Washington DC Day Four - June 5

Up early again today and had breakfast in our room.  Busy schedule again!  Love it!  This awesome model was in the lobby of our hotel.  So much work has gone into it I just had to snap a couple of pictures.

 Down the hill of the hotel to the Metro.  Had to snap a picture of Murphy's of DC sign we see each time we walk up/down the hill.

 It's Tuesday and the Metro is once again a lot different than the weekend - it is packed in the morning.  Glad we had one day to get accustomed to the cars and route and now we can fight the crowds with the best of them.

 Got off the Metro by this stop specifically so I could get my picture taken by the VA Headquarters.  We hear about Headquarters all the time at work.  Now I can say I have been there!  Didn't go in the building - this is close enough!

 Walked around the White House.  This is the famous south lawn you hear about.

 Across the barracaded street (no random vehicles allowed on the streets around the White House now) is a protester who has set up.  Looks like he is living in this little paper tent.

 Shopped for gifts at the White House Gift Shop.  If you bought a few items, they would take your picture in this are set up for portraits.  We got 5 pictures to take.  Here is what we had done!

 Well worth what we spent!  Fun pictures.  We walked through the Washington Hotel across the street from the White House.  Beautiful place.  Used the luxurious bathrooms there.  Just had to snap a picture of Steph there.

 Can see the Capitol down the street from the White House.

 We are here, the front of the White House.  It is pretty disappointing these days.  You can't get very close at all, but that is what has happened to our country.  We have to have so much security to keep our citizens and dignitaries safe and you see this all over Washington DC now.

Got my requested shot in front of the White House.  I was there!

 Here is just one of the officers and cars in the area of the White House keeping an eye on everyone.

 The barracades set up around the White House.

 Walked down to the White House Visitor Center.  It was an awesome Visitor Center with lots of cool displays.  Enjoyed a movie there, too, about the inside of the White House. Steph and Josh took the tour once of the White House and it was short and not worth the hassle.  We decided to just visit the Visitor Center, which Steph and Josh said was so much better than the tour.

 Walked to the National Archives, past the J Edgar Hoover FBI Building, but the line was too long.  We have a time to be at the Capitol for a tour and didn't want to risk being late.

 The line at the Ford Theatre was also too long, so we did some souvenir shopping at Honest Abe's.  Not really Honest.  We found some errors on our receipts!  But we got some cool things.

 The house where Abe Lincoln died.

 Ford Theatre.  Will catch this another day.

 Stopped at McDonald's for a quick lunch.

 This sign fascinated us.  Guess you can't spend too much time in McDonalds. 

 Caught the Metro to Union Station.  Union Station is the Amtrak Station and also a shopping mall and meal court.

 We loved the pillars and had to take pictures by them.

 Peeking out this window and down onto the Amtrak trains.

 Left Union Station to walk to the Dirksen Building.

 The Dirksen Building holds the office of South Dakota Senator John Thune.  Josh had contacted Senator Thune's office and they were able to plan a tour of the Capitol for us.

 We gathered with a few other South Dakotan's in Senator Thune's office and at our designated time, met Becca, from Watertown, SD, who would be our tour guide.  She is an Intern in Senator Thune's office for a few weeks this summer.  We rode this shuttle from the Dicksen Building to the Capitol.

 Becca started our tour and pointed out many interesting things about this beautiful building.  She pointed out the corn carved into the top of the column.

 Some of the historical rooms in the Capitol.

 Looking up into the dome of the Capitol.

 Painting in the Rotunda of George Washington.

 The carvings around the Rotunda - this one if of the Wright Brothers and Kitty Hawk.

 George Washington crossing the Delaware.

 Here is Becca explaining one of the many beautiful statues in the Capitol.

 This is the spot straight under the Dome which is the exact center of Washington DC.

Statue of President Ronald Reagan.  Becca said it is made with a little of the Berlin Wall mixed into it.

General Eisehower.

This part of the Capitol is what Becca said brings lots of emotion to her.  It is a memorial to the passengers of the plane that was supposed to crash into the White House or Capitol on September 11, 2001.  The passengers took it upon themselves to divert the plane to Pennsylvania and crashed there and thus saved the White House and Capitol.  Becca says when she thinks of all the history that would have been lost had these brave people not done what they did, she gets very emotional.  I agree.  What brave Americans to not think about themselves, but of others and do what they did.

This is Joseph Wahl, founder of Yankton College, South Dakota.  His statue is in a room with statues of people from all the United States.

Caught the shuttle back to the Dirksen Building, under this sign, after our wonderful tour.  Thank you Becca!

Walked back to Union Station and caught the Metro back to our Hotel.  Here is the Metro Stop just down the hill from our Hotel entrance.

Relaxed in our room for awhile and then headed to our "downtown" for supper.  Walked past Murphy's and ate supper at Noodles & Co.

Steph is in love with Noodles & Co. rice krispie bars!

Stopped at this little market for more items to eat and drink in the room.

Bernie and I walked around the hotel when we got back to just look around our awesome hotel.  It was huge and lots and lots of meeting rooms, nooks and crannies.  About 9:30PM, men and women in power suits came thundering out of doors.  Hundreds and hundreds of them.  The next day we read in the paper that Warren Buffet had spoke at the Economics Club meeting at our hotel.  We were in the same hotel as Warren Buffet! Cool!  Back to our room and played cards before lights out.

Quote of the day:  Bernie commented on the security checks we went through all day - "They ask for your wallet, cell phone, coins, belt and hat.  If they ask for our shoes and clothes to delouse, I'm going to say wait a minute....." (remember the Holocaust Museum.....)