More of DC Museums

I continued my sister's adventure by taking her to see:

• the African American Museum
• the Holocaust Museum
• the National Archives
• the National Cathedral and afternoon tea
• Mt Vernon, the home of President George Washington
• Margaret Cho live !!!

The African American Museum has been opened almost one year and you have to book tickets at least 3 months in advance. I decided to rock up in the morning and try my luck at getting one of the limited tix handed out on the day. I find out that the these tix are given out at 1pm but the lady in charge was very kind and gave me two tix that were extras from another group. Great !! So we got in first thing but it was busy, crowded and very slow moving. We spent the entire day inside including lunch. There was even a queue to get into the gift shop at the end of the day and we weren't able to get into there. The museum was excellent. There was an extensive history of slavery dating back to the 1600's. The exhibits were confronting, sad, informative and left me shaking my head and asking why, what's wrong with people, how can people do this to another human being? Like all the museums here, more time is needed but we did get a good look around and enjoyed the upper levels that were focussed on music and culture and other modern achievements. This is a very important museum and it will be well attended for many years to come.

 

 

We visited the Holocaust museum and it was not as busy as my first visit earlier this year. I was able to read more and absorb more of the information. 

Again, another horrific part of history that I cannot comprehend. We were shocked at the collection of shoes and human hair and found ourselves googling that night to learn a few more things about Hitler and his sick obsessions.

 

The National Archives contains copies of pretty much every significant document in US history. In particular, I was completely thrilled to finally see the original copies of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights - signed !! There is also a copy of the 1297 Magna Carta of which only 4 copies exist in the world include one in Parliament House Canberra. We took the one hour tour through the Archives which was very interesting but I guess it's what you can't see is what's amazing. The digital records of everything, and I mean everything is all there and you can see it if you apply and visit etc. Just incredible. We couldn't take any photos inside but seeing those documents was something I've always wanted to see. Big tick there.

The Washington National Cathedral, the Cathedral Church of St Peter and St Paul in the City and Diocese of Washington DC. It's the 2nd largest church building int he US and the 4th tallest structure in DC. Construction started in 1907 and the church was progressively built in stages from the alter area towards the entrance. The stained glass windows are gorgeous and the tower at the top has spectacular views of DC. We took a one hour tour of the cathedral which concluded with afternoon tea at the top of the tower. This was a really nice way to end the tour. 

 

 

Mt. Vernon was the plantation house of George Washington, the first President of the United States, and his wife, Martha Dandridge Custis Washington. It's about 45 min drive away and is a good day out. The entry fee includes a tour of the house which was super busy the day we were there. I went a few months ago with friends and there were small groups taken through the house with a guide who gave a good explanation as you went through. However, this time was just one long conga line of ants and the guides around the house said a few things as you passed by them. I was disappointed with this but that's what busy periods are like I guess. The plantation has a small farm with some animals and George and Martha's crypts can be also be seen. The museum was extensive and it was interesting to learn about George the man. He's a pretty impressive guy and no wonder he became the first President.

 

To finish on a much lighter note, albeit crude and rude, Deb and I had bought tix for all of us to see Margaret Cho live. Margaret is a US (Korean born) comedian that we stumbled upon about 13 years ago. 

She is so funny, and we are always in tears within minutes of listening to her. The benefits of being in the US is getting to see such amazing acts like Maraget Cho so we did not miss the chance to see her live. It was a fantastic hour of laughs including her support act. 


This was a great way to wrap up my sister's time in Washington DC as we were headed out to Dallas the next day where we'd do final look at JFK stuff before she heading home to Australia.