Red Pearl

We thought it would be fun to be in Washington DC for the Semiquincentennial celebration. For the most part we were not disappointed. The boat is currently in Norfolk, VA, and while we could take the boat to DC, it was more practical to catch the Amtrak. So we made it to DC and did “All the Things!”

We started with Mount Vernon, home of George Washington. It was very well done and I highly recommend it. It would probably be even more enjoyable in not 103 degree weather!

The next day we went to the Air and Space Museum and checked out the 250th “State Fair” where each state set up a space to represent their state. They also had concerts and rodeos each day.

This quote by Wilbur Wright really resonated with us, as we our on our boating adventure!

Arlington National Cemetery is beautiful and a giant memorial to those who have served our country. The Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is incredibly moving and just makes you grateful for our military men and women.

We visited DC several years ago and saw all the monuments. I really wanted to revisit them when they were all lit up at night. I felt they were even more beautiful and moving.

We initially planned to go to the fireworks on the mall. But, between the heat (did I say 102 degrees!) and the crowds, we opted to go to the US Marine Corps Memorial in Arlington. It was a good call, as we learned you needed to be at the mall around 5 for the 11 pm show in order to get a good seat, and then they evacuated the mall due to lightening. We showed up at the memorial around 8:45, sat through the rain storm and waited on the fireworks that were delayed until midnight!

The show was amazing! But the crowds at the Metro were a little scary! We were just 1-2 train stops out of the heart of the city, so the trains were already packed and could not take any more passengers. The metro staff and police were controlling the crowd by opening and closing gates. When the gates opened we would get crushed from behind. One woman fainted and we even saw a woman frantically trying to get off the train with her family get pushed back in and separated from her family. At this point we decided to take a train further into the city and wait it out at a more sane train station. We watched packed train after train go by until about 2 a.m. We finally caught one and got to our hotel around 2:45

We definitely had an unforgettable 4th of July!

We are settle back in Norfolk and plan to be here until August 1st and then continue north. Our plan is to make it to Syracuse, NY in mid September. At that point we will pull the boat out of the water for the winter and return home to Lawrence! Thanks again for following along with us.