Cherry Blossoms, Museums, and Memorials; Spring break in DC.

I had to be in DC for a two day meeting that overlapped with the boy's spring break. What to do? Simple solution, everyone was going to Washington DC for Spring Break! Great opportunity. My brother and his family live nearby. And there are lots of wonderful museums, monuments, memorials, and history. As you can see, Bart thought it was a great idea.



Best of all, it was the peak of the cherry blossoms in DC. This would provide a beautiful backdrop to the Nations capital. We got more than our share of cold and rain during the week, but we still had a great time.



My brother picked us up at the airport and we stayed with him and his family for the first couple days. The cousins had a great time playing together. The next morning we headed to the national mall for a day of seeing the sights in DC. The first thing we did was a tour of the capital. What an iconic building. I got everyone to stand still long enough to take this picture.



The tour was great. I really like the view from under the dome.



Next stop on the National mall, the Air and Space Museum. My ABSOLUTE favorite! Where else can you touch a piece of the moon. Alex clearly thought it was cool!



In the main hall they have all of the "Milestone of flight". Here you can see "Glamorous Glennis" (orange), the first plane to break the sound barrier. Charles Lindberg's "Spirit of Saint Louis" is to the left, the first plane to cross the atlantic. In the middle is "SpaceShipOne", the first commercial aircraft to leave the atmosphere.



Diane in the cherry blossoms. Beautiful!



The next day we went to the anex of the Air and Space Museum, known as the "Udvar-Hazy". It has all of the really large aircraft in the museum collection. This is the Enterprise, the test shuttle that practiced landing but was never in space. Its going to be moving to New York and be replaced by Discovery after the shuttle fleet is retired later this year.



Bart with the "Enola Gay", the plane that dropped the bomb on Hiroshima.



This is a nice shot that gives you an idea of how many planes are on exhibit at the Udvar-Hazy. Its a giant hanger near Dulles Airport. Very neat Museum.



Some very pretty pink blossoms near the Udvar-Hazy.



While I was at the meeting, Diane and the boys went to the National Zoo. They got some excellent views of the Pandas. I have to admit I was more than a little jealous.



Next the National Museum of American History. What a neat place. Here is Diane with the famous ruby slipper from the Wizard of Oz.



Bart and Alex with Abraham Lincoln's top hat. I thought it was quite amazing. It was part of a great exhibit about Lincoln.



After dim sum for lunch we went to the International Spy Museum. They didn't allow any pictures inside. It was a great museum. We also did the "Operation Spy" experience. What an hour of fun. We all got to play spy and participate in international intrigue.



Next day we started with the National Museum of Natural History. Diane clearly loved the dinosaurs.



The Hope Diamond is also on exhibit at the National Museum of Natural History. We told them we were there to pick our diamond. But no one would listen to us.



After the Natural History Museum we visited a bunch of Monuments and Memorials. First stop, the Jefferson Memorial. Its a wonderful domed structure with this great statue of Jefferson.



Next, the Lincoln Memorial. This sculpture is so impressive.



After walking past the Vietnam Memorial we had our first ever visit to the World War II Memorial. Very well done!



Next the Washington Monument. One of the great icons of DC. Its visible throughout the city. Thats Alex in the foreground.



Last sight the White House. To bad we didn't have time to stop in and visit Barack and Michelle. Maybe next time. We all agreed that we had a wonderful visit to the nations capital. Hopefully we will be back soon.