Washington D.C. Friday & Saturday

Our Washington D.C. trip was fast but fun!  I think the girls really enjoyed it! 

We left South Carolina Friday morning about 9:00am.  We made our first stop at a place called South of the Border.  Wow has this place grown!  It is right on the North/South Carolina line.  It used to be 2 or 3 shops where you could buy fireworks.  It now has a small amusement park, restaurants and a bunch of souvenir shops!  It is really tacky, but made for some fun photos!

South of the Border

Yasmina

Nanna

Rodger being silly!

Nanna following her dad's example!

Yasmina getting in on the fun!

I also made sure we stopped at the border of each state we passed through so that the girls could get a picture.  Welcome to North Carolina!

Welcome to North Carolina.

Virginia isn’t just for lovers anymore!  It’s for families!

Once we arrived at Katelyn and Logan’s we freshened up and went out to eat at Olive Garden.  Yummy!

Logan, Katelyn Nanna, Yasmina & Rodger at Olive Garden in Virginia.

Saturday morning we were up and out of the house early.  We had a lot to see and not a lot of time!  Our first stop was the Pentagon.  There is a new 9-11 memorial there.  I am sad to say, it is ugly. 

Yasmina, Nanna & Rodger.

Yasmina & Nanna in front of the Pentagon.

Nest we went to Arlington National Cemetery.  There we saw the John F. Kennedy eternal flame,

Nanna & Yasmina at JFK's grave.

A beautiful gazebo,

Robert E. Lee’s home,

 And the amphitheater.   The girls and Rodger really liked sitting in the “kings” chair!

Queen Nanna

Queen Yasmina

King Rodger

Nanna, JoBeth & Yasmina

After we left the cemetery, Rodger dropped the girls and I off at the Thomas Jefferson Memorial.  (There was no place to park so the girls and I had to be fast!  Rodger drove in circles until we were ready to be picked up!  Thank goodness for cell phones!)

From there we found a parking spot on the Mall and started walking.  The Washington Monument was our next stop.

Nanna & Yasmina

 Unfortunately, it is closed.  It was damaged in the earthquake.  We did not get to go up in it, but the girls got to pose in front of it.

We next walked to the World War II Memorial.  It was beautiful and fairly new.  Rodger and I had not seen it before. 

Yasmina, Rodger & Nanna at the WWII Memorial

From there we hiked up to the Lincoln Monument past what should have been the Reflecting Pool.  Regrettably, it is under construction.  They have completely torn it out and are redoing it.  BUMMER!  However, Mr. Lincoln never disappoints.  He is quite spectacular up close and in person. 

Next to the Lincoln Monument is the Vietnam War Memorial.  It has the names of all the service men and women that died in the war.  The girls were amazed at all the names and thought that they represented all nations.  They were surprised that so many Americans had died.  It is a sad place, but beautifully done.

Now it was time to head back towards the Mall.  It is a LONG walk.  The girls were troopers.  We passed by the DAR headquarters (Daughters of the American Revolution) and I had my photo taken.  My sisters and I are DARs.   We have traced our heritage back and have found ancestors who fought in the revolutionary war. 

We then walked down Pennsylvania to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, the White House.  The girls were surprised at how small it was.  It seems so much bigger on TV.

Yasmina & Nanna at 1600 Pennsylvinia Ave.

We wanted to do a tour of the FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation) Building, but they do not give tours on the weekends.  GRRRR  But, of course, we got a photo outside!

Yasmina, Rodger & Nanna outside the FBI Buliding.

Our final stop of the day was at the National Archives.  There we saw the Declaration of Independence, The Constitution of the United States, the Bill of Rights and many other old, important documents.  No photos are allowed inside, but we did snap some outside the building.

Waiting in line at the National Archives.

On our way back to the truck, we had one last photo op with the Capital Building in the background.

(Did I mention, we could not remember where we parked the truck?  LOL  Note to self, always write down the street where you park!)

By the time we got back to Kati’s house we were all tired and hungry.  We had chicken noodles for dinner (Kati’s favorite) and went to bed early.  We had another big day coming up! 

But that, my dear readers,  is my blog for tomorrow!