Washington DC - Day 2

I'm usually an early riser. But today I didn't wake up until 8:05 a.m. My sister got up and ready and left for her conference and I was sleeping like a log. I didn't even hear her. And it's still a little weird for me each morning to think that the President and his wife are rolling out of their bed just a few blocks down the road from me.

I really love it here. I love the history, I love the symbolism, I love the energy, I love the metro.

I also love room service. I love when we leave a room that looks like this:


and when we come back it looks like this:


I have never walked so much in my life. This was a new pair of socks this morning. Apparently I am suffering from the affliction "tourist toe".



I'll spare you the picture of the blister the size of Rhode Island on my right foot and the one the size of Vermont on my left.

You're welcome.

I'm so thankful I brought a second pair of shoes that don't rub on the blisters.

Today we went to the Holocaust Museum. I expected it to be very moving and emotional. I have decided not to say very much about it, one, because there simply are no words, and two, because you need to see if with fresh eyes. I will say that I was impressed with the architecture of the building which was extremely symbolic and evoked strong impression and feeling in and of itself. You cannot take pictures there and I wouldn't have wanted to. There is also a portion of the museum for children called "Daniel's Story", and it was incredibly moving as well. If you go to Washington DC, don't leave without seeing this place. When my sister and I left it took some time before we could really speak of it. It's still difficult.

After lunch we split ways again. I decided to try the yarn shop that was closed yesterday. This time I didn't bother with the taxi since I have the metro all figured out now. The shop, on Capitol Hill, was a disappointment to me. It's called Stitch DC and I was expecting a first class knitting store. But it was small, the selection of yarn and supplies was extremely limited, and the prices were outlandish. Feeling pretty comfortable with traveling alone, I made my way to Bethesda and found a charming little knitting shop called, Knit & Stitch = Bliss. Their prices were much more reasonable and they had a wonderful selection of samples and yarns. While shopping there I found the most adorable patterns for baby sweaters and yarn. So of course, I was thinking of my little grandbabies and purchased this:

I am going to start Tyler's first so he can wear it right away. Then will come little Ava Claire's. I actually started casting on while riding the metro!

This evening we opted to just stay in our room. We had dinner in the hotel restaurant and are taking it easy tonight. Tomorrow I will be visiting the Pentegon. A young woman who grew up in our church now works there, and she is going to pick me up and take me on a personal tour.

One major disappointment today - we learned that the Smithsonian Museum of American History is closed for renovations.

I guess that just means that I'm going to have to come back again.