it sounded fascinating.  But it was about 1 pm and I still wanted to get to Arlington National Cemetery later in the day.

Inside National Cathedral

I couldn't get the whole church in my camera view.  I tried and tried, but because it is amongst other buildings and so huge, it just isn't that easy to get a picture.  Once inside, it was even more stunning.  It is worth a trip...for anyone.

By the time I was done gawking at the church, I decided to take a different way back to the Metro...maybe skipping the Metro all together and heading down to Georgetown on foot.  Okay, that was probably a bit ambitious, but I wasn't that far away.  I walked down toward Embassy Row and passed the Naval Observatory.  Yes, they have a clock outside.  I also learned that the Vice President's house is inside of the fences there.  I guess Joe Biden can always find out the time...just look out his window.

Embassy Row is fascinating on foot.  Country after country show themselves as you walk by.  By this time I was parched and extremely tired.  I could feel blisters on blisters that I had developed the day before.  My feet were sweaty and none of this was helping.  Unfortunately my brain tends to ignore my body at times and I decided to take a detour up past Woodrow Wilson's home.  I didn't go in, but snapped a picture of it.

Marines at Iwu Jima Statue

I thought I was about to die.  It was a warm day and the sun was beating down...and I needed a drink.  Not one 7-Eleven anywhere!  After trying to find a shortcut to get to the nearest Metro Station, I finally made it to DuPont Circle.  I gleefully jumped on the Metro and made my way down to the same coffee shop I had stopped at earlier in the day and got a water and another cappuccino.  Michigan and Notre Dame were playing in football, so I thought about staying there to watch, but I really wanted to get to Arlington National Cemetery.

So onto the Metro I went again...but something in my head told me to stop at the Rosslyn station so I could walk down and see the Iwu Jima Memorial.  But stupid me, I was disoriented when I got off the train and started walking downhill in the wrong direction.  Once I got about 4 blocks down, I realized I had screwed up and turned back around.  It took everything I had to walk back and then down to where the memorial was.

I'm glad I went.  It is an impressive statue and one that holds a lot of significance for the battle against Japan.

After watching a group of veterans getting their picture taken there, I moved on toward Arlington National Cemetery.

Arlington National Cemetery

Now, I can tell you, Arlington was a bit different than I expected.  First off, I don't know why, but I always thought that there were soldiers from all American wars in there.  But if I had thought deeper about it, knowing that Robert E. Lee gave up his home after the Civil War for the grounds, it only makes sense that it only houses soldiers from after that period.  Second, I didn't expect it to be SO BIG.  Wow...it went on forever.

After entering through the back entrance, I kept noticing that some of the graves had women's names on the backs of them.  I soon realized that the wives of these soldiers had been buried there.  What a nice touch, seeing as these women also sacrificed for the wars their husbands fought in.

If you've never been to Arlington National Cemetery, one thing is for sure, it is hilly.  It was really the death blow to my legs for the day.  I walked all the way up to Robert E. Lee's home.  There I was told the house was under construction.  The man who told me was very exuberant.  He kept waving pictures in everyone's face, saying (while shining the old man Robert E. Lee picture) "this is how he looked when it had its previous look" and then holding up a young man's picture (Robert E. Lee again) he said "this is what he looked like with our newest restoration."  At one point, I asked him a question and he answered but in what seemed like the middle of his answer, he jumped right back into holding up the two pictures and going through the same rant.  I was quite content to get some water and then head down to John F. Kennedy's Eternal Flame.

The Supreme Court

I did make it to the spot, but I was so tired, I don't think I really even felt like investigating too much.  I knew I had a long walk down hill and that I needed to get something to eat and to get back to my hotel to get my stuff (they had let me store it for the day, since I didn't have a room...a very nice hotel indeed...I would recommend it to anyone).

I became very frustrated because I couldn't find the Metro Station.  I just kept walking, getting madder by the minute.  Then, just before I got to a bridge that would have taken me back into Washington, I found the spot to get on.  After a 30 minute wait (with no place to sit), I got on the subway and got off in Alexandria.

I decided to go into Joe Thiesmann's restaurant for dinner.  I knew it was going to be a long trip back and I needed nourishment.  While sitting at the bar, watching Michigan get handled by Notre Dame, I started talking to the woman beside me.  Apparently she worked for the defense department.  We talked about where she was on September 11th, 2001 (trapped in Jacksonville, FL for work) and about how life was in D.C.  It reminded me of when I lived in Nashville and you could start talking to anyone and you'd soon find out they were a musician of some note.  But in Washington, it was all about politics.

The Capitol

After dinner, I went back and retrieved my bags and made my way back to the train.

Again, not a lot of people riding the train, so it seemed a bit disorganized.  But I found out what I was doing and sat down to wait.

There was a woman there that I could swear was Hope Davis (actress who played in Hearts of Atlantis and some other films).  She was one of those people you had to look at very closely to see they weren't who you thought they were.  She was talking with some older people.  I didn't pay it much mind.

Once I got on the train and received my seating arrangement, I was disappointed to find that my overhead light didn't work.  A very funny, entertaining steward made light of it (so to speak) and said he'd get me switched to another seat later if possible.

National Cathedral

Well, he did.  Next to a woman who was hacking something fearce.  I was worried I was going to have to listen to the garggle and grown show all night.  She was a nice woman though.  Her pet of many years had just died while she was away and she was sad she was going home to a quite home without it.  She talked a bit, but it was actually the people on the other side of the car that kicked up the longest of conversations.  It was the parents of the girl I thought looked like Hope Davis.  They were from Greenville and they had just spent a week with their daughter who apparently works for the FBI (I hope I didn't just blow her cover!).  I wish I could remember their names.  They were extremely nice people.

We talked most of the evening.  It wasn't until about 1 am that I was thirsty and went to the dining car to get a decaf coffee.  When I got there, no one was there to wait on me.  Finally a woman came in and asked what I wanted.  I told her and she said they didn't have anything made.  But she had a packet of tea from her personal collection and she'd be happy to share.  Sadly, the favor turned out bad, because after drinking some of the tea, I became sick to my stomach.  I didn't want to move.  The people next to me still seemed eager to talk, but I felt horrible.  I tried to rest it off as much as possible, but it lingered.  Sometimes I think closing your eyes only makes you focus on it more.

Smithsonian Museum

As we got into North Carolina, I started feeling better.  Again I started talking to the people next to me until we started seeing familiar sites near home.

When we arrived, it was 4 am.  The wife was asleep, so I hailed a cabbie.  He was more than happy to help me out and after $25 I made it home safe and sound...and slept until after noon that next day.

What a trip.  I had to have walked at least 40 or so miles in those 2 days.  I walked through museums, down streets, on Saturday non-stop most of the way.  If you had seen my feet when I finally took my shoes off on Sunday morning, you would have been appalled.  The blisters were incredible.

But yet, I can't think of much more than good memories from that trip.  Most people probably would have hated it because of the non-stop walking and not a lot of lingering...but that kind of adventure is right up my alley.