DC part 4

I wish I could express all of the feelings we had while in Washington DC for the Ia Drang reunion. Although we had the Barker Clan and Jeff there, we had a no real responsibilities. We did not have to cook or clean or plow or feed animals. We could come and go pretty much as we wanted without a word to anyone. Just being able to ride the Metro made us feel like "big girls". We were just soaking up every minute of our vacation.

On Monday, Jesse and I, along with Pam and Morgan, got up early to get passes to tour the Capitol. Once we got our ticket, we had a little time to kill before our scheduled tour, and the art museums were close by – you know where I wanted to spend my extra time. One museum had a special Picasso showing. I don’t know how others feel, but when I stand in front of a famous painting by one of the Masters, I get that awed feeling. Picasso is just pretty impressive. We also did some shopping in the gift store of the art museum – another favorite pastime.

When we finally got to tour the Capitol, it was worth the wait. We had an excellent guide who told us lots of interesting facts. After the tour, Pam and Morgan split off to do their thing; Jesse and I went to eat. Someone had told us to try the cafeteria under the building that offices the Senators and Representatives. It was a huge place and the food was reasonable. We got to eat cheaply and watch lots of different types of people. By this time it was afternoon, and we called Jeff who gave us instructions to ride the Metro to Old Town Alexandria to meet up with him. This was probably one of my favorite places of our trip. I loved the Old Town with its cute stores. I could have spent much more time searching out the nooks and crannies. Jeff also took us down to the river – with the sun setting it made some pretty pictures. Here we met up with the Barker Clan. Jeff got a taste of "herd shopping". He also got to keep the younger boys from diving in the fountain (it’s a long story), but I appreciated his patience with us all.

Some friends of Uncle Bob’s joined us for dinner. They chose to eat at an old pub that had lots of history. George Washington had his last birthday party there and once reviewed his troops from the doorway of the pub. Thomas Jefferson had his inaugural ball at this place – very impressive. When we opened the menus, Jesse gasped. Each entrée was about $20.00 or more. She leaned over and said, "What do we do?" I answered, "We eat." It is not every day that you get to sit where George Washington sat. About that time, Chip Parker, who had been a helicopter pilot in Vietnam and was a good friend of Uncle Bob’s, said he wanted to buy our dinner. Wow! This certainly made the evening even better. We ate well and had a great time.