Our Nation's Capitol

Washington DC is pretty impressive. Like Mom, I think it's sheer scale really has an impact on anyone who's visiting for the first time. If you've never been to the US Capitol, it just isn't possible to fully grasp how enormous it is! It's very grand.

So, let's get started.

Day 1
We knew it was going to be a long day but we were excited so it was ok. We left for the airport at 4:30...AM! Our first stop was the hotel, to drop off our luggage. Luckily, they had some rooms ready so we got to check in early. Our first stop was the American History Museum. If you love history, this is the place for you!

After that, we headed over to the tour bus area. We got a 2 day pass on a "hop on, hop off" tour bus. Everyone should do this! It's awesome! It takes you by all best spots. We didn't "hop off" until the Lincoln Monument though;

Then we walked over to the Korean War Memorial;

After that, we went to Arlington Cemetery. 

This one was tough for me. The loss of human life on this scale is just so hard to comprehend. Over 400,000 men and women are buried here. On average, Arlington oversees 30 burials a day. 

sigh

After this, we headed over to the Vietnam Was Memorial. Again, unless you are standing right there, in front of that wall, it's impossible for you grasp the enormity of loss.

After that...back on the bus, headed to our hotel. We were exhausted! It was well into the 90's, humid, sunny, and according to my Fitbit, we walked almost 10 MILES that day! Whew. Not bad for a couple of old broads :-)